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SBS Australia
12-07-2025
- General
- SBS Australia
Gas plant critics warn 'world is now watching' after Murujuga gets World Heritage listing
Environmentalists fear the extension of a gas project could jeopardise the future of an ancient Indigenous rock art collection after it was listed as a World Heritage site. The Murujuga rock art landscape in Western Australia was listed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) as a heritage site on Friday after intense lobbying by the federal government. "For more than 50,000 years, the Ngarda-Ngarli people have protected and managed this significant land and seascape — and today, I am proud to announce that Murujuga will receive another level of protection via the World Heritage system," Environment Minister Murray Watt said while visiting the organisation's headquarters in Paris. "Achieving World Heritage status ensures stronger protections under Australian legislation and will allow the world to celebrate this unique cultural landscape," Watt added. Murujuga contains the world's largest, densest and most diverse collection of rock art engravings — known as petroglyphs — and some are estimated to be more than 50,000 years old. They depict animals, plants and human figures, and are visible due to the colour and contrast between the removed varnish layer and the underlying brighter weathered rind of the host rocks. The site was previously put forward to UNESCO in 2023 but Australia's application was referred back in May. UNESCO recommended state and federal governments address concerns that nearby acid emissions, including those from Woodside's Burrup gas hub, were degrading the art. The North West Shelf gas project is seen with a petroglyph of a turtle at Murujuga Cultural Landscape in Burrup Peninsula, Western Australia. Source: Supplied / Save Our Songlines / Conservation Council of Western Australia The peninsula in northwest WA near Karratha is home to two gas plants, a fertiliser plant and iron ore and salt export facilities. While environmentalists welcomed the heritage listing, they warned that the Woodside project extension could cause further damage. "The world is now watching," Australian Conservation Foundation chief executive Kelly O'Shanassy said. "The onus is on the Australian government to make sure the values recognised by UNESCO are not jeopardised by ongoing industrial pollution. If the federal government is serious about protecting Murujuga and making sure it is not moved to an "in danger" list, Senator Watt should reject the gas hub's proposed expansion," O'Shanassy added. Mardathoonera woman and Murujuga traditional custodian Raelene Cooper, who was at the UNESCO meeting, said she welcomed the global recognition of Murujuga but cautioned that industry could still harm the rock art site . "This is a momentous day for our old people and our future generations, to have Murujuga's outstanding universal heritage values recognised by the world," she said. "Meanwhile, fertiliser plants are still being built around our sacred sites and polluting gas plants will emit toxic acid on our rock art for another 50 years. "We will continue to fight for protection for this very special place, and the world is now aware of what we are up against." Watt said World Heritage nomination "had the free, prior and informed consent of the five language groups who all come together to care for Murujuga today". Woodside said the listing was "well-deserved global recognition of the petroglyphs and the unique living cultural values of Murujuga" to Australia and the world. "Woodside has been a proud supporter of the World Heritage nomination and assessment process. We look forward to continuing to work closely with the Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation and Traditional Custodians on the continued protection and management of this globally significant area," the company said in a statement sent to SBS News. Greens Leader Larissa Waters joined the chorus of advocate voices in urging Senator Watt to cancel the approval for the North West Shelf project. "UNESCO had warned that Woodside's gas plant threatened the longevity of the rock art prior to the listing, but Minister Watt successfully lobbied other nations when he should have simply rejected Woodside's climate bomb extension in the first place," she said. Woodside has estimated that keeping the North-West Shelf operating until 2070 could lead to emissions of up to 4.3 billion tons tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO 2 -e), the majority of which will come from exported fossil fuel products. That's over nine times Australia's total annual emissions, which currently sit around 440.2 million tonnes CO 2 -e. Senator Waters added that world heritage laws should be bolstered to better protect listed sites. Australia has 21 properties on the World Heritage list, which includes the Budj Bim Cultural Landscape, Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park and the Great Barrier Reef. UNESCO added several other sites to its list, including the Xixia Imperial Tombs in China and the Faya Palaeolandscape in the United Arab Emirates.
