Flipbook (final)

Our Outback, Our Story
A message to the Premier from the people of Western Australia
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Dear Premier,
This book shares a message with you from the
people of Western Australia who have pledged
their support for a brighter future for our Outback.
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WA is an extraordinary place.

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WA’s Outback is one of only a few large natural
areas remaining on earth - ranking alongside
the Amazon, the Himalayas and Antarctica - and
it makes up 90% of our great state. 1
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More than any other state, the Outback has
shaped our history, our culture and our
economy. It is what makes us unique and it
defines our character.

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But more than that, it is a tangible place
with rugged and beautiful landscapes, rich
natural resources, amazing wildlife, and
larger-than-life characters.
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The plant and animal life of WA’s Outback
is extraordinarily rich and complex, having
evolved in isolation for millions of years.
Much of it is found nowhere else on Earth.
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One constant over millennia has been the presence
of people in the Outback, keeping it healthy.
However, now there are fewer people living in and
actively managing much of WA’s Outback than at any
time over the past 50,000 years. 2
Not only does this diminish the social fabric and
remarkable characters of the Outback, but it also
has a profound impact on the landscape itself.
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Uncontrolled and catastrophic wildfires
are causing irreparable damage.
For example, in less than thirty years,
fires in the Western Deserts have
increased in size from an average of
64ha to more than 52,000ha. 3
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Feral animals are a major threat to
our unique wildlife.
According to CSIRO, feral cats alone
kill an average of 75 million native
animals per night in Australia. 4
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Our fragile soils are declining from decades of
government neglect and overgrazing.
Many of the things that make our State
special are at risk of being lost forever.
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Despite the need for change in the Outback,
government restrictions and tough times are
driving away the very people that want to be
part of the solution. Outdated laws are holding
people back from diversifying into more
modern, profitable and sustainable ways of
making a living and looking after the Outback.
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The Outback is at a crossroads.
We need a new approach - one that
supports people, jobs and nature.

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Opportunities for tourism, private
conservation and cultural enterprises
hold great promise. However, our current
laws force leaseholders to run cattle and
sheep as their primary business. People
should have the freedom to prosper.

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Visionary pastoralists have had remarkable
success in restoring land which was
degraded over decades past, but with
an area more than three times the size
of Tasmania assessed as being in ‘poor
condition’, they can’t do it alone. 5
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Indigenous Rangers in the Kimberley have been
a great success story, bringing jobs, improved
health, stronger cultural connections and
excellent conservation outcomes. Exciting
potential and a tremendous need for Indigenous
Rangers exists elsewhere around our state.

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Dear Premier Barnett,
Our Outback is an extraordinary and beautiful place which has helped shape
our culture, our economy and who we are today as Western Australians.
However without decisive action to modernise laws and reform government
approaches, we risk losing the remarkable people and amazing natural
landscapes that make it so special.
This year we have an historic opportunity to turn this around and leave a deep
and lasting legacy for the future generations of our great State.
We urge you to take this opportunity to create a modern Outback which:
• encourages new enterprises and jobs that look after our Outback
• rewards those that manage their land well, and
• protects our most special natural places.
Yours sincerely,
The undersigned people of Western Australia.
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The following 28 pages contain the names
of 10,000 Western Australians. These were
presented to the Premier but have not been
reproduced here for privacy reasons
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PHOTGRAPHY CREDITS
REFERENCES
Cover:
Page 2-3:
Page 4:
Page 7:
Page 8-9:
Page 10
Page 12-13:
Page 15:
Page 16:
Page 17:
Page 19:
Page 20:
Page 22-23:
Page 25:
Page 26-27:
Page 28:
Page 31
Page 32-33:
Page 35:
Page 37:
On the David Carnegie Track, Goldfields - Simon Nevill
Pannawonica Hill, Pilbara - Dan Proud
Dampier Peninsula, Kimberley - Adam Monk
A modern-day ‘swagman’ - Glenn Walker
Rodeo, Kimberley - Kevin Pearce
(Clockwise from top left): Northern Quoll - Henry Cook
Gouldian Finch at Mornington Wildlife Sanctuary - S Murphy
Thorny Devil - Barbara Madden, Calytrix brachyphylla - Jiri Lochman
Everlastings, Northern Murchison region - Simon Nevill
Left: Pastoralists mustering cattle - Kerry Trapnell
Right: Wunggurr Ranger with Chestnut Mouse, Kimberley,
Wunggurr Ranger - Kimberley Land Council
Top: Spinifex wildfire near Newman, Pilbara - Hugh Brown
Bottom: Uncontrolled fire burning in the Outback - Vanessa Westacott
Top: Feral camels - Roger Sleep
Bottom: A feral cat with a native bird - Fredy Mercay
Overgrazed land, Gascoyne region - Peter-Jon Waddell
Boab tree, Parry Lagoons Nature Reserve, Kimberley - Hugh Brown
Aerial view, Pilbara region - Hugh Brown
Left: Buccaneer Archipelago, Kimberley - Kevin Pearce
Right: Four-wheel driving through the Outback - C Petar
Pilbara storm - Tomasz Judkowiak
Pastoralist on station, Murchison, David Mackenzie
(clockwise from top):
Bardi Jawi Ranges, Kimberley - Paul Sheridan
Daniel Oades, Bardi Jawi Indigenous Protected Area Coordinator,
Kimberley - Sue Vittori
A Ngurrara Ranger transfers knowledge to a young community member,
Warlu Jilajaa Jumu Indigenous Protected Area - Kimberley Land Council
Mitchell Falls, Kimberley - Adam Monk
Outback supporters at Kings Park, Perth
Stockman on horseback - Glenn Campbell
1. J. Woinarski, B. Traill & C. Booth (2014)
‘The Modern Outback: Nature, people and the future of remote Australia’,
Pew Charitable Trusts, page 13.
2. J. Woinarski, B. Traill & C. Booth (2014) ‘The Modern Outback:
Nature, people and the future of remote Australia’,
Pew Charitable Trusts, page 118.
3. J. Woinarski, B. Traill & C. Booth (2014) ‘The Modern Outback:
Nature, people and the future of remote Australia’,
Pew Charitable Trusts, page 97.
4. G. Borschmann & N. Groch (2014), ‘Feral cats rewrite the Australian
story’, available at http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/ programs/
backgroundbriefing/feral-cats-re-write-the-australian- story/5802204.
5. T. Brandis (2008) ‘Rescuing the Rangelands’,
Department of Parks and Wildlife.
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