If the Commonwealth Government has placed the Dampier Peninsula is in the National List, why is the Rock Art still endangered?

A good question, read on to understand why in spite of the significant and positive step that National Listing represents, the National Trust (and international organisations like the World Monument Fund) still feel the Dampier Rock Art is at risk.

 National Heritage Listing, of the 99% of the Dampier Archipelago on which National Heritage Values were identified by the Australia Heritage Council, represents the most significant and positive step taken in the protection of the heritage values of this place since industrial development in the region began in the early 1960s.

The National Trust movement throughout Australia recognises that the present Commonwealth Government is committed to ensuring that the National Heritage Values of the National Heritage Listed Place are properly protected to the full extent of the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Act.

The National Trust acknowledges with gratitude the success of the Commonwealth Government  in gaining significant funding from industry for the purposes of conservation and interpretation of the Dampier Archipelago.

Nevertheless, heritage listing in all jurisdictions is subject to political and economic pressures. These pressure can and do impact on the integrity of heritage listings. Of particular concern in relation to the Dampier Archipelago are:

• The Department of Industry and Resources development plans for the region as outlined in the Burrup Maitland Industry Agreement.
• The Dampier Port Authority’s draft Dampier Port Development Plan.
• The Department of Environment and Conservation’s Burrup Peninsula Conservation Reserve (PBPCR) Draft Management Plan.

 The concerns that these ongoing development plans raise, could be mitigated if the Western Australian State Government substantially revised the development strategy for the region and if there was timely implementation of a comprehensive Bilateral Agreement between the Commonwealth and State Governments regarding the ongoing management of the heritage values of the place.

To meet the objectives of the National Trust in regards to the conservation of the heritage values of the Dampier Archipelago, the management arrangements and/or Bilateral Agreement would need to incorporate the following:

• Open and transparent processes to enable community scrutiny.
• A  comprehensive program of research including an inventory of the rock art and artifacts of the place.
• The development of a single holistic management plan for the listed place.
• The establishment of an independent statutory organisation to implement and evaluate the management arrangements.
• Appropriate funding from state and federal government and industry to support this activity.
• Placing the area on the tentative list of World Heritage Places in Australia.
• Recognition that activity outside the National Heritage Place may impact on the National Heritage values of the National Heritage Place. 

Further development activity should not be considered in the listed area without all of the above in place. The National Trust would consider the heritage values of Dampier Rock Art adequately protected once management arrangements and/or Bilateral Agreement incorporating the above were in place and their ongoing effective operation ensured.