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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2010-11-23 Daily Xml
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INNAMINCKA REGIONAL RESERVE

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for State/Local Government Relations, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Consumer Affairs, Minister for Government Enterprises, Minister for the City of Adelaide) (15:29): I move:

That this council requests His Excellency the Governor to make a proclamation under section 34A(2) of the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972 excluding the following land from the Innamincka Regional Reserve: sections 791, 1081-1084, Out of Hundreds (Innamincka); allotments 41, 44, 48, 63-72, 77-82, 84-100, 115-118, 127-132, 135, 136, 151-164, 168-175, 179-186, 188-194, 196, 198-201, Township of Innamincka, Out of Hundreds (Innamincka); allotments 51 and 52, deposited plan 84007, Out of Hundreds (Innamincka); allotment 54, deposited plan 84009, Out of Hundreds (Innamincka).

The purpose of the motion is to excise the Innamincka township and associated infrastructure from the Innamincka Regional Reserve. The township of Innamincka is located wholly within the Innamincka Regional Reserve. Land tenure within the surveyed town boundaries is a mosaic of freehold title and crown land. The crown land parcels are legally part of the Innamincka Regional Reserve. The township includes: the restored Australian Inland Mission Nursing Home, the Innamincka Hotel, the Innamincka Trading Post and the airstrip located east of the township.

The Innamincka Regional Reserve covers 1.3 million hectares and was constituted in 1988. The reserve provides a framework to protect significant natural and cultural values, in particular, wetlands and watercourses associated with the Cooper Creek, while allowing use of the natural resources through petroleum exploration and extraction and pastoral production.

The state recognises that the Yandruwandha/Yawarrawarrka people (the YY people) are the traditional—

The Hon. J.S.L. Dawkins interjecting:

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: Hereafter, I will call them the YY people so that I don't insult them too much with my pronunciation. The YY people are the traditional owners of this land and assert native title over the land and waters in the area and their native title claim. The claim area comprises 40,304 square kilometres and includes the Innamincka township.

It is state policy to resolve native title claims through negotiation rather than trial, wherever possible. In recognising the native title claim, the government has entered into the Innamincka Township Indigenous Land Use Agreement (ILUA) with the YY Traditional Land Owners (Aboriginal Corporation).

The Innamincka Township ILUA provides for: the alteration of the Innamincka Regional Reserve boundaries to effect the excision of the township (including the town airstrip) from the reserve; freeholding and transfer of four allotments to the corporation; and the surrender by the YY people to the state of all their native title rights and interests in relation to all land and waters within the Innamincka township area.

The Innamincka Township ILUA also provides for the construction of residential dwellings and a museum office for the YY people on the transferred allotments. The proportion of the reserve to be excised (covering 182 hectares) includes the Innamincka township and adjacent airstrip. The area being excised has low conservation values due to its use as a township. On excision from the reserve, the land will revert to the status of unalloted crown land under the Crown Land Management Act 2009. With this status, the land will be under the management of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources.

Ongoing development of the township and freeholding of allotments will be guided by the relevant development plan called 'Land not within a council area Eyre, Far North, Riverland and Whyalla'. As noted in the development plan, future development within Innamincka will seek to ensure that the highly valued historic and outback character of the township is conserved and enhanced by respecting the existing pattern of development and the appearance of historic buildings, while acknowledging the continued role of the township in the provision of goods and services to visitors and travellers.

Development will also respect and recognise the fact that Innamincka is located in a region of major economic importance to the state in terms of petroleum production and is surrounded by extensive pastoral activity and a natural environment of national and international significance. Consideration of this matter by parliament enables the native title claim to be finalised through the freeholding of the agreed township allotment for transfer to the YY people.

The provision of freehold allotments to the YY people will provide them with an opportunity to undertake a small business enterprise and to have ownership and access to residential premises within their traditional lands and will provide easy access to these lands. This will enable the YY people to carry on their affiliation with the land and to teach traditional knowledge and practices to younger generations. Excisions of the township from the regional reserve will also remove existing hurdles to development for other uses, as land within the township cannot currently be considered for freehold for residential or other purposes.

