GOOD faith negotiations between the state government and the Kimberley Land Council remain pivotal to whether Woodside Petroleum’s proposed $30 billion Browse liquefied natural gas project in the Kimberley goes ahead as planned in 2012.
GOOD faith negotiations between the state government and the Kimberley Land Council remain pivotal to whether Woodside Petroleum’s proposed $30 billion Browse liquefied natural gas project in the Kimberley goes ahead as planned in 2012.
Premier Colin Barnett last week controversially declared the state would proceed with compulsory acquisition of land at James Price Point, 60km north of Broome, for a Browse gas processing hub.
The decision came after divisions within native title claimants prevented the finalisation of an indigenous land use agreement more than a year after having signed a heads of agreement over the site.
The April 2009 deal promised to deliver $1.5 billion in social and economic benefits for local aboriginal communities over the life of the project.
The focus now turns to the mechanics of the compulsory acquisition process.
Once a notice of acquisition is published in the weekly Government Gazette, expected this Friday, the state and native title claimants will have six months to negotiate an agreement in good faith.
Should that fail, the proposal will be referred to the National Native Title Tribunal which will have a further six months to determine the terms by which the land shall be acquired.
Woodside maintains it will stand by its commitments under the original $1.5 billion benefits package and remains hopeful of reaching a “negotiated outcome” with traditional owners.
However, the prospects for good faith negotiations appear slim despite pledges from the government and Woodside to stand by the terms of the original $1.5 billion package.
KLC chief executive Wayne Bergmann, previously a major supporter of the project, has described the Premier’s decision as heavy-handed and outrageous, and agreed with fellow indigenous leader Mick Dodson’s depiction of it as a return to colonialism.
Mr Bergmann also said it unfairly favoured industry over the concerns of indigenous communities.
“What compulsory acquisition does is provide certainty for industry. It doesn’t provide certainty about aboriginal people’s concerns,” he told Sky News. “History shows Aboriginal people will be pushed aside.”
Woodside remains confident that it can still approve Browse by 2012, as required by the government, even if the acquisition process takes 12 months.
However, a failure to reach consensus with the KLC could make it more difficult to achieve federal environmental approvals, especially in light of the Gillard minority government’s reliance on Greens support to pass legislation.
The Greens have consistently opposed any onshore industrial development in the Kimberley, and maintain that the James Price Point hub poses a major threat to whale calving grounds in nearby Camden Sound. Local tourism operators also oppose the project.
