Western Australia approved BHP Group’s application to disturb 40 culturally significant Aboriginal sites as part of a mine expansion, the state government said on Thursday, days after Rio Tinto blew up sacred rock caves in the same area.
State Aboriginal Affairs Minister Ben Wyatt said in a statement he had approved BHP’s application to "impact" the sites in the iron ore-rich Pilbara region, where BHP is planning its $3.4-billion South Flank expansion. Under a legal loophole, traditional owners are not able to object to ministerial decisions made under Section 18 of the state’s Aboriginal Heritage Act when "land users conclude that impact to a site is unavoidable".