ICRG delivering real employment outcomes for our mob

KRED Enterprises is proud of its joint venture with the Indigenous Construction Resource Group (ICRG). ICRG have delivered 100% Aboriginal employment on construction at Valhalla and an average of 75% Aboriginal employment on all other contracting jobs with Buru Energy. Employees, many from Noonkanbah and Derby, have been involved as civil works operators, in site preparation and have worked on bunding around dams. ICRG have been a fantastic mob to work with and we look forward to an ongoing positive relationship in the future.

KRED lobbying for global benchmarks at United Nations

KRED Enterprises CEO Wayne Bergmann and CEO of the Kimberley Land Council Nolan Hunter are set to jet to New York to speak at the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.

In a joint presentation, they’ll lobby for a set of global best practice principals and benchmarks for Indigenous economic development.

Mr Bergmann told ABC Kimberley (29/04/14) that companies can broker different – and potentially less beneficial – commercial deals and agreements with Indigenous people, depending on which country they’re operating in.

“I’m hoping to reinforce an international alliance on benchmarking where we can really talk best practice … In situations where we can’t stop development, we need to make sure it’s done on the best possible terms.”

Through all commercial negotiations, KRED Enterprises references a triple bottom line of people and culture, country and the economy.

With this as a foundation, KRED’s negotiated some of the strongest impact benefit agreements between mining companies and Indigenous people in Australia. Often these agreements go beyond the statutory agreements of governments and ensure any development is designed to meet the highest environmental and cultural standards.

Mr Bergmann says in Australia, Aboriginal people are regularly put in a difficult position.

“We have a resource rich country with an appalling history of mistreatment of Aboriginal people. This puts Aboriginal people