Civil Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Many Indigenous populations around the world are disadvantaged and pose
a challenge about how to address their values in water resource planning. In
Australia, the National Water Initiative recognises Indigenous interests in
water and requires jurisdictions to include Indigenous customary, social and
spiritual objectives in water resource plans. In spite of this, water resource
plans rarely specifically address Indigenous requirements (NWC 2009;
2011c). Partly this is due to an assumption that environmental flows will
serve as a surrogate to meet these requirements. Partly it is due to the diffi-
cultly in trying to determine how to include their interests in a statutory
plan. In addition, there are 'substantial legal and other structural impedi-
ments to increased Indigenous access to valuable water rights, particularly
for commercial purposes' and 'little guidance is provided to water resource
managers … relating to Indigenous access and involvement' (Jackson
et
al.
2012: 2). However a first step with any Indigenous people is to try to
understand their relationship and linkages with water and ensure they are
considered in the water planning process.
Some tools have proved useful to elicit qualitative data on Indigenous
values. Mooney and Tan (2012) worked under an informal research protocol
on the River Murray, with the Nganguraku who describe themselves as
'River People'. Methods involved a guided site visit with traditional owners,
the use of photo documentation and a focus group meeting. The choice of
methods was based on the preferences of the traditional owners as well as
pragmatic considerations of available time and resources. The focus was
on identifying places, or things of value that were affected by the quantity
and quality of water in the resource, rather than to quantitatively define
the relationship between Indigenous values and flow regime. The outcomes
were used to inform the water resource planning process (Jackson
et al.
2012).
Similarly, a suite of methods was used to identify issues of concern and
increase knowledge of Indigenous issues in relation to Condamine Alluvium
(groundwater) water resource planning. These included semi-structured
interviews, visits to country, photographic recording and mapping of places
of significance, and a desktop review of published cultural heritage studies.
Traditional owners identified deterioration of important sites for medicine
and food plants, dried springs and fish kills as a result of hydrological changes
of stream flow and aquifer depletion from over-extraction for irrigated
agriculture. Their ability to pass on traditional knowledge and fulfil custodial
responsibilities to country were also impaired (Tan
et al.
2012).
In the Ord river basin in Western Australia, a specific study was commis-
sioned to establish, record and articulate the cultural values that Indigenous
traditional owners and communities attach to the Ord River (Barber and
Rumley 2003). Traditional owners with knowledge of and interests in the
area were engaged during the fieldwork period, and various locations along
the Ord River were visited with these people. They were able to discuss,
articulate and record their associated cultural, social and economic values,
