Northern Territory Top End Aboriginal Land and Sea Management

The Northern Land Council's Working on Country project supports fifteen ranger groups to manage land and sea country of high cultural and environmental significance across the Top End of the Northern Territory. Funding provides for sixty full time positions for Indigenous people to undertake a range of environmental management services across an area of 210,000 square kilometres including 2,702 kilometres of coastline. The groups, namely the Garngi Rangers, Mardbalk Rangers, Gumurr Marthakal Rangers, Wanga Djakamirr Rangers, Gurruwilling Rangers, South-east Arafura Catchment Rangers, Mimal Rangers, Numbulwar Numbirindi Amalahgayag Inyung Rangers, Waanyi/Garawa Rangers, Garawa Rangers, Yugul Mangi Rangers, Malak Malak Land Management, Ngatpuk Land Management, Wagiman Guwardagun Rangers and Werat Land Management - will provide services including fire management, protection of threatened species and their habitats, control of significant feral animals and invasive weeds, management of salt water intrusion in freshwater billabongs, marine debris clean-ups, recording and protection of important cultural sites, the passing on of cultural knowledge to the next generation and coastal patrols.

Protecting country, supporting land management workers for the Warddeken Indigenous Protected Area

The proposed Warddeken IPA covers an area of 1.2 million hectares within the western Arnhem Land Plateau.

The rugged and isolated plateau has been referred to as the "crown jewel of Northern Territory biodiversity" because of the significance and diversity of its plant and animal life.

Through a Working on Country Northern Territory contract, Warddeken Land Management Limited are employing seven rangers to undertake fire management programs, control grassy weeds, survey and control feral buffalo and feral pig populations, survey and record the plant and animal species and record and protect the many rock art sites in the area.

Ingkerreke Rangers - Ingkerreke Natural Resource Management, Alice Springs

Ingkerreke Outstations Resource Services coordinates land management services on Aboriginal Land Trusts within a 50 to 100 kilometre radius of Alice Springs. A focus for the organisation is a number of land management projects on the Iwupataka Aboriginal Land Trust west of Alice Springs. The area includes the iconic tourist attraction Standley Chasm and boasts deep gorges that provide habitat for many rare plant species and a number of vulnerable or threatened animal species including the Black Footed Rock Wallaby. With a Working on Country Northern Territory contract and in conjunction with the Northern Territory Department of Natural Resources, Environment, The Arts and Sport , Ingkerreke Outstations Resource Services are employing seven Indigenous people to undertake environmental services including collecting baseline data on land, vegetation and flora and fauna conditions. They will establish and implement fire, feral animal and weed management plans, undertake erosion control, manage tourism impacts and record cultural knowledge of flora and fauna in the area.

Laynhapuy IPA Management by Yirralka Rangers program

Yirralka Rangers land and sea management group was established in 2003 and has natural and cultural resource management responsibilities within the Laynhapuy Indigenous Protected Area. The area is home to 39 species listed as threatened under various Northern Territory and Commonwealth legislative Acts.

The Working on Country project will extend over 6,900 square kilometres, including 630 kilometres of coastline. Eighteen Indigenous rangers are employed to provide environmental services including managing access to culturally significant sites, surveying and controlling feral buffalo and pigs, surveying and controlling weed infestations, monitoring marine turtles and dugongs, protecting turtle nesting areas, and implementing a fire management program.

li-Anthawirriyarra Sea Ranger Unit

Yanyuwa country includes the Sir Edward Pellew Islands and the riverine and coastal areas of the southwest Gulf of Carpentaria. Yanyuwa traditional owners established li-Anthawirriyarra (people of the sea) Sea Ranger Unit as a means for managing this vast estate. What started out as a surveillance and monitoring operation by the Sea Ranger Unit has evolved into a role with longer term planning and sea management issues in this remote region. The unit works closely with Mabunji Aboriginal Resource Association. Under the project, five Indigenous rangers are employed to monitor and manage heritage sites such as Macassan camps; monitor and manage turtle and dugong populations; and to survey, map and eradicate feral animals.

A second contract under Working on Country Northern Territory employs five people to build upon the activity plan that was developed and funded under the first Working on Country contract.

Djelk Sea Rangers

The Bawinanga Aboriginal Corporation is employing 3 Indigenous sea rangers to manage sea country across 180 kilometres of coastline within the Arnhem coast bioregion. The entire bioregion comprises a coastal strip extending from just east of the Cobourg Peninsula to just north of the mouth of the Rose River in south-eastern Arnhem Land. It also includes the many offshore islands dotted along the coastline. The coastline and islands are significant marine turtle breeding habitats as well as significant seabird breeding, feeding and roosting habitats.

