Birriliburu Indigenous Protected Area

The Birriliburu Indigenous Protected Area, also known as Birriliburu IPA, is an Indigenous Protected Area (IPA) covering an area of 6,600,000 hectares (16,000,000 acres) in the Western Desert region of Western Australia, was declared in 2013.^[2][3]

Birriliburu Indigenous Protected Area
IUCN category III (natural monument or feature)^[1]
Location of Birriliburu Indigenous Protected Area in Western Australia
Nearest city	Wiluna, Western Australia
Coordinates	24°17′06″S 124°21′00″E / 24.2851°S 124.3500°E / -24.2851; 124.3500
Area	5,571.99 km^2 (2,151.36 sq mi)
Designation	Indigenous Protected Area
Designated	2013

Stretching from the nationally significant Carnarvon Range (Katjarra^[4]) to Constance Headland, along the famous Canning Stock Route, the IPA covers three central Western Desert regions: the Little Sandy Desert, Gibson Desert and the Gascoyne. The land belongs to the Birriliburu native title holders, known as the Martu people.^[2] Three native title claims, dating from 2008, 2010 and 2011, were decided in 2016.^[5]

There is a high level of biodiversity in this IPA, ranging from red sand dunes and sandstone mountain ranges to salt lakes and claypans. The area is home to a high number of nationally significant species, including the black-flanked rock-wallaby, great desert skink, night parrot and the slender-billed thornbill.^[2]

Ancient rock art sites culturally significant to the Martu exist throughout Birriliburu IPA,^[2] including Karnatukul (Serpent's Glen).^[6]

In 2014, the Birriliburu traditional owners and rangers reopened Katjarra for the month of July after it had been closed since 2008, with the hope of opening it to the public each July in the future. Permits were issued for 70 visitors, with an access fee of $100 access fee per vehicle. It was also hoped that more Aboriginal people, especially young people, would visit to reconnect with their culture.^[4]

References

1. UNEP-WCMC (2022). Protected Area Profile for Birriliburu from the World Database of Protected Areas. Accessed 23 July 2022. [1]
2. "Birriliburu IPA - Central and Southern region". National Indigenous Australians Agency WA projects. 24 November 2015. Retrieved 20 July 2022.   Text may have been copied from this source, which is available under a Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence. (see here.
3. "Little Sandy Desert". 10 Deserts Project. Retrieved 20 July 2022.
4. Pownall, Angela (1 August 2014). "Custodians open up Carnarvon Range". The West Australian. Retrieved 19 July 2022.
5. "Birriliburu". Central Desert Native Title Services. 15 July 2016. Retrieved 20 July 2022.
6. McDonald, Josephine; Reynen, Wendy; Petchey, Fiona; Ditchfield, Kane; Byrne, Chae; Vannieuwenhuyse, Dorcas; Leopold, Matthias; Veth, Peter (September 2018). "Karnatukul (Serpent's Glen): A new chronology for the oldest site in Australia's Western Desert". PLOS ONE. 13 (9): e0202511. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0202511. PMC 6145509. PMID 30231025 – via ResearchGate. The re-excavation of Karnatukul (Serpent's Glen) has provided evidence for the human occupation of the Australian Western Desert to before 47,830 cal. BP (modelled median age). This new sequence is 20,000 years older than the previous known age for occupation at this site