BATHURST Local Aboriginal Land Council (BLALC) have finally won its land claim on the Sir Joseph Banks Nature Reserve at Mount Panorama.
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The long and drawn out battle over the land, next to McPhillamy Park, ended when an appeal against a decision to transfer the reserve to the BLALC was dismissed last month in the Supreme Court of NSW.
BLALC lodged an Aboriginal Land Claim for the 40 hectares on August 21, 2001 after the former Bathurst City Council closed the reserve to the public.
It is not yet known what the land adjoining the world famous race track will be used for or what sort of an impact this use will have on the Bathurst 1000.
BLALC co-ordinator Warwick Peckham was unavailable for comment yesterday and Bathurst Regional Council general manager David Sherley said he had not been told of the appeal dismissal.
“Council has not been made aware of the decision of the court on the matter and until it has details I am unable to ascertain the level of impact this will have on the races,” Mr Sherley said.
“I will need to see the terms of the decision made by the Supreme Court and we will work with them (BLALC) to ensure the integrity of car racing of the circuit ... and to achieve whatever result is best for Bathurst.”
For 25 years the park was used as a flora and fauna reserve and was home to enclosures of different animal, bird, reptile and fish species. Kangaroos, wallabies and emus roamed freely through the reserve, which was open to the public.
On June 20, 2001 Bathurst City Council decided to close the park, remove the infrastructure and allow the area to revert to a woodland area.
The original dispute began when the minister administering the Crown Lands Act refused BLALC’s claim on the basis that the park was not claimable Crown lands.
BLALC then appealed against the minister’s refusal of its claim in the Land and Environment Court.
However, the Land and Environment Court found the minister did not establish the land was lawfully used or occupied. So the primary judge found the nature park was claimable Crown lands and ordered it be transferred to BLALC.
The minister then appealed against this decision but in its judgement handed down on June 10, the Supreme Court found the only lawful use of the reserve being undertaken at the time of the claim was for the preservation of native flora.
“The minister failed to discharge his onus of proving that the claimed land was lawfully used or occupied at the date of the claim,” the judgment read.