It is probably timely for me to provide answers to questions that were raised in the other house. A question was asked in the other house about how many blocks in total are currently privately owned and/or under other use. I have been advised that there are approximately 150 blocks in total in the township and that approximately 100 will come out of the reserve and will be considered for freeholding. Outside this, there are currently 46 freehold blocks that are either privately owned and/or under other use. These blocks, which are owned by individuals, are not affected by the excision of the land from Innamincka Reserve because they are not legally part of the reserve.

Another question asked was: how many blocks will be available for the YY people? I have been advised that four allotments are being freeholded to the YY people to build three residential buildings and one museum/meeting space/office. The form of these structures is yet to be determined by the YY; they will obviously have to gain the necessary development approvals and comply with the Development Act.

We were asked questions about the public release of any additional blocks. I have been advised that this would follow the normal process for the disposal of crown land which, given the location of Innamincka, could either be for sale, auction or tender for specific purposes. No assessment has been made as to which crown land blocks will be suitable for sale. The blocks could be sold by auction, sale or call for tender, and it is likely that it will be a staged release of suitable blocks rather than a wholesale release of all blocks. Some blocks may not be suitable for development, and the method of disposal (sale, auction or tender) will be based on assessment of the most effective method, given the unique location of Innamincka and, obviously, the perceived level of demand for the blocks.

There was also a question about the ongoing management and zoning. I have been advised that, as discussed, the ongoing development of the township and freeholding of allotments will be guided by the relevant development plan, which is called 'Land not within a council area, Eyre, Far North, Riverland and Whyalla'. I am advised that no changes will be required to the development plan, which has comprehensive development principles around the type of buildings to ensure that they minimise the impact on the environment and also fit with the historic outback character of Innamincka. The Outback Areas Community Authority will continue to deliver the local government-style services for the township.

In terms of DENR control over some of the blocks, I am advised that DENR manages crown land throughout the state on behalf of the minister where that crown land is not dedicated for another purposes, such as local council. Until such time as they are disposed of or licensed for another purpose, the blocks will remain vacant land, for which DENR has management responsibility. A question was also asked by the Hon. Kelly Vincent about whether the traditional owners had been engaged. I have been advised that the traditional owners entered into the ILUA in 2008 and have been kept informed. Excising the township was a commitment from the state government as part of that ILUA agreement, as supported by the YY people.

I understand that there were questions also by email by the Hon. Mark Parnell: where exactly is the land to be excised? The land is in the Innamincka township on the banks of the Cooper Creek. How much land is to be excluded? As I have answered, 180 hectares. We have been asked: are there any mining or exploration licences or applications for such over any of this land to be excluded (I am sure it means excised)? I have been advised that, no, there are not. With those responses now on the record, I commend the motion to the council.

The Hon. J.M.A. LENSINK (15:41): I thank the minister for those responses to questions; I understand the member for Stuart has a few questions that he is going to ask in the debate in the House of Assembly. My comments will be brief because the minister has covered all the issues. This motion is required under section 34A of the National Parks and Wildlife Act. While it has descended on us fairly quickly, I am grateful to the minister for the letter he sent in explanation, dated 18 November, in which he says that notice was given on Tuesday 14 September. However the National Parks and Wildlife Act requires that 14 sitting days must elapse before parliament can consider the motion, so that we can therefore debate it today, the 23rd. He further states:

Consideration of this matter by the parliament in the current sitting enables the native title claim to be finalised through the freeholding of the agreed township allotments for transfer to the YY people.

I think we all agree, now that the ILUA has proceeded and this is part of the agreement, that this is an appropriate course of action, and we wish them well in their deliberations and commend the motion to the council.

The Hon. M. PARNELL (15:42): I say at the outset that I am disappointed that this matter has come on at such short notice because I was hoping to make a more considered contribution. I remind members that this was not on the priority list circulated to members by the minister on 12 November 2010. Certainly we know it has been on the Notice Paper, but those of us who have a considerable number of portfolios to look after tend to rely on the goodwill of the government to at least tell us when it is coming to a vote, and to be told just a few hours ago that it is being moved and voted on today is not the appropriate way to deal with these things.

I have a number of further questions I want to put on the record in relation to this motion and, whilst it is not my intention to unduly delay the matter, I will perhaps take up the minister's invitation to seek leave to conclude my remarks towards the end so that we can get some of these questions back. I know that other members want to make a contribution before this is resolved. Yes we will come back to it today, but I want to put the following on the record.

