❓ Question on Notice regarding Aboriginal Heritage protection, specifically concerning the display of sites pending assessment on the Aboriginal Heritage Inquiry System (AHIS) and the backlog of unassessed sites. The Minister provides data on site lodgements, assessments, and consents.
AnsweredQoN 837Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
(1) The former Government's policy broke with years of practice by not displaying on the Aboriginal Heritage Inquiry System (AHIS) all sites and places pending assessment by the Aboriginal Cultural Materials Committee (ACMC). Will the Minister reverse this Liberal Government policy and ensure that all sites and places reported under section 15 of the Aboriginal Heritage Act 1972 are displayed on the public AHIS site? (2) If no to (1), why not? (3) If yes to (1), when will the new policy be implemented? (4) How many sites are lodged pending assessment that are not currently displayed on the AHIS? (5) Since March 2017, can the Minister confirm: (a) how many sites and places were reported; (b) how many were assessed by the ACMC; (c) how many were assessed as sites under section 5 of the Aboriginal Heritage Act 1972 ; and (d) how many of the sites listed under (5) (c), did the Minister give section 18 consent to destroy? (6) In Opposition, the Minister was concerned by the large number of sites in a backlog pending an assessment for inclusion on the Register of Sites. Will the Minister please confirm how many sites are pending assessment by the ACMC at the time of providing this answer? (7) Does the Minister acknowledge that an administrative backlog of this magnitude reduces the confidence in the State's Aboriginal Heritage protection system? (8) What is the Minister's plan to reduce the backlog of unassessed sites?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
10 April 2018
Responded by
Minister for Environment representing the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs
Response time
9 days
(1)-(3) The Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage (DPLH) undertakes quality assurance on the information submitted, prior to publishing.
(4) 2,587
(5) (a) 770
(b) 406
(c) 108
(d) There were 28 consents to use the land for the purpose identified in the Notice with any conditions applied by the Minister.
(6) 15,842
(7)-(8) The procedural fairness processes associated with the assessment of all these lodged places by the Aboriginal Cultural Materials Committee presents a significant challenge for DPLH and numerous stakeholders who are requested to comment on DPLH’s reports and recommendations for each and every site. Reducing the number of places awaiting completion of the assessment process is desirable, and DPLH is working on this while maintaining timeliness in processing statutory applications. In the meantime, all Aboriginal heritage sites are protected by the Aboriginal Heritage Act 1972 , and lodged places in the publicly available Aboriginal Heritage Information System provide an alert to land users that there is Aboriginal heritage to consider, and therefore to contact DPLH for advice.
(4) 2,587
(5) (a) 770
(b) 406
(c) 108
(d) There were 28 consents to use the land for the purpose identified in the Notice with any conditions applied by the Minister.
(6) 15,842
(7)-(8) The procedural fairness processes associated with the assessment of all these lodged places by the Aboriginal Cultural Materials Committee presents a significant challenge for DPLH and numerous stakeholders who are requested to comment on DPLH’s reports and recommendations for each and every site. Reducing the number of places awaiting completion of the assessment process is desirable, and DPLH is working on this while maintaining timeliness in processing statutory applications. In the meantime, all Aboriginal heritage sites are protected by the Aboriginal Heritage Act 1972 , and lodged places in the publicly available Aboriginal Heritage Information System provide an alert to land users that there is Aboriginal heritage to consider, and therefore to contact DPLH for advice.
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