ROE
HIGHWAY STAGE 8 — ABORIGINAL CULTURAL SITE
578. Hon LYNN MacLAREN to the
Minister for Aboriginal Affairs:
(1) Is the
minister aware that Roe Highway stage 8 has been identified as impacting on an
area that is a significantly important cultural site for the Beeliar people who
are a dialect group of the Noongar, and has been identified as the most
significant historical site within the Perth metropolitan region south of the
Swan River?
(2) If the minister is aware of these things, why has he not
opposed the proposed road?
Hon
PETER COLLIER replied:
I thank the honourable member for the question.
(1)–(2)
Any approvals that impact remotely on Aboriginal heritage must go through a
very, dare I say, forensic process. Exactly what will occur with that location
will occur in any other place throughout Western Australia. The Aboriginal
Cultural Material Committee is an extraordinarily forensic body and a number of
processes take a significant amount of time. A significant amount of
consultation is involved. That process will proceed as always whenever Aboriginal
heritage is involved.