Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act 1984 (Cth)

Notice of an application for the protection of a specified area, being the area known as Magazine Hill, Queensland

Invitation to make representations

I, Felicity Rooney, hereby give notice as follows:

The Minister for the Environment and Water (the minister), responsible for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act 1984 (Cth) (the Act), has received an application made under section 10 of the Act. The application is seeking protection of a significant Aboriginal area known as Magazine Hill, near Mount Isa in Queensland (Qld).  The minister has appointed me to provide a report to the minister under paragraph 10(1)(c) of the Act.

The applicant

The application is made by AJ & Co Lawyers on behalf of the Waanyi Elders Council Pty Ltd (applicants).

Matters the report is required to deal with

The minister must consider my report pursuant to section 10 of the Act before deciding whether to make a declaration under section 10 of the Act. Under subsection 10(4) of the Act, the report must deal with the following:

1.           the particular significance of the area to Aboriginals;
2.           the nature and extent of the threat of injury to, or desecration of, the area;

1.            the extent of the area that should be protected;
2.           the prohibitions and restrictions to be made with respect to the area;
3.           the effects the making of a declaration may have on the proprietary or pecuniary interests of persons other than the Aboriginal or Aboriginals who made the application, or on whose behalf the application is made;
4.              the duration of any declaration;
5.           the extent to which the area is or may be protected by or under a law of a State or Territory, and the effectiveness of any remedies available under any such law; and
6.           such other matters (if any) as prescribed.

The purpose of the application

The application seeks the long-term preservation or protection of the area specified in the application (the specified area). This area is depicted in Figure 1.

The specified area

Figure 1 depicts the area for which preservation and protection is sought. This specified area is described as Magazine Hill, Qld.

Figure 1: Map showing the specified area of Magazine Hill, Qld.

Claims in relation to ‘significant Aboriginal area’

The applicants claim the specified area is of particular significance to Aboriginals in accordance with Aboriginal tradition for the following reason:

• The site encompasses a wide range of culturally significant sites, including burials, paintings, quarries, artefact scatters, stone arrangements, cultural sites, earthen arrangements, hearths/ovens, landscape features, scarred or carved trees, and isolated finds.

Claimed threat of injury or desecration

The applicants claim that the specified area is under threat from mining and mining exploration, as an active Cultural Heritage Management Plan (CHMP) explicitly provides for and permits the destruction of the specified area. The applicants further claim that:

• The proponent has expressed concerns that the landform instability necessitates the destruction of the site. 
• The proponent has repeatedly indicated, through words and conduct, that it intends to mine the below-ground resource using open-cut methods, meaning the complete removal of Magazine Hill. 
• All cultural heritage obligations under the CHMP have been discharged, and the Aboriginal Party has been compensated for the site’s loss, meaning the proponent is at liberty to destroy the specified area.

Invitation to make representations

Interested parties are invited to furnish representations in connection with my report to:

Felicity Rooney
Reporter
7 Weroona avenue Woodford NSW 2778
0413908896
submissions@onerooney.com.au    

Interested parties are urged to contact me as soon as possible to be provided with further information about the submission process.

Representations must be made in writing by 5pm [AEST] on 31 August 2026 or within such further period as may be allowed. Do not send your representations directly to the minister. First Nations people without representatives may provide an oral representation.

Representations made by, or on behalf of, more than one person should be signed by each of those persons.

Representations may subsequently be provided to the applicants and other interested parties for their review and comment in order to meet procedural fairness requirements. 

Claiming confidentiality

If you wish to claim confidentiality over any part of your representation you should contact me for further information.

Privacy

Your personal information is protected by law, including the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth).

Please read this notice carefully before submitting a representation about the application.

Collection and use of your personal information

Your representation may contain your personal information. By submitting a representation, you consent to your personal information being collected by me for the purpose of:

• contacting you about your representation, including for verification or clarification purposes
• preparing my report and briefing the minister
• the minister making a decision in relation to the application, and for related purposes.

You also consent to your personal information being collected by the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (the department) for these same purposes.

Disclosure of your personal information

I may need to disclose your personal information to the department and the minister for the purposes listed above. I may also need to disclose your personal information to:

• third parties that may be affected by the minister’s decision, where necessary to meet procedural fairness requirements
• Commonwealth, State or Territory entities and/or persons or organisations, where necessary to prepare my report and/or for the minister to make a decision about the application.

Your personal information will not be disclosed to overseas recipients unless necessary for the above purposes.

Anonymous representations

You can make an anonymous representation or use a pseudonym. However, this may mean I cannot verify information provided in your representation and/or take your representation into account.

Representations containing other people’s personal information

If your representation contains the personal information of another person, you must ensure they have agreed to their personal information being collected, used and disclosed in accordance with this privacy notice. This includes giving them a copy of this public notice and the privacy notice.

Privacy Policy

The department's Privacy Policy is available at https://www.dcceew.gov.au/about/commitment/privacy