Access to land for mining purposes has been in the news since BHP was granted licences to explore in the Liverpool Plains area.
For the first time an Aboriginal land council has had a win in the National Native Title Tribunal by blocking a company’s application for a mining lease. The lease covered an area known as Lake Disappointment in Western Australia.
The Tribunal said the effect of the company’s proposed project on "a site of particular significance" had to be considered in relation to the management, use or control of the land by native titleholders. The Deputy President stated that "In my view the interests, proposals, opinions and wishes of the native title party in relation to the use of Lake Disappointment should be given a greater weight than the potential economic benefit or public interest in the project proceeding".
Accordingly, the application for the mining lease was refused.
