Cultural heritage; Cultural values; Aboriginal; Traditional society; Salinity; Salinization; Risk assessment; Risk factors; Risk reduction; Integrated catchment management; Catchment management; Watershed management; Land use planning; Natural resource management; Decision making; Case studies; Environmental degradation; Environmental management
An Aboriginal heritage and salinity project conducted in New South Wales had two key components: an overview of the potential effects of salinity on Aboriginal heritage places and values in New South Wales, and a case study conducted with the Wiradjuri people in the Wellington NSW area of central west New South Wales. The case study examined, inter alia, the effects of salinity on people's use of land and rivers. Both the overview and the case study consider how catchment management might account for cultural values. The study identified a number of strategies for dealing with the problem. In particular, there is an urgent need to link the management of natural and cultural resources and to understand the relationship between people's sense of place and the condition of the environment around them. Four key steps are recommended. Land use planning and management should consciously aim for social and cultural benefits. Understandings of cultural heritage values should be informed by participatory planning and social science research. Specific cultural heritage management targets should be set for each catchment and sub-catchment, and cultural heritage indicators should be established for all catchments and sub-catchments to facilitate measuring the cultural impacts of land use decision making (A).