The impending implementation of WA’s Aboriginal Heritage laws has caused deep concerns among farmers and tradies across the state.
The online petition lodging by Liberals’ MLC Neil Thomson petition on behalf of the Pastoral and Graziers Association WA has gained close to thirty thousand signatures so far.
Mr. Thomson held multiple community seminars in WA’s regional town, all the way from Broome to the goldfields. The response has been overwhelming as town halls were packed with concerned residents.
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“There are a lot of anxiety in the room, and I think people went away probably more confused than the day they walked in, certainly that’s my impression,
“I spoke to a lot of people afterward, people are not happy about the new laws that are going to potentially apply.
“I feel they don’t have enough information, they don’t have guidelines for First Nations Heritage surveys, the system is not online, we just don’t have enough information.
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“Up here in Kalgoorlie and the Goldfields, we don’t even have any prospect of a local Aboriginal Cultural Heritage service because the native title has not been determined.
“We have major concerns in this region about the future of ongoing ingenuity of business with these new laws.”
The Pastoral and Graziers Association WA is urging the government to delay the action for six months to set up proper processes. President Tony Seabrook says the act will bring more red tape for food producers who are already under pressure.
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“There is something fundamentally wrong (about these laws), these are the people who are concerned and don’t know… The process of consultation certainly hasn’t worked,” he said.
“I say the consultation process has failed dramatically, if the government puts ordinary legislation in front of people in the community and they are up in arms signing petitions, and the government says there is nothing wrong with the legislation then they have failed to address their concerns.”
Under these new laws, every piece of land in Western Australia bigger than 1,100m square will need activities to permit clearing trees, building fences, and digging farm dams and footing.
It will also affect tradies in the city, as processes may take up to a year with no guarantees of approval.