INDIGENOUS and non-indigenous pastoralists on Cape York Peninsula united at a series of meetings last week as the battle against the Palaszczuk government’s attempts to repeal vegetation management laws heated up.
Traditional owners fear the proposed changes could signal the return of Wild Rivers legislation which also attempted to lock up areas on Cape York for development.
Like they did in the Federal Court in 2014, traditional owners are readying for a battle to the “highest level”, Agforce state councillor and former Cook Shire Mayor Graham Elmes said.
“They are dead scared of Wild Rivers coming back,” Mr Elmes said. “This is worse than Wild Rivers.
“They don’t want it. They all spelt it out that we have to fight this to the highest level.”
In 2009, the Bligh government declared three major Cape York rivers as “Wild Rivers”, which would have locked up major areas of Queensland’s far north.
It was declared invalid in the Federal Court.
Mr Elmes, a well-known Cape personality, said the vegetation management laws brought many indigenous pastoralists to the meetings.
But he said there were some that had no knowledge of the tree clearing laws or the current status of the pastoral industry.
“All they want is to be able to do what they want to do on their own land.
“They don't want all these mickey mouse restrictions put over them and that was told loud and clear.”
Meetings were held in Weipa, Coen, Laura and Cooktown, with vegetation management, drought and live export opportunities hot topics.
“We had a lot of people who traditionally wouldn’t come to these meetings but this particular vegetation management issue has brought everyone together,” Agforce regional manager Tahna Jackson.
“Maybe this is a catalyst that pulls everyone together for them to say hang on, all these people outside the Cape are having a say about our livelihoods, we need to band together no matter who we are.”
Live export was touted as one of the key economic drivers for the Cape, on the back of a $220 million federal and state funded road upgrading project which will progressively seal the Peninsula Developmental Road – the main transport link on the Cape – over four years.