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A major review into native title and cultural heritage approvals in Western Australia’s resources sector has urged more than two dozen recommendations as industry groups warn of consultants “clipping the ticket” as part of the process.
And the state’s peak resources advocacy group believes the findings of the “Kelly report” – authored by National Native Title Tribunal member Glen Kelly – shows the current system is not working, and consultants have become the “primary beneficiaries” of the process.
The report, which was handed down on Tuesday, contains 25 recommendations, including a cross-agency review of Aboriginal consultation measures to reduce duplication and establish consistency.
Following the release of the report, the WA government announced a new Aboriginal cultural heritage standard for exploration and prospecting to provide greater certainty around costs, requirements, and protections.
Aaron Morey, the chief executive of the Chamber of Minerals and Energy WA, said unclear and duplicative heritage requirements and rapidly rising consultation and survey costs had emerged as significant barriers to resources development in the state.
“CME strongly believes Traditional Owners should play a central and active role managing cultural heritage but it has been clear for some time now that the current system is not working for anyone,” he said.
“Mining companies currently contend with nearly two dozen overlapping policies and regulations relating to First Nations consultation that span three tiers of government.
“That has placed an enormous burden on both proponents and Traditional Owners, leading to blowouts in approvals timeframes, consultation fatigue and confusion over responsibilities and requirements.
“This has allowed consultants to become the primary beneficiaries of the system with zero improvement to heritage outcomes.”
The Association of Mining and Exploration Companies echoed Morey’s comments.
AMEC chief executive Warren Pearce said protecting Aboriginal cultural heritage was “non-negotiable”.
“But the current system has become too costly, too slow and too uncertain,” he said.
“Too much of the current system is being captured by consultants clipping the ticket, instead of delivering direct benefits to Traditional Owners and communities.
“Consultants have an important role to play, but they should not be the biggest beneficiaries of the cultural heritage system.”
An ACIL Allen survey commissioned by AMEC found that for every $100 spent by industry complying with cultural heritage legislation, about $60 went to external consultants such as lawyers, anthropologists, and archaeologists.
“Around $36 flows to Aboriginal groups covering representative body costs, and only $4 goes directly to Aboriginal people,” an AMEC statement said.
Further, the survey found it took an average of 552 days to comply with the legislation, while the cost for an Aboriginal cultural heritage survey was typically more than $23,000 a day.
“These figures show exactly why reform is needed. We cannot have a system where the majority of compliance costs are being captured before they reach the people the system is meant to support,” Pearce said.
WA opposition mines and petroleum spokesman Shane Love also believed WA’s native title and heritage system was no longer working as intended.
“Western Australia relies on exploration to discover the next generation of mining projects, yet junior explorers are being hit with increasing costs, uncertainty and delays before a shovel ever goes in the ground,” he said.
“The report confirms that many of these issues stem from a lack of consistent standards and a lack of coordination across government.”
Mines and Petroleum Minister David Michael said the lack of effective minimum standards for heritage protection in exploration was a significant barrier for industry in the state, and said the government was committed to addressing industry concerns about costs and delays.
Aboriginal Affairs Minister Don Punch said the review made it clear that the state needed clearer guidance, stronger standards and better access to information.
“The Cook Labor Government has committed significant funding in this space, and we will continue working in partnership with Traditional Owner organisations and industry to build on that investment, improve engagement and ensure cultural heritage is respected at every stage of project development,” he said.
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