Ensuring legal compliance: Aboriginal heritage legislation and its application to the petroleum industry

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.