Ensuring legal compliance: Aboriginal heritage legislation and its application to the petroleum industry
G. Scott A and A. Gay AAshurst.
The APPEA Journal 52(2) 686-686 https://doi.org/10.1071/AJ11100
Published: 2012
Abstract
For practitioners in the petroleum industry, the knowledge of Aboriginal heritage compliance requirements and an understanding of engagement with traditional owners, is vital to ensuring certainty and timeliness in project delivery. For the industry’s potential investors and business partners, this knowledge and understanding will assist in making properly informed investment decisions in Australian petroleum projects.
This extended abstract analyses both the requirements of the South Australian Aboriginal Heritage Act 1988 (and similar legislation in other States and Territories) and how project proponents should engage with traditional owners to increase compliance with these requirements. There are two parts:
-
Legislative compliance
-
The Aboriginal Heritage Act—how it applies to petroleum production and exploration operations in SA: how legislative compliance is imperative from legal liability and project delivery perspectives.
-
Compliance in other jurisdictions: jurisdictional comparisons to show the legal compliance issues facing proponents operating in multiple jurisdictions.
-
-
Case study
-
Exploration to production: a case study on interacting with traditional indigenous owners to increase legal compliance. The case study examines the path followed by all proponents from initial exploration activities to delivering a production project. It focuses on when and how proponents need to consider the Act, and how engagement with traditional indigenous owners can assist with legal compliance. This case study also considers the various types of heritage contracts that can be entered into with traditional indigenous owners, and how these contracts can increase certainty in project delivery.
-
Gavin Scott is a partner at Ashurst. He represents clients in the resources sector with a particular focus on project approvals. He also provides strategic advice about tenure, regulatory, land access, native title, and cultural heritage issues affecting resources projects. He has represented major mining, petroleum, and energy companies in planning and developing new projects and major acquisitions and in negotiating commercial arrangements. He has also represented resources clients in the various courts and tribunals related to environmental, native title, and cultural heritage issues. He is recognised as one of Australia’s leading native title lawyers in Chambers Asia Pacific 2012. |
Andrew Gay is a senior associate in the energy and resources group in the Perth office. He is also a member of the Adelaide office commercial property team. He practices primarily in native title, cultural heritage, and commercial property and planning law. He appears for corporate respondent party clients in native title claims proceedings, and advises and negotiates native title and cultural heritage agreements between clients and native title groups. He also advises development projects, development approvals, and planning requirements. In property and planning, he has particular expertise in South Australian law. |
