Tribunal halts work at Lee Point as interim decision finds ‘flawed’ consultation with Larrakia

Development at Lee Point has once again stalled, which has found the heritage council failed to properly assess the cultural significance of the site amid a ‘flawed’ consultation process.

Tibby Quall, senior Larrakia elder of the Danggalaba Kulumbirigin clan, at Lee Point. Picture: Supplied.

Development at Lee Point has once again come to a standstill due to a legal challenge in the Northern Territory tribunal, which has found the heritage council failed to properly assess the cultural significance of the site amid a “flawed” consultation process.

The NT Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NTCAT) has ordered all land clearing must stop until the case wraps up, adding months of potential delays on the already stalled project in Darwin’s north.

Defence Housing Australia plans to build an 800 home residential housing complex for military personnel and their families, to meet the demand of a growing defence presence in the Territory.

Environmentalists and some Larrakia people have strongly opposed the development due to risks posed to cultural heritage and threatened species such as the Gouldian finch.

In February, Larrakia elder Tibby Quall filed a case against the NT Heritage Council and DHA, arguing the council had failed to consult him when it approved the unearthing and removal of ten Aboriginal heritage objects – including a grindstone and stone quartz flakes – at the site of the housing development.

Last week NTCAT delivered an interim decision, recognising Mr Quall as an owner of the 10 cultural artefacts and confirming his legal right to bring the claim.

It marks the first time traditional owners have been found to be owners of cultural objects on country under the Territory’s Heritage Act.

The Heritage Council had called for the case to be dismissed, arguing it was “frivolous” and “futile” because the artefacts had already been removed and transferred to the Larrakia Cultural Centre.

That argument was rejected by the tribunal in its decision, which noted the Heritage Council’s “flawed” consultation process, its unreliable assessment of the artefacts having “low archaeological significance”, and its failure to recognise the development site as a heritage place.

The NTCAT interim ruling recognised Mr Quall as an owner of 10 cultural artefacts removed from the Lee Point development site. Picture: Pema Tamang Pakhrin

Mr Quall said the interim findings offered a “really strong” acknowledgment by NTCAT.

“Our culture and this case will remain, for our children in the future, their children, they will have something,” he said.

Environmental Justice Australia, the legal organisation which prepared the case for Mr Quall, said the case was about traditional owners being properly consulted about matters that affect their country.

“They failed to consult our client, they failed to recognise the area’s significance, and they failed to consider other requirements under the Territory’s heritage laws,” senior lawyer Kip Frawley said.

“Our client has been clear since he first objected to this development in 2017: this is Larrakia Country and the sacred sites and cultural objects on Larrakia Country belong to them, and to the land.”

The case will return to NTCAT on August 15.

Originally published as Tribunal halts work at Lee Point as interim decision finds ‘flawed’ consultation with Larrakia