BHP, Nyiyaparli sign new deal in Pilbara

BHP Billiton Iron Ore has signed a major native title agreement in Western Australia’s Pilbara region covering its Mt Whaleback mine site.

The mining giant signed an agreement with the Nyiyaparli native title group last week, marking the culmination of four years’ negotiation with the group and its representative body, Yamatji Marlpa Aboriginal Corporation.

The deal covers all of BHP’s operations over Nyiyaparli land, approximately 36,680 square kilometres.

A dollar figure wasn’t disclosed, but 50 per cent of financial benefits will go into a charitable trust to be directed towards education, housing, health, employment, and aged care.

Other benefits agreed to are indigenous contracting and business development and cultural heritage protection.

YMAC said the agreement aimed to deliver significant cultural, social and economic outcomes in the form of financial and non-financial benefits provided by BHP to the Nyiyaparli People, who are the traditional owners of land surrounding Newman in the state’s north-west.

The agreement covered BHP’s current and future operations in the region, and the Nyiyaparli people provided consent for the operations as part of the agreement.

YMAC chief executive Simon Hawkins said the new approach by both parties in forming the agreement created a real partnership.

“This agreement and the new approach creates a real partnership between the Nyiyaparli people and BHP Billiton Iron Ore to ensure traditional owners now have a say in what happens on their country, maintain power to protect their most important sites and benefit from the mineral wealth on their traditional lands,” Mr Hawkins said.

Iron ore mining on Nyiyaparli country started in the 1960s with BHP’s Mt Whaleback mine, the biggest single-pit open-cut iron ore mine in the world (more than five kilometres long and nearly 1.5km wide).

The Nyiyaparli group was involved in the $2 billion Rio Tinto native title land-use agreement negotiated by YMAC between four native title groups (also including Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura, Kuruma and Marthudunera and Ngarlawangga).

The claim-wide deal covered 70,000sq km of land and included existing mining operations at Brockman 4, Mesa A, Mesa J, Hope Downs, and all future Rio mines and operations in the native title claim areas.

It was decided in that deal that 80 per cent of the compensation would be placed into a charitable trust to be used strictly for community needs like cultural development and housing and the balance went into what is known as a direct benefits fund – accessible cash.

The Nyiyaparli group has land use agreements with several mining companies, including Hancock Prospecting, Atlas Iron, Fortescue Metals Group, BC Iron, and Brockman Resources, among others.