The rangers are monitoring threatened species, migratory and introduced species and managing feral animal populations such as buffalo, cane toads and pigs. Their work program also includes fire management and researching the potential for a Marine Protected Area.

Anindilyakwa Rangers

The Anindilyakwa Indigenous Protected Area comprises the Groote Eylandt Archipelago in the Gulf of Carpentaria, 630 kilometres from Darwin in the Northern Territory. This diverse environment of pristine beaches, open woodland, rainforest and red sandunes covers a combined land/sea area of around 10,000 square kilometres. The Archipelago includes Groote Eylandt, Bickerton Island, and numerous smaller islands.

The Anindilyakwa Land Council, through the employment of two Indigenous women rangers and two Indigenous junior rangers under a Working on Country Northern Territory contract, are undertaking environmental activities which include managing feral animals, weeds and protection of the threatened Northern Hopping Mouse, Northern Quolls and turtle species. They are also protecting and restoring terrestrial and aquatic habitats, managing cultural heritage sites, recording and documenting cultural knowledge and conducting a Junior Ranger program to educate young people about men's and women's cultural and natural resource management.

Managing identified natural and cultural resources across Central Land Council regions

The Central Land Council (CLC) is a council of Aboriginal people elected from communities in the southern half of the Northern Territory. The CLC region covers more than 770,000 square kilometres of remote, rugged and often inaccessible land that includes a number of biodiversity hotspots including biologically significant wetlands, sites of botanical significant and areas containing many threatened species.

The region is divided into nine "sub-regions" based around language groups. Each of these nine sub-regions has a Natural Resource Condition Plan which documents culturally significant plants and animals, biodiversity hot spots, threatened species, fire history and feral animal and weed distribution. Each plan also lists priority actions aimed at addressing threats to biodiversity and cultural values.

With the help of a Working on Country Northern Territory contract, the Central Land Council is employing twenty four Indigenous people - including Wulaign Rangers at Lajamanu, Anmatjerr Rangers based at Ti Tree, Warlpiri Rangers based around Yuendumu and the Southern Tanami and Kaltukatjara Rangers at Docker River - to provide weed mapping and control, feral animal surveys and control, fire management, cultural site management and fencing, roads and bores maintenance and construction across the sub-regions as required according to each of the Natural Resource Condition Plans.

Anangu Rangers on Angus Downs

Angus Downs is located near the Imanpa Community, 300km South West of Alice Springs in Central Australia. The property covers 300,000 hectares, and has significant cultural value to Anangu.

The Angus Downs Station is employing four Indigenous rangers to reduce erosion and vegetation destruction by feral animals, monitor fauna populations, promote biodiversity through traditional fire management.

Their work program also encourages the reintroduction of native species by restoring water sources and cleaning out traditional wells and by fencing off water access by feral animals such as camels and horses.

Thamarrurr Rangers - Land and Sea management, Wadeye (Port Keats)

The Thamarrurr Region covers approximately 5,000 square kilometres within the Daly River/Port Keats Aboriginal land Trust in the Northern Territory. There are twenty land-owning groups within this Region.

The coastal areas feature sandy beaches, mangrove swamps, wetlands, creeks and low hills; while inland the rivers carve courses through sandstone and support extensive tropical savanna woodland. The Thamarrurr Rangers have been working in the area for six years and are based in the main township, Wadeye, one of the largest Indigenous towns in the Northern Territory. Through a Working on Country Northern Territory contract, twenty positions have been funded to enable the Rangers to continue to undertake important environmental work. These Indigenous rangers will patrol an area of 17,900 square kilometres. They will survey and control invasive weeds and feral animals, marine invertebrates and diseases. Other activities will include monitoring sea turtle populations, other threatened species and their habitats, managing fire, documenting and maintaining significant cultural sites, and passing on cultural knowledge to the next generation.

Daminmin Wulna Rangers

The Yilli Rreung Housing Aboriginal Corporation is employing six rangers to work on country within the Community Living Areas of the jointly managed Djukbinj National Park, located 59 km northeast of Darwin. The abundance of water from the Adelaide River catchment has created a roosting and feeding site for waterbirds, magpie geese, egrets and brolgas in the Park.

The rangers' work covers an area of 4,470 hectares and includes managing weeds, fire, biodiversity and cultural activities to protect and maintain the natural and cultural values of the Wairuk, Bulla and Scott Creek community living areas. They will monitor and control feral animals through trapping and hunting feral pigs and buffalo and fencing of significant sites. The rangers will also survey and monitor the Phytosperma bleeseri (Darwin palm) population health and distribution and establish a control site for an aquifer monitoring project.