The Guardian
11-07-2025
- General
- The Guardian
WA Murujuga rock art placed on Unesco world heritage list
The Western Australian Murujuga landscape of more than a million pieces of indigenous rock art, some as old as 50,000 years, was inscribed on the world heritage list on Friday after a lobbying campaign by the Australian government persuaded a 21-country committee that nearby industrial emissions were not eroding the rocks. At a meeting of the world heritage committee in Paris, the Murujuga cultural landscape was acknowledged as a 'manifestation of creative genius, inscribed in the landscape since deep time'. The nomination was led by the Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation (MAC), and members of its delegation in Paris were in tears as the decision was confirmed. Traditional owners had been pushing for world heritage status for the site for two decades. Murujuga becomes Australia's 21st world heritage site, joining places such as the Sydney Opera House, the Great Barrier Reef, Kakadu and Lord Howe Island, and global sites including the Great Wall of China, Macu Picchu, the temples of Angkor and the pyramids of Giza. Murujuga also becomes Australia's second world heritage site recognised for its Aboriginal cultural values, joining the 6,600-year-old Budj Bim aquaculture system in Victoria that was inscribed in 2019. The site, covering almost 100,000 hectares, was initially the land of Yaburara people who were massacred by colonists in 1868. The Ngarda-Ngarli people now look after the site. The petroglyphs – many created by striking rocks with harder rocks – depict plants, animals, some of which are now extinct, and humans, including some of the earliest anthropomorphic images on earth. The site is close to industrial plants, including Woodside's Karratha gas plant, and UN advisers had recommended the nomination be referred back to Australia until sources of 'degrading acidic emissions' were removed, and for any further industrial development to be stopped. The government argued the UN's advisers, theInternational Council on Monuments and Sites, had relied on 'factual inaccuracies' and pointed to a major monitoring report – the work of about 50 scientists – which it said showed there was no ongoing risk to the rock art – a claim contested by a small group of scientists. Of the 21-country committee, Kenya successfully moved an amendment to immediately inscribe Murujuga, supported by Senegal, Zambia, Rwanda, Ukraine, South Korea, Japan, Qatar, Bulgaria, Vietnam, Belgium, Jamaica, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Kazakhstan and Argentina. Murujuga was inscribed for three criteria: the site represents 'a masterpiece of human creative genius'; is a unique testimony to a cultural tradition; and is an outstanding example of a cultural or human settlement showing interaction with the environment. The Australian government, including environment minister Murray Watt, had been in Paris to lobby for the inscription alongside delegations from the Western Australian government and MAC. The chair of MAC, Peter Hicks, said the group was elated, and the inscription was 'recognition of the way our ancestors have managed this extraordinary landscape for over 50,000 years. We are proud to continue that legacy.' Watt said: 'This victory belongs to the Ngarda-Ngarli – the traditional owners and custodians of Murujugua whose deep knowledge, cultural leadership and enduring connection to country are at the heart of this inscription.' He said the inscription would add further protection to the site. The minister has provisionally approved an extension to Woodside's gas plant until 2070, but the conditions of the approval that relate to emissions from the plant are still being negotiated. The Save our Songlines group, which included former MAC chair and Mardathoonera woman Raelene Cooper, was also in Paris calling for the committee to stick to the ICOMOS recommendations. Cooper said it was a 'momentous day for our old people and future generations', but added: 'Today, Australia rewrote the World Heritage listing in the interests of the gas industry. Even though the recommended protections were removed after concerted lobbying from the Australian government, we are still overjoyed to see Murujuga finally world heritage listed by Unesco.' While backing the inscription, several committee members expressed concern that industrial emissions needed to be monitored. Cooper said: 'Global scrutiny will now be applied to what is happening at Murujuga. We will continue to fight for protection for this very special place, and the world is now aware of what we are up against.'
