Traditional owners to decide Cape York's fate

Posted November 05, 2012 06:51:55

Photo: Traditional owners will determine the boundaries of any area nominated for world heritage listing (Tim O'Reilly: Supplied)

Federal Environment Minister Tony Burke says it will be up to traditional owners to decide whether or not the Government nominates Cape York as a World Heritage Area.

Mr Burke will today travel to Cape York in far north Queensland to discuss the Government's plan for nomination with traditional owners.

He says if they do not give their support the Government will drop the plan.

"If consent's given for something over a particular boundary to go forward in February, then I'll happily sign off the letter and put it forward and advocate to the world heritage committee that it's a good thing to do," he said.

"If traditional owners decide they don't want to do it, they don't want to do it yet or they want to do it over some different boundary and meet a different timeline - that's going to be their call."

Mr Burke says traditional owners will also determine the boundaries of any area nominated for world heritage listing.

"Exactly what areas people want in or out I've got to tell you I don't know the answer to that yet," he said.

"That answer is only known by traditional owners who'll make their own decisions on consent and what they decide will be exactly replicated in what I put forward."

Last month, Queensland Environment Minister Andrew Powell announced the State Government would no longer take part in negotiations on the nomination.

"I'll offer the support where we can, but as I said it's in the Federal Government's hands now as to who they will negotiate with and what outcomes they look to achieve on the cape," he said.

"We certainly will continue to keep an eye on it and represent the interests of the state."

Topics: environmental-policy, indigenous-other-peoples, rain-forests-and-forest, cooktown-4895, qld, australia