Relatedness and co-existence in water resource assessments: Indigenous water values, rights and interests in the Mitchell catchment, North Queensland

ABSTRACT

This paper documents Indigenous Traditional Owners’ water values, rights, and interests from the Mitchell catchment in North Queensland. It is the first analysis of the catchment that links Indigenous water values, rights and interests with specific water resource assessment and development considerations. The paper highlights how relational and reciprocal values frame Traditional Owner responsibilities and obligations through water across generations, across geography, to places, and with the non-human and spiritual entities living on their traditional lands. This ethos of relatedness shapes the way Indigenous peoples want to be engaged in water assessments and planning processes – such processes must focus first on local and regional relationships, where Indigenous actors are central to the coordination of a wider multi-interest governance process. Relatedness relies on building trust, continuous learning, and communication to encompass different values amongst people who are inter-dependent in their use of and relationship with water. Traditional Owners are seeking new platforms that bring multiple knowledges to water resource assessments and planning processes – where Indigenous ways of knowing are included with science, policy, industry, conservation, and community knowledges into an adaptive process focused on long-term sustainability.

KEYWORDS:

• water resource development
• co-existence
• Indigenous water values
• Northern Australia

Notes

1. Common law does not recognise exclusive possession of native title rights and interests to waters. Only non-exclusive native title possession to access and use water can exist (Macintosh et al. 2018).

2. The research also engaged with Indigenous pastoral corporations that were important in local ownership and management regimes. A further Aboriginal Corporation with important interests in the Mitchell catchment, the Olkola Aboriginal Corporation, was not represented in the participating corporations, but as agreed with Olkola, key Traditional Owners of Mitchell Olkola lands were included through their membership of the Kowanyama PBC.

3. Bama are the Rainforest Aboriginal People. Bama country stretches from Ingham in the south to Cooktown, in northern Queensland.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Water Infrastructure Development Fund [Not applicable].

Notes on contributors

Ilisapeci Lyons

Ilisapeci Lyons is a human geographer engaged with over a decade of experience working with participatory methodologies, and collaborative and indigenous-driven research with Indigenous Peoples South East Asia, the Pacific and Australia.

Marcus Barber

Marcus Barber is an environmental anthropologist in Land and Water. He has 20 years field research experience with Aboriginal Australians, focused on water issues, livelihood development, and building contemporary Indigenous cultural and natural resource management.