The Guardian
09-07-2025
- General
- The Guardian
What Australia must do to overturn objections for WA rock art to attain UN heritage status
The federal government is in the final throes of a lobbying campaign to secure UN world heritage status for a globally significant rock art site in Western Australia. The federal environment minister, Murray Watt, will be in Paris this week to convince the 21-country world heritage committee to ignore concerns about industrial emissions at Murujuga, and instead place the site on the world heritage list. There are between 1m and 2m pieces of rock art across the Murujuga Cultural Landscape in Western Australia's Pilbara region. Some are 50,000 years old. Many of the pieces – known as petroglyphs – have been created using a method known as 'pecking' where a harder rock is hit against another rock to reveal a different colour. They depict plants, animals – some of which are now extinct – and humans. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email The International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS) advises Unesco and the world heritage committee, and has described Murujuga as 'an exceptional example of human artistic achievement' and an 'extraordinary cultural landscape of global significance'. The site, covering almost 100,000 hectares, was initially the land of Yaburara people who were massacred by colonists in 1868. The Ngarda-Ngarli people now look after the site. Places that appear on the world heritage list – such as the Great Barrier Reef, the Sydney Opera House and the Blue Mountains – are judged to be of 'outstanding universal value to humanity' if they meet at least one of 10 criteria. Murujuga is being nominated for three criteria: the site represents 'a masterpiece of human creative genius'; is a unique testimony to a cultural tradition; and is an outstanding example of a cultural or human settlement showing interaction with the environment. ICOMOS has agreed the site meets all three criteria. Unesco advisers recommended in May that the world heritage nomination be blocked and referred back to Australia until nearby 'degrading acidic emissions' were stopped. Murujuga is close to several industrial sites, including a fertiliser plant and Woodside's Karratha gas plant. Watt has provisionally approved an extension until 2070 for Woodside's North West Shelf project, which includes the gas plant. ICOMOS has said the site is 'extremely vulnerable to industrial pollution' and said the nomination should be referred back to Australia so the country could 'ensure the total removal of degrading acidic emissions, currently impacting upon the petroglyphs' and 'prevent any further industrial development adjacent to, and within, the Murujuga Cultural Landscape'. The government and the Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation (MAC), which has led the nomination, claim ICOMOS has relied on 'factual inaccuracies' and say a major monitoring project carried out by 50 scientists shows there are no ongoing risks to the rock art. Some conservationists, including the traditional owner-led Save Our Songlines, as well as a small independent group of rock art experts, claim emissions are damaging the rock art. The government has been lobbying Unesco and World Heritage committee countries for more than a month. Watt has told the Guardian the government needs to persuade at least one of the 21 committee member countries to move an amendment at the 10-day meeting to immediately inscribe the site on the world heritage list. He has also argued a successful nomination would increase the protection of the rock art. If an amendment is moved, this will give MAC and the government a chance to argue their case, and for an amendment to be accepted, negotiated or rejected. Votes are rare, with most decisions made by consensus. The Murujuga site was provisionally scheduled to be discussed very late on Friday or early on Saturday, Australia time. There are four delegations from Australia in Paris this week, and three are attempting to persuade the 21-country committee to ignore the ICOMOS recommendation. Watt will lead a government delegation of about a dozen staff, alongside a small WA government delegation led by the state's environment minister, Matthew Swinbourn, and a delegation of 11 from MAC. A delegation from campaign group Save our Songlines, led by Mardathoonera woman and Murujuga traditional custodian Raelene Cooper, a former chair of MAC, is also in Paris and wants a 'provisional decision' to list Murujuga, subject to the full implementation of the ICOMOS recommendations. Cooper claims the government wants to 'have their cake and eat it' by approving the Woodside plant while claiming it won't damage the rock art. Unesco coordinates the world heritage committee process and accepts guidance from advisers, such as ICOMOS. But the committee itself is sovereign and is made up of 21 countries, with each having a six-year term. There has been growing criticism in recent years that the committee is becoming increasingly politicised, with UN advice being too often ignored. The current committee lineup is Argentina, Belgium, Bulgaria, Greece, India, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Lebanon, Mexico, Qatar, South Korea, Rwanda, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Senegal, Türkiye, Ukraine Vietnam and Zambia.
