Environment and Resource Management

Frequently asked questions

Topics include:

General

How can I get involved in the economic transition process for North Stradbroke Island?

Community input is essential in shaping North Stradbroke Island’s economic transition. If you have feedback or suggestions on the key issues facing the island, and how the community should be informed as the strategy develops, have your say:

How can I find out more about the North Stradbroke Island strategy?

Join the mailing list.

To be kept updated on the North Stradbroke Island strategy, including consultation opportunities, register your interest by emailing straddiestrategy@derm.qld.gov.au or calling 1800 194 064.

The DERM website will be updated regularly as new information becomes available.

Members of the public were invited to have their say about the Queensland Government’s vision for  North Stradbroke Island between July and September 2010. A summary report (PDF, 207K)* of all the community feedback received on the vision is available.

Native title for the Quandamooka People

What is native title?

Native title describes the rights and interests of Indigenous people under their traditional laws and customs.

Native title is protected at a State and Commonwealth level under the Native Title (Queensland) Act 1993 and Native Title Act 1993 (Commonwealth).

How does a native title claim commence?

The process begins under the Commonwealth Native Title Act 1993 when a native title claim group—in this case the Quandamooka People—files an application in the Federal Court seeking a determination that recognises them as native title holders over the area claimed.

What areas do the Quandamooka People’s native title consent determinations cover?

The majority of North Stradbroke Island, Peel Island, Goat Island, Bird Island, Stingaree Island, Crab Island and the surrounding waters of Moreton Bay are covered by the determinations. Refer to the native title determinations map for more information.

These areas are the result of two claims made by the Quandamooka People in 1995 and 1999, and it was on these claims that the Federal Court made its determinations.

What does the Federal Court’s native title determinations mean for the Quandamooka People on Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island)?

The determinations recognise the Quandamooka People’s rights amongst others to:

They also recognise the Quandamooka People’s exclusive native title rights and interests over approximately 2264 hectares of land, their non-exclusive native title rights and interests over approximately 22 639 hectares of land, as well as approximately 29 505 hectares of the Moreton Bay Marine Park area. 

What do the Federal Court’s native title determinations mean for other landholders on North Stradbroke Island?

Like all native title claims, the Quandamooka People’s claims cannot cover private freehold or many types of leasehold land. The majority of landholders on North Stradbroke Island will not be directly affected. 

The expression of all native title rights and interests are subject to the laws of the Commonwealth, State and Local governments.

Who was involved in negotiating this native title consent determination?

Extensive negotiations were held in the lead up to the final consent determinations. 

These determinations were reached by negotiation with the Queensland Government, the Quandamooka People, Queensland South Native Title Services, the Commonwealth of Australia, Redland City Council, Brisbane City Council, Sibelco Australia Limited and other parties with interests in infrastructure, fishing, and tourism on North Stradbroke Island.

How do the native title determinations on North Stradbroke Island relate to the Queensland Government’s North Stradbroke Island strategy?

Native title for the Quandamooka People is central to the Queensland Government’s North Stradbroke Island strategy.

To support the determinations, the Queensland Government and the Quandamooka People have entered into an Indigenous Land Use Agreement (ILUA) and an Indigenous Management Agreement over the lands and waters within the determination areas.

These agreements provide the Quandamooka People with an opportunity to own land as well as lead the management of their traditional country.

The ILUA was registered with the National Native Title Tribunal on 13 December 2011.

What is contained in the ILUA?

The confidential ILUA provides for benefits for both the State and the Quandamooka People by delivering:

Will the ILUA and consent determinations allow the Quandamooka People to live on the land without restrictions?

ILUA’s do not promote 'unlawful occupation' of land. The agreement works towards regulating the current residential occupation sites of land and future occupation sites to be in line with the laws of the federal, state and local governments.

What immediate effects does the ILUA have on the island?

The ILUA has a number of immediate consequences for the island. Now that the ILUA hs been registered, the native title determination is in effect. Joint management has formally come into effect under the Indigenous Management Agreement, allowing the Quandamooka People to have land ownership and direct and meaningful involvement in decision making regarding use and access of the protected areas.

The declaration of the Minjerribah Recreation Area over certain holiday parks and beach camping areas provides a management framework for the Quandamooka People to have a direct role in providing future culturally orientated nature-based businesses (e.g. beach camping). Other State land has undergone reconfiguration and rationalisation to more appropriate tenures that recognise the native title rights and interests.

