MP Peter Walsh has rallied against progress on adding Ghow Swamp to the National Heritage List.
An ongoing push to add Ghow Swamp to the National Heritage List has drawn condemnation from state Member for Murray Plains Peter Walsh.
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The swamp was registered on the Finalised Priority Assessment List last financial year, and a continuing declaration to protect the site was enacted in 2022 by the Victorian Government.
According to First Peoples – State Relations, the swamp has been an immensely significant place for Aboriginal people for millennia.
It is an ancient burial ground, and has been used as a site for repatriation of ancestral remains reclaimed from museums and universities.
Considered one of the country’s most important burial places, it has international significance as the largest single collection of ancestral remains that date back to the late Pleistocene period globally.
Recreational activities, such as boating and camping, have been banned at the site, and infrastructure for water irrigation and storage has strict maintenance conditions.
Mr Walsh said the federal Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water’s First Nations Heritage Section was working to progress the swamp’s listing assessment.
State Member for Murray Plains Peter Walsh (centre) addressing a crowd of local farmers, landowners and fishing enthusiasts about Ghow Swamp concerns.
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For people in the region, losing their say on how the swamp and its system was run would be a major step backwards, he said.
“Apart from anything else, Kow (Ghow) Swamp is currently an irrigation storage zone and when managed correctly is also crucial in flood mitigation in the region,” Mr Walsh said.
“Kow Swamp has worked effectively and efficiently for countless generations. There is no reason to change anything — except to reopen it to recreational use as well.”
First Peoples – State Relations cites a “range of activities” as impacting the swamp, degrading its irreplaceable cultural and environmental values.
Mr Walsh, however, said none of its current past and present uses have had any negative effects on the swamp.
The government will consult people with rights and interests in the swamp as part of the National Heritage assessment process, including neighbours of its proposed boundary.
Two drop-in sessions are being held on Wednesday, October 22, first at Gunbower Workshop Cafe at 10am, and Echuca library at 3pm.
Mr Walsh urged those interested to attend either session, or to email heritage@dcceew.gov.au if unable to attend.
The assessment completion date is listed as June 30, 2028.
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