World Heritage bid set to ignite industry versus rock art showdown on Burrup Peninsula

A showdown between industrial developments and rock art in the Burrup Peninsula is set to ignite, with the commonwealth believed to have made a formal bid to list it as a world heritage site.

The flare tower at Woodside Energy's LNG plant on the Burrup Peninsula.

A showdown between conservationists and major corporations over proposals for billions of dollars of industrial developments in the rock art rich Burrup Peninsula is set to ignite, with the commonwealth believed to have made a formal bid to list it as a world heritage site.

The federal government is ­believed to have submitted an ­application to have the area in Western Australia recognised by ­UNESCO in what would be a major step for a process that has been on the cards for years.

The cut-off date for lodging applications for this year’s round of assessments was February 1, and a government spokesman confirmed the commonwealth was meeting deadlines in the process.

An application will embolden conservationists and activist groups, which have become increasingly vocal about what they call the risk posed to the Burrup’s ancient petroglyphs by more industry in the area.

The application comes as federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek weighs up approvals for a slew of major developments in the region.

Federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek. Picture: Dan Peled

The Burrup is a major industrial hub thanks to Woodside Energy’s North West Shelf and Pluto liquefied natural gas plants and Yara International’s ammonia fertiliser plant.

Woodside is looking to double the capacity of Pluto and extend the life of the North West Shelf plant out to 2070.

Private company Perdaman is also poised to start construction of a $4.5bn urea plant in the area.

The Burrup, home to more than one million rock carvings, has been described as the most important rock art site in the world, and a UNESCO World Heritage listing would complicate a development path for future projects in the region.

Ms Plibersek in September ordered an assessment of impacts of the proposed developments on the rock art, opening the door to a possible ministerial declaration of protection.

The area has a complex history, with WA acquiring native title rights and interests over the southern part of the Burrup in 2003.

That deal led to the creation of Murujuga Aboriginal Corp as the body representing traditional owner groups with links to the area, with the MAC working closely with Woodside and other Burrup-based operations.

Woodside, the Burrup’s biggest industrial player, has long been supportive of the region being granted World Heritage status and has worked with the MAC on rock art monitoring studies.

More recently, a breakaway Indigenous group, Save Our Songlines headed by former MAC chair Raelene Cooper, has been leading a push for greater protections for the region.

Ms Cooper on Sunday called for a moratorium on further industrial development on the ­Burrup while the UN’s world heritage committee considered the nomination.

“If the commonwealth government is serious about protecting our cultural heritage, they must halt industry expansions on Muru­juga to prevent further damage before the heritage values of the area can be independently assessed,” she said.

“The heritage assessment by the UN will bring international attention to the cultural genocide and abuses of human rights that continues on Murujuga and we look forward to working with the UN heritage experts to expose what is happening to our unique cultural heritage.”

A World Heritage application for the Burrup has been on the agenda for several years, with MAC along with the WA and commonwealth governments submitting an application for a tentative World Heritage listing in January 2020.

The prospect of the area securing a World Heritage listing has long been identified as a complicating factor for the industrial developments proposed in the area.