ABC News
06-07-2025
- ABC News
UNESCO to make final world heritage assessment on WA's Murujuga rock art
From the air, the meaning of Murujuga becomes clear. The Ngarluma-Yaburara word translates to "hip bone sticking out". It paints an evocative bird's-eye view of the Burrup Peninsula, which juts into the Indian Ocean north of Karratha, 1,500 kilometres north of Perth. In 2023, the Murujuga Cultural Landscape was nominated for inclusion on the World Heritage List, culminating in a multi-generational campaign for international recognition. The referral is contentious among activists, who have condemned the federal government for extolling the area's heritage values while simultaneously approving heavy industry nearby. A final decision from UNESCO's World Heritage Committee is expected in the coming week. Central to the bid are between one and two million petroglyphs dotting Murujuga's rocky red mounds and shadowy ravines. It is arguably the densest single concentration of rock art on the planet. Traditional custodians say these ancient engravings inscribe a living cultural tradition and human creative genius. Here are some of those stories, handed down for more than 50,000 years. Aboriginal people have gathered at Murujuga for millennia. Five language groups, known collectively as the Ngarda-Ngarli, have connections to the land: the Ngarluma, Mardudhunera, Yaburara, Yindjibarndi, and Wong-Goo-Tt-Oo peoples. Yindjibarndi man and Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation (MAC) director Vincent Adams says the rock art is a "cultural signpost" for those travelling on country. He stops at Nganjarli, one of Murujuga's most prominent "galleries", to point out a ghostly carving near the gorge's entrance. Hundreds of visitors pass the figure unawares, with photography of the image prohibited according to cultural law. "We call that the Marrga in Ngarluma-Yinjibarndi," Mr Adams says. "He's normally classified as a six-toe, six-finger figure, different to us, always dressed in headgear." The Marrga features in a host of Pilbara creation stories from "when the world was soft", like how the kangaroo got its tail and how the emu lost the ability to fly. "We couldn't just walk up onto anybody's country. We needed permission," Mr Adams explains. "How we got that permission? We see this significant site, and we know people are close. "[We] make fire, smoke. People inside the gorges will see this smoke, they come out to see who it is." The Marni, as the petroglyphs are called, signify the practical and religious significance of Ngurra, or country. They constitute a visual language: "footsteps" crossing boundaries of speech, marriage, and skin groups to form the basis of local lore. "We have symbols that have been marked around the Burrup that tell us we are in a sacred place, a special place," Mr Adams says. Stepping deeper into Nganjarli, Mr Adams recounts the meetings between cultural groups that once took place there. Yinjibarndi people would travel to the coast from inland and convene with the peninsula's first inhabitants, the "saltwater" Yaburara people. "Yaburara … meaning sea, sea breeze," he says. Mr Adams says the Yinjibarndi sought out the Yaburara during the season of Muhlu, when the days grew shorter and the weather cooler. They bartered for bush tucker and the fruits or "sweets" budding by the ocean. But in the late 19th century, the custodianship of Murujuga changed forever. One of Nganjarli's later additions captures what is thought to be Francis Thomas Gregory's ship, the Dolphin, which anchored off the peninsula in 1861. The settlers' arrival had a life-changing impact on the local Aboriginal communities. Colonial-era violence at the hands of settlers and local police, such as the 1868 Flying Foam Massacre, devastated the Yaburara people. The Ngarda-Ngarli adopted Murujuga, dubbed "orphan country" because its owners could no longer care for it alone, melding artistic traditions and interpretations. "They depict stories of connection to country: how me, you, everyone here today connects to this place," Mr Adams says. He describes a kangaroo-like motif with three stripes on its back. It also taught hunters what game they would find. "When we want something to eat, we go to the supermarket," Mr Adams says. "Here [it is] no different." A handful of the creatures recorded by the rock art are frozen in time. "You'll see animals that are no longer here … megafauna, they call it," Mr Adams says. "He still got a songline today, belong to us even though he's gone." Some petroglyphs act as "increase sites", where rituals are performed to replenish resources. "If we run low on emu, we do ceremony; next year, big mob [of] emu," Mr Adams says. Special configurations mark paths and ceremonial grounds for men's and women's business, as well as warnings to unwelcome intruders. There is even, not pictured for cultural reasons, a tableau of a man and woman in what Mr Adams refers to, with a booming laugh, as the world's "oldest sex education" lesson. A short drive from Nganjarli, the spinifex-strewn hills give way to a sheltered bay. This is Hearson's Cove, so named for a member of Francis Gregory Thomas's crew mistakenly shot by his fellows as they headed ashore. Long before, it was known as Binabarranha. When Ngarluma woman Belinda Churnside looks out at this landscape, she sees her "old people", including her mother. "She's a very proud Ngarluma woman … I wouldn't be doing this today if I didn't acknowledge and support her fight, determination, and leadership," she says. As MAC vice-chair, Ms Churnside departed on Sunday for Paris, where a delegation of custodians will hear the UNESCO World Heritage decision firsthand. "To actually carry the fight for your old people … they want us young people now to support them and fight the fight until we do get this World Heritage," she says. Both MAC and the federal government have protested against a draft decision knocking back the bid amid fears industrial emissions could damage the petroglyphs. Others say it is a rallying cry for stronger protection. For Mr Adams, the looming outcome is immaterial in the face of deep time. "One day, [industry] will be gone, [but] this will still be here," he says. "People like me will be telling that story in 200, 300 years' time."
