The Kalkadoon People have today been recognised as native title holders of approximately 38,719 square kilometres of land and waters in the Mt Isa region, including areas of reserves unallocated State land, pastoral leases and other leases.
At a Federal Court hearing in Mt Isa, Justice John Dowsett made the consent determination recognising the Kalkadoon People’s native title rights and interests to that area.
This consent determination, and associated Indigenous Land Use Agreements, finalise the Kalkadoon application. The Kalkadoon People hold exclusive native title rights in relation to about 4078 square kilometres of land. The Federal Court also recognised the Kalkadoon People’s non-exclusive native title rights over about 33,432 square kilometres of land and waters. The non-exclusive rights recognised include the right to take, use, share and exchange traditional natural resources from the area for personal, domestic and non-commercial communal purposes; to conduct cultural and spiritual activities and ceremonies on the area, and to maintain places of importance and areas of significance to the native title holders under their traditional laws and customs.
National Native Title Tribunal President Graeme Neate congratulated all the negotiation parties on the outcome. ’This is a very significant event, achieving the consent of 42 respondents over an area of intensive mining and pastoral activity. The resolution of these applications results in the formal legal recognition of the Kalkadoon People’s ancient ties to this land and waters.’
‘The achievement of consent to this determination involved both National Native Title Tribunal and Federal Court mediation and case management, and the participation of numerous persons representing the Kalkadoon People, the State of Queensland, Local Government authorities, mining interests, pastoral interests, infrastructure providers, and other persons.”
‘The outcomes follows years of negotiations, but they demonstrate that when parties are willing to work co-operatively, native title and related outcomes can be achieved by agreement. The agreement-making process establishes positive relationships for co-operative co-existence between native title holders and other interest holders in land and waters. This is the best approach to settling native title issues”, Mr Neate said.
Note: There have been 62 determinations of native title in Queensland to date; 59 of these were resolved by consent. There have been 300 Indigenous Land Use Agreements registered in Queensland. |