Five Aboriginal-owned pastoral properties in South Australia's far north west being returned to production

The North West Indigenous Pastoral Project is supported by the state government and the Indigenous Land Corporation (ILC).

The state government gave an extra $1.5 million in 2016 to a project returning Aboriginal lands in the South Australia’s far north west to commercial production and creating jobs.

The North West Indigenous Pastoral Project is supported by the state government and the Indigenous Land Corporation (ILC) with BHP Billiton and Native Title Services as partners.

In its first 12 months from 2015, the project employed around 15 full-time Aboriginal pastoral workers and took key steps towards returning five significant Aboriginal-owned properties to commercial production.

The five properties under the North West Indigenous Pastoral Project are Andamooka, Purple Downs, and Roxby Downs stations (Kokatha Pastoral Pty Ltd); Emeroo Station (Bungala Aboriginal Corporation); Mabel Creek Station (AMY Nominees) and parts of the APY Lands.

The Aboriginal land owners hold up to three million hectares of pastoral land in the region.

The project provides funding and skill sharing to bring land back into production and return properties to commercial grazing. This can include initiatives such as Working on Country, Bush Blitz and Green Army and cultural tourism.

Bush Blitz involves mapping and recording flora and fauna as the blueprint for eradicating feral animals, weeds and non-native vegetation.

Green Army projects can engage Aborigines in ecologically managing the properties by planting native trees and vegetation.

Working on Country provides another level of caring for the environment while restoring and retaining culturally sensitive areas in the three pastoral leases of the Kokatha Native Title Determination.