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Wednesday, 07 January, 2009, 17:40 GMT | more >>

Australia agrees rock art deal



By Upstream staff 

Australia will protect vast areas of ancient rock art in the country's north-west while allowing Woodside Petroleum to build a gas plant in the area, Environment Minister Malcolm Turnbull said today.

Turnbull said the compromise decision would allow development to go ahead around Dampier, the nation's second biggest port, on the Burrup Peninsula in the heart of resource-rich northern Western Australia.

The decision will allow Woodside, which plans to build an A$10 billion ($8.6 billion) liquefied natural gas terminal in the area, to move up to 200 pieces of ancient Aboriginal rock art, or petroglyphs.

"We support the decision. We believe it provides proper recognition of the heritage of the area,” a Woodside spokeswoman told Reuters.

“We are pleased that the minister has recognised that industry and heritage can co-exist."

Woodside has already moved about 42 pieces of the rock art in preparatory work for the project, which is set to start delivering LNG by 2010.


Tuesday, 03 July, 2007, 04:52 GMT  | last updated: Tuesday, 03 July, 2007, 04:57 GMT

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