Protecting past, present and progress: the reality of coexistence with National and World Heritage properties

Abstract

Murujuga, also known as the Dampier Archipelago, is a highly significant cultural landscape rich in Aboriginal cultural heritage, particularly rock engravings known as petroglyphs. In 2007, part of this landscape was included on the National Heritage List, and in 2018 the process towards World Heritage Listing began. Murujuga has also been home to industry for over half a century, including Woodside-operated natural gas processing operations since the 1980s. The effects of development on heritage and the need to mitigate damage are long-standing subjects of discussion internationally. This paper outlines how Woodside seeks to ensure the coexistence of its operations and Murujuga’s cultural landscape, and examines the less frequently considered effects of coexistence on industry, both positive and negative. The largest benefits of coexistence arise from the formalisation and enumeration of heritage values, allowing targeted management with a values-driven approach, stakeholder identification, impact assessment and collaboration. The greatest difficulties arise from regulation, activism and heightened reputational risks, but this paper also identifies certain structures that come with heritage listing that can be used to mitigate these challenges.