In the Worimi Nation in a town called Bulahdelah about one hour north of Newcastle is Boolah Dillah, better known to most people as Bulahdelah or The Alum Mountain. This mountain is a hugely significant Aboriginal sacred place that also has many significant sites.
In the year 2000 the roads and traffic authority announced that they had plans to build a new section of highway which would be blasted up to twenty five metres deep through this sacred mountain which would desecrate this sacred place and destroy its significant sites.
Despite Aboriginal opposition since this option was first announced, and the fact that there are other cheaper, safer and non-culturally destructive options available, the RTA have continued to pursue this route for the Bulahdelah Pacific Highway upgrade.
It’s been almost 11 years now since the RTA announced they were planning to locate the highway through the mountain but they only started work on the mountain for the highway less than a year ago.
In August 2009 an application was made under the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act 1984 for protection of the mountain, before RTA had even started any clearing work, but the government had been stalling this application and didn’t accept it until Jun 2010 but even after it was accepted the government continued to stall it’s release until the 15 Dec 2010.
Since the application was first made many things have been destroyed including artefact scatter, scarred trees, and the sacred Guardian Tree, but people are still fighting to save this sacred place and its remaining sites.
Ms Cynthia Dungay-Dates, who is the applicant for the section 10 and a custodian for the mountain said, “Although many sites on the mountain have been destroyed, this has not taken away the areas significance, there is thousands of years of dreaming, culture, heritage and tradition imbedded in this place and the work that RTA have done so far has not taken that away, although what they’ve done so far is terrible if they are allowed to continue things will be much worse.”
“The mountain has to be protected, this place is too important to have taken away, it’s a place where people of the past have come, where our children then grandchildren have come and it’s important that this place is protected not only for us but for future generations.”
In a previous section 10 application for the mountain, Peter Garrett the former Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts, refused to make a declaration under section 10 stating that he found only the top of the mountain was significant. Ms Dungay Dates said, “That’s not true, the whole mountain is sacred not only the top, saying that it’s not is like going to a church and saying that only the cross on the top is sacred, destroy the rest.”
All the sites listed in these applications are and or were right where the highway would be.
Now the public notice for the application has finally been released by the government people can submit in support of or against this application, when the submission period is over the submissions will go into a report and be given to Tony Burke who took Peter Garrett’s place as Minister, who will decide whether or not to protect the mountain under the section 10. The fate of the mountain will soon rest in Tony Burks hands, he will decide whether a hugely significant place of Aboriginal culture, heritage and tradition lives or dies.
We hope that when Tony Burke makes his decision he will succeed where Peter Garrett failed in the previous section 10 applications and protect this place, if not then yet another hugely significant Aboriginal sacred place will be gone forever.
People wanting to write submissions in support of this application should send them to:
Ms Madeline Brennan
Roma Mitchell Chambers
Level 12 Quay Central
95 North Quay
BRISBANE QLD 4000
Telephone: 07 3236 0000
Fax: 07 3236 3949
For info on writing submissions, go to http://indigenouspeoplesissues.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=art...
or http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=121807998591
People have until the 28 Jan 2011 to make submissions.
Estelle Carrall and Cynthia Dungay Dates.
