FEDERAL Environment Minister Tony Burke hasn't pleased everyone in his heritage listing of parts of the West Kimberley but sparked lively debate over dinosaur footprints and red tape.
Mr Burke travelled to Gambanan near One Arm Point on the Dampier Peninsula today to join traditional owners for the announcement.
He declared that more than 19 million hectares of the West Kimberley would be national heritage listed.
But environmental groups say the listing doesn't go far enough to protect the region's pristine natural values.
West Australian Premier Colin Barnett and mining interests, meanwhile, have slammed the listing, saying it will lock the region up in red tape and stifle development.
The exclusion in the listing of James Price Point, the site of a controversial Woodside Petroleum-led $30 billion gas hub project, has upset opponents of the development.
Dinosaur tracks that cross the intertidal zone by the site are listed, however, meaning Woodside will have to apply to Mr Burke for his assessment before any development is allowed.
The minister said the heritage listing would protect the region's unique wildlife, stunning coastline, gorges and waterfalls, ancient Aboriginal cultural traditions and its pastoral and pearling history.
But he told reporters the listing would not mean a "shutdown of mining".
"Within that area you don't have a national park situation, we don't have a lock-up of any sort. But what you have is identified values that will be taken into account from this point on."
Kimberley Land Council Chief Executive Officer Nolan Hunter said traditional owners welcomed the decision, saying it cemented the region as "a strong and significant Aboriginal place".
"National heritage listing will not stop development, but it will provide an extra layer of protection to ensure the indigenous cultural values of the region are retained and enjoyed by future generations."
But the WA premier said red tape would mean many smaller businesses, such as tourism ventures, could not afford the process of proving their projects would not harm heritage values.
Mr Barnett said he was disappointed the federal government had heritage listed the region but not put money towards protecting or preserving it.
"It actually needs to be protected and that means people, money and scientific programs, not just drawing lines on a map and saying, 'There you've saved the Kimberley,' because you haven't," Mr Barnett said.
Nicole Roocke, director of WA's Chamber of Minerals and Energy, said the extra level of red tape would increase project costs, cause delays and make financing projects harder.
"I think there will certainly be serious consideration given by companies to whether the projects are or will continue to be viable with this listing," she said.
The Association of Mining and Exploration Companies policy manager Graham Short said the Kimberley was "not all pristine and iconic" and the extra layer of approval would affect investment decisions.
Woodside says it can "coexist" with the heritage listing but has downplayed the heritage value of dinosaur footprints at its proposed gas hub site, 60km north of Broome.
A spokesman said studies had found the footprints were "not of museum grade" and prints in other parts of the Dampier Peninsula were greater in number and of better quality.
Environs Kimberley acting director Emma Belfield said the heritage listing "isn't nearly strong enough" to protect the region's natural values.
"Where those natural values have been recognised, in large part they are in already protected areas, so in our assessment there isn't a step forward," she told AAP.
Ms Belfield said she couldn't imagine how Woodside could satisfy the minister that its large gas precinct would not harm the dinosaur tracks.
"I could only hope that this is a setback for Woodside in that regard," she said.
Wilderness Society national campaign director Lyndon Schneiders said the heritage listing would be meaningless if the gas hub went ahead.
"Minister Burke will not be remembered for heritage listing the Kimberley if James Price Point proceeds. Rather, he'll be remembered as the minister who handed the Kimberley over to industrialisation," he said.
source: http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/...oesnt-please-all/story-e6freonf-1226126728205