By way of background, for those members who are not familiar with the history of the Innamincka Regional Reserve, as the former director of National Parks, Bruce Leaver, described, he was asked by the Premier to acquire the Innamincka pastoral lease and he was given no money to do so, which meant that the mining companies and pastoral companies got a fantastic deal out of transferring what was a pastoral lease to the control of the National Parks and Wildlife Service. The pastoralists got a longer term than they would have had under the pastoral lease, and the mining companies got a special deal as well.

Regional reserves are often referred to as 'Clayton's parks'—the park you have when you are not having a park—because all the normal activities in the pastoral zone are allowed in pastoral leases, mining and grazing in particular. Having said that, the debate over the wisdom of regional reserves as a category was had some decades ago and I do not need to go into that. In terms of this current exercise, my first series of questions relates to the consultation process.

The minister has explained that the traditional owners have been consulted and that they have reached an agreement with the government, and that is fine. What I would like to know is: who else was consulted? Were conservation groups consulted, in particular, were the Conservation Council, the Wilderness Society and the Nature Conservation Society consulted? I would like to know whether the advice of the Parks and Wildlife Advisory Committee was sought and, if so, what advice did it provide to the government?

In relation to the land to be excised, I think the minister has explained fairly clearly that we are talking about 182 hectares, being land within the township. My question is: can we please see a map of the land to be excised? The minister has explained that the land to be transferred to the traditional owners as freehold consists of some four allotments. My question is: how many hectares are comprised in those four allotments?

Of the land that is to be transferred by freehold title to the traditional owners, will it be held by those groups in their incorporated entity or will it be held by the Aboriginal Lands Trust or will it be held by some other entity on their behalf? In relation to the other allotments that are not to be transferred to the traditional owners, the minister went through the process—and I ask to be excused if I have misunderstood what the minister said but it is difficult to do this on the run—and, as I understand what the minister said, there are some 150 blocks.

My understanding is that 100 of them will remain as unallotted crown land under the control of the environment department and some 46 which are already in private hands. Could the minister clarify if that is the case? When the minister talked about how the blocks would be disposed of I presumed she was talking about just those 100 that will remain as unallotted crown land and that they will be sold, auctioned, put out to tender or whatever.

If the minister could explain: are there blocks that are within the township that are not included in the 182 hectares, and are there private, freehold titles outside those 182 hectares? In relation to development control, the minister answered some of the questions I had in relation to the current arrangements, but I am still a little unclear about the relationship between the development control provisions of the National Parks and Wildlife Act and the provisions under the Development Act.

My understanding is that there is a current management plan under the National Parks and Wildlife Act for the Innamincka Regional Reserve. Under the regulations under the Development Act, any national park management plan is incorporated by reference into the development plan, yet there is also a separate development plan that the minister referred to: the land not within a council area development plan.

My questions to the minister are: at present, are development applications assessed against the management plan for the park, or are they assessed against the development plan under the Development Act or a combination of both? Are the provisions of the management plan consistent with the provisions in the development plan? Whilst the minister said that there were no changes required under the development plan for the area, I would like to know whether, in fact, there is any inconsistency at present between what the management plan for the regional reserve says about development and what the development plan itself says.

I had a question in relation to mining but the minister has answered that: there are no mineral exploration licences or extraction licences (mining licences) over any area of the land. The question I do have, though, is if mining rights were to be acquired over any part of this 182 hectares whether any additional requirements would be imposed on mining companies.

Presumably, the provisions related to notice of entry would need to be applied, which perhaps might not have been necessary previously. Specifically, I would like to know whether the provisions in the Mining Act relating to exempt land will now apply for the first time to land within the Innamincka township boundary, once excised from the regional reserve.

I would also like to know, in relation to the pastoral legislation, whether any part of this 182 hectares is included within a pastoral lease under the Pastoral Land Management and Conservation Act, and whether any part of that land now needs to be excised from that lease. Mr President, I do have some more consultation which I would like to undertake this afternoon so, if the house is willing, I seek leave to conclude my remarks on motion.

Leave granted; debate adjourned.

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