The Northern Territory Government is focussed on supporting the incredible work of Aboriginal rangers.
This year record funding has been made available through the Aboriginal Ranger Grants Program (round seven) with almost $6 million being awarded to various ranger groups.
Thirty-eight new Aboriginal Ranger projects that support ranger bases to go green, to promote gender equity, and protect land and sea country have been funded in the latest round of grants.
The last six rounds of the Aboriginal Ranger Grants Program have provided $15.7 million to support activities of ranger groups across the Territory.
Ninti One conducted an independent review of the outcomes of the Aboriginal Ranger Grants program in 2021 and found that the program has made a considerable and profound contribution to land management across the Northern Territory.
This year’s successful applications cover a range of important land and sea management projects, including:
Funding for SEAL Sea Country IPA Seagrass surveys and development of ranger-led monitoring program, which involves studying over 1600 intertidal seagrass sites across 99 meadows;Purchase of two vehicles by Werebun Rangers to enable women and men’s programs to run concurrently;Purchase of a truck and tractor for the Muru-Warinyi Ankkul Tennant Creek Ranger Base, to help develop a regional hub for several ranger groups to better manage and protect country;Upgrades to the Ltyentye Apurte Ranger offices at Santa Teresa to facilitate more female ranger positions;Purchase of two side-by-side vehicles by Arafura Swamp Rangers to support their care for over 1.4 million hectares of land and sea country;Funding for the Strong Women for Healthy Country Mentorship Support, which involves delivering support for women working as mentors in remote communities;Purchase of a compact track loader and trailer by Anindilyakwa Land & Sea Rangers to enable proactive track maintenance, which will support year-round access to 14 public recreational areas;Installation of a solar off-grid power generation and battery storage system by Kenbi Rangers at their Indian Island field station;Purchase of additional vessel by Kenbi Rangers to monitor sea turtle conservation and manage cultural sites; andSupport for the Yanyuwa people, with assistance of the Li-Anthawirriyarra Sea Rangers and the Mabunji Aboriginal Resource Indigenous Corporation, to development a Sea Country Management Plan.
The Northern Territory Government continues to work in partnership with the Ichthys LNG Coastal Offset Strategy program, which focusses on the conservation management of dugongs, cetaceans and threatened marine matters of national environmental significance in the Top End.
Attributable to Minister for Parks and Rangers Selena Uibo:
“Vast areas of the Northern Territory are cared for by Aboriginal Rangers and the Territory Labor Government has a clear agenda to support this excellent work.
“Working on country achieves great outcomes for the environment, as well as employment, social, education, health and economic development outcomes for Aboriginal Territorians especially in our remote communities.
“This program builds strong Aboriginal leadership and organisational governance, and these grants will see these opportunities and jobs grow.”
Attributable to Stuart Knowles, INPEX General Manager NT:
“Congratulations to all of the organisations on securing funding for these significant projects and thank you for the invaluable work you do, caring for Country.
“For over three years our team at INPEX has been collaborating with the NT Department of Environment, Parks and Water Security to support the Aboriginal Ranger Grants Program, which has proven to be an excellent framework to deliver the Ichthys Joint Venture’s $24 million coastal management offset program.
“This program funding is part of a much bigger voluntary commitment by Ichthys LNG, which includes $91 million of environmental and social offsets over the anticipated 40-year life span of our energy development.
“Not only does this program deliver environmental benefits, it also provides opportunities for Aboriginal Rangers to work on Country, supporting broader social and economic outcomes for Territorians.”
Northern Territory Government
