ChemCentre is to take part in a globally significant scientific monitoring and analysis program of Aboriginal rock art on Murujuga, the Aboriginal name for the Dampier Archipelago, including the Burrup Peninsula.
The State Government recently announced the appointment of Puliyapang Pty Ltd, a registered Aboriginal business, to undertake the program. Puliyapang is a joint venture between Calibre Ventures Pty Ltd and Tocomwall Pty Ltd, partnering with experts from ChemCentre, Curtin University and Artcare.
Murujuga is home to the largest, densest and most diverse concentration of Aboriginal rock art in the world. It is also home to important export industries.
The scientific monitoring and analysis program will build on work over the past 15 years to determine whether the Murujuga rock art is being subject to accelerated change from the impacts of industry and shipping emissions.
Archaeologists estimate the art to be tens of thousands of years old and includes petroglyphs of megafauna, thylacines and other wildlife that is now extinct. The rock art is of immense cultural and spiritual significance to Aboriginal people, and of national and international heritage value.
ChemCentre’s Director Scientific Services, Nigel West, said ChemCentre would play an important role in the program.
“Our expertise will be used in providing specialist chemical analysis of air and water samples.”
The Department of Water and Environmental Regulation (DWER) and the Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation (MAC) will work in partnership to oversee the monitoring program, and evaluate and report on trends and changes in the condition of the rock art.
