NYFL ramps up ghost town tenure criticism

Traditional owners have hit out at the state government over claims their plans to breath new life into a Pilbara ghost town were beyond the remit of what they had been permitted to do.

Ngarluma Yindjibarndi Foundation last week revealed it would have to pull out of managing Cossack after being left without a contract or legal permission to operate from the state government.

The move is expected to cost 10 jobs, and further delays the residential and tourism development of Cossack, which has been promised by the state government for four decades.

Last week a state government spokesperson said the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage would continue to work with NYFL in light of the setback.

“The original EOI released by the Department of Planning, Lands and Heritage was very specific about low-impact tourism offerings, activation of the existing heritage precinct, and maintaining the existing caravan park in the Cossack precinct," the spokesperson said.

“The state government is funding conservation works at the Cossack precinct.

“While the proposed project by NYFL at the Cossack site is outside of the existing EOI, there are a number of existing government processes, including market led proposals for proponents seeking to build, finance or operate infrastructure that demonstrates a strong alignment to the government priorities, which NYFL is encouraged to explore."

NYFL chief executive Sean-Paul Stephens said the state government had conflated eco-tourism plans called for by the government itself with broader conversations around activation and development which were penned to support tenure exchange.

“The only area of difference between the Department and NYFL in terms of scope has been in regard to the ongoing services contract, through which NYFL is renumerated for its caretaker and activation services at Cossack,” he said.

“NYFL’s position is that this remuneration should continue until the tenure is resolved. It is not a gift or grant funding; it is payment for critical services rendered.

“We consider this position is reasonable and it is a sentiment which is shared internally within the Department, but they have struggled each year to receive budgeting support for it.”

Mr Stephens said Department of Lands representatives had backed NYFL’s plans as recently as October last year and had gone so far as to propose a partnership which ultimately was not supported by senior ranks in the agency.

He said the Department in 2022 had undertaken to prepare documents facilitating the transfer of Cossack’s tenure to NYFL following receival of the organisation’s development plan.

“NYFL had never requested a formal partnership but saw it as a sign of the State Government’s commitment to the project,” Mr Stephens said.

“Unfortunately, it appears the Director General of Lands did not support the idea, and NYFL was informed about this in March 2024 at the same time we were told there was no budget to continue to remunerate us for the services it undertakes at Cossack on behalf of the State Government.”

NYFL gained the contract to operate Cossack in 2020 after the City of Karratha handed management of the ghost town back to the state government over frustrations with state planning red tape.