Mine path for Enterprise mine lease

Why was the size of the mine amended?

The Queensland Government made a commitment to allow the Enterprise mine to continue operating until the end of 2019—to ensure the security of the island’s economy in the short to medium term.

The North Stradbroke Island Protection and Sustainability Act 2011 (the Act), passed in Queensland Parliament in April 2011, restricts the Enterprise mine path to a size that was understood to be suitable for eight years of mining.

The Act was designed to allow the mining company to apply, within a three-month window, for a variation of the legislated mine path on the grounds of its economic viability to 2019. However, such an application had to retain specific environmental standards.

The approach set out in the Act reflected the Queensland Government’s commitment to protect the environment while ensuring both the mining company and the wider North Stradbroke Island economy had eight years to make the transition away from mining.

The mining company, Sibelco, applied for changes to the mine path on 10 June 2011 on the basis that the legislated mine path was not sufficient to maintain current operations until 2019. According to the application, the legislated mine path would result in significant safety issues that would leave the mine unworkable as well as providing increased risk of environmental harm through off-site hydrological impacts.

The Queensland Government has carried out its own environmental ground truthing, and has had the information provided by Sibelco independently tested and confirmed.

What impact will the new mine path have on the environment?

The North Stradbroke Island Protection and Sustainability Act 2011 sets out important legislative requirements which must be adhered to before any amended mine path is approved.

Specifically, the added area must not include any threatened ecosystem. Furthermore the new mine path, with the added area, must remain consistent with the environmental authority that currently covers the area. This means that the revised mine path could not impact on environmentally sensitive areas that had been previously identified within the environmentally authority.

While the alternative mine path covers a larger area, it actually increases the protection of threatened ecosystems, as well as having other environmental advantages, such as:

How does the new mine path compare to what the company originally wanted?

The new mine path:

How does the new mine path compare to the legislated mine path?

The company’s revised mine path is 337 hectares and the mine path in the Act is 198 hectares.

However, the company’s new mine path reduces the impact on threatened ecosystems, from 6.3 hectares to just a third of a hectare.

The amended path prevents the dredge path severing a major high dune system.

It will also allow the removal of the dredge and other equipment at the end of the mine’s life via an existing disturbed area in the southern part of the path. The legislated path would have necessitated this being removed via Herring Lagoon Valley to the north.

Will the mine still shut down by the end of 2019?

Yes. The legislation clearly states that the Enterprise mining lease will terminate on 31 December 2019 and cannot be renewed at any time.

How do you know that the new information which helped in making this decision is correct?

The Queensland Government has had all the data provided by Sibelco independently tested and confirmed by an independent expert. This includes information on the economic viability data of the mine, details around the mine's current rate of operation and safety issues.

The Queensland Herbarium has ground truthed the area to be added to the mine path to ensure that no threatened ecosystems are included. The Department of Environment and Resource Management also commissioned a third party to undertake high resolution imagery to support the analysis undertaken by the Herbarium.

Why is dry mining allowed?

The amount of dry mining the company has applied for as part of its new path is not excessive and will support it continuing to operate Enterprise mine at current rates of production.

While the new mine path has 163 hectares of dry mining, none of this area comprises threatened ecosystems.

Dry mining has a lesser impact on the environment than dredge mining as it is much shallower and does not disturb the full dune profile. In particular it has lower hydrological implications.

Will there still be 75 per cent national park on the island by 2021?

Yes. The mining company will have to rehabilitate the mined areas and the entire mine path area will be included in the national park in the future, firstly as ’national park recovery’.  

Is Eighteen-Mile Swamp protected?

Yes, Eighteen-Mile Swamp is already protected in stage 1 of the national park. The revised mine path does not cover any of Eighteen-Mile Swamp. It does allow some mining near the escarpment above the swamp. However, this is dry mining—rather than dredge mining—which has much less impact on the topology and hydrology of the area. In addition, there remains a buffer of at least 100 metres, typically closer to 200 to 300 metres, between mining activity and the escarpment.

Will the new path leave a deeper, bigger crater?

The revised restricted mine path will see less impact and less disturbance to the land form from the final void through its relocation to the south.

This is because of the topography of the area in which the void will be located.

Will the company be required to rehabilitate all mined areas?

Yes. The mining company remains obligated to rehabilitate all mined areas, consistent with the conditions outlined in its environmental authority.

Economic transition for Straddie

What is the government doing to build a strong sustainable North Stradbroke Island economy?

