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NGMA Regional Mining/Exploration ILUA
Date:	3 January 2011
Sub Category:	Indigenous Land Use Agreement (ILUA) (Native Title Act)
Place:	Swan Hill
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State/Country:	Victoria, Australia
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	The area covered by this Indigenous Land Use Agreement (ILUA) is situated in the Swan Hill region of northwest Victoria and extends southwest of the Murray River to Birchip. It covers approximately 11,110 square kilometres.
Legal Status:	Registered with the National Native Title Tribunal on the Register of Indigenous Land Use Agreements on 21 July 2011. This is an authorised Area Agreement under the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth).
Legal Reference:	National Native Title Tribunal File No. VI2011/001
Subject Matter:	Exploration \| Mining and Minerals
URL:	http://www.nntt.gov.au/Indigenous-Land-Use-Agreements/Search-Registered-ILUAs/ILUA%20Register/2011/VI2011.001/ILUARegisterExport.pdf
Summary Information:
This Indigenous Land Use Agreement (ILUA) was agreed between The Natural Gypsum Mining Association of Victoria and Jimealie Carter, Gary Murray and Howard Galway on behalf of the Wamba Wamba, Barapa Barapa, Wadi Wadi (WBW) Peoples Native Title Claim Group. The purpose of this ILUA is to provide consent for a range of future acts.
Detailed Information:
Content of ILUA Commencement and Termination The ILUA commences on 3 January 2011. and may be terminated: - by written agreement of the Native Title Signatories and NGMA (subject to removal of the ILUA from the Register of Indigenous Land Use Agreements); or - by the removal of the ILUA from the Register of ILUAs; or - five years from the date of expirty of the last Licence granted subject to provisions of the ILUA. Future Acts By agreement the parties decided that the right to negotiate provisions in the Native Title Act 1993 (Cth) are not intended to apply to the grant and use of the Licence. The parties also agreed to the following future acts: - The grant by the State of a licence to the mining company and to any consent required pursuant to that licence. The licence is either an exploration licence or a mining licence. - Use of the licence and of any consent required pursuant to the licence. The agreement about future acts was subject to compliance with the ILUA and a Deed of Assumption. Although the ILUA is not clear as to the exact nature of the Deed of Assumption, a Deed of Assumption generally is a deed stating that the mining company will assume certain obligations. Background to ILUA Legal History The WBW Peoples joined their native title claims in 2000 and lodged an application in the Federal Court (file number VID6005/00). The matter was meant to be concluded by the middle of 2011. However, the new Victorian Native Title Settlement Framework has, according to Justice North during a directions hearing in the matter on 16 August 2010, almost doubled the time for conclusion of the application. As the WBW Peoples are registered claimants they are able to enter into ILUA's prior to the matter being concluded in the Court. They previously exercised this right and entered into a Low Impact Exploration ILUA with the Minerals Council of Australia on 14 September 2005. That ILUA, amongst other things, gave permission for the grant and use of an Exploration Licence over the land. It was to expire five years after the expiry of the last Exploration Licence granted under its provisions. This latest ILUA with the Natural Gypsum Mining Association of Victoria covers largely the same area of land. Although, it does not extend as far north as the previous ILUA. Connection to Country The Wamba Wamba, Wadi Wadi and Barapa Barapa are all separate nations. However, they have a close connection and are all members of the Murray Lower Darling Rivers Indigenous Nations (MLDRIN). MLDRIN formed in 1998 during the Yorta Yorta Native Title Case. MLDRIN is a means of caring for country and talking to their traditional neighbours upstream and downstream on the Murray and its sister Rivers, Creeks, Lakes, Billabongs and waterways. (Murray Lower Darling Rivers Indigenous Nations, [accessed 18 November 2011]) The Wamba Wamba, Barapa Barapa and Wadi Wadi communities native title area stretches from Cohuna along the Murray River to Swan Hill to Piangle and Charleton.