The government is working with a range of stakeholders, including the Quandamooka People, tourism operators and experts, business owners and education leaders to develop a strong sustainable economy for the island.

This includes formation of:

A draft Economic Transition Strategy (the strategy) is being developed under the guidance of the Economic Transition Taskforce. The strategy seeks to provide a shared understanding of core values for economic growth. It also identifies strategic enablers that will shape North Stradbroke Island to become Australia’s most sustainable island community.

The strategy identifies four industry areas as the most viable options for contributing to long-term sustainable economic growth on the island:

Have your say on the draft Economic Transition Strategy.

Is there any support available for island residents and businesses?

There is a multitude of programs and support available for island residents and businesses. The North Stradbroke Island strategy team has compiled a list of relevant programs, including grants, subsidies, monitoring services, self-assessment websites, workshops, online seminars and industry recognition awards.

To obtain a copy, or find out more information about support, contact the department on 1800 194 064 or email straddiestrategy@derm.qld.gov.au.

Minjerribah recreation area

What is a recreation area?

A recreation area declared and managed under the Recreation Areas Management Act 2006 provides nature-based recreation that is carefully planned and managed to protect the values of these areas.

The key goal of a recreation area is to bring together, in a single effective management framework, different land tenure types, including:

With the declaration of Minjerribah Recreation Area on North Stradbroke Island, Queensland now has seven recreation areas—including Moreton Island, Fraser Island, Green Island and Bribie Island, and at Inskip Point and Cooloola.

Recreation areas are partly managed on a user-pays basis. Fees collected for activities such as camping, beach driving and commercial activities are used to help manage the recreation areas.

Why do we need a recreation area—what’s changed?

The Minjerribah Recreation Area on North Stradbroke Island covers holiday parks, camping areas and beaches that allow four-wheel driving on North Stradbroke Island, which have historically been managed by Redland City Council (RCC).

The RCC is making way for a new management framework for these areas, in an effort to assist economic development opportunities on the island for the Quandamooka People.

The Minjerribah Recreation Area is declared and managed under the Recreation Areas Management Act 2006, and underpins the future transition into a new management framework by providing a legal framework for managing holiday parks and beach camping and driving areas on the island.

The existing recreation opportunities will continue the same way; however the recreation area framework is an important first step that will underpin the future transition into new management arrangements.

Where does the Minjerribah Recreation Area cover?

The recreation area covers the following sites:

A map of the recreation area is available.

Will I still be able to 4WD and camp on beaches?

Yes—beach driving and camping will continue to be allowed on Flinders Beach and Main Beach.

Permits will still be required to drive and camp on these beaches. While the look of the permits may change following the transition into new management arrangements, the current permit fees under Redland City Council will be carried over into the recreation area framework.

New signs will be installed to guide driving on beaches, and improvements are planned to camping facilities to ensure that beach camping on the island is sustainable into the future.

Further, visitors can also continue to camp in any of the six holiday parks on North Stradbroke Island that will be within the recreation area.

Redland City Council continues to manage the area. For all camping and vehicle access permit bookings and enquiries phone 1300 551 253 or visit their website.

Can I still bring my dog to these areas?

Yes—visitor opportunities will carry over unchanged into the recreation area framework, which means that visitors can still camp and enjoy the beaches with their dogs.

Dog owners are encouraged to keep dogs on a lead, pick up any droppings and prevent their dog from chasing birds or wildlife.

Will this mean any new fees?

No—there will be no new or additional fees resulting from the declaration of the Minjerribah Recreation Area.

Permits will still be needed to camp, drive on beaches and conduct commercial and special activities in the recreation area, as per the current requirements by Redland City Council.

The current fees will be carried over into the new management framework as a result of the recreation area declaration. Any future variations to management arrangements, such as extending the recreation area or reviewing fees would be subject to appropriate consultation.

What will be the difference now that the Minjerribah Recreation Area is in place?

While the management arrangements of North Stradbroke Island’s holiday parks and beach camping areas are changing, the same recreation opportunities remain for visitors to these areas.

Over time there will be a transition towards a new management presence in the recreation area, responsible for operating and maintaining these areas, as well as undertaking compliance and enforcement. Visitors will notice new signage, clear directions on their responsibilities within the recreation area, and improvements to infrastructure and assets over time.

Further details will be made available during the transition period.

* Requires Adobe Reader

Last updated 16 December 2011

North Stradbroke Island Strategy

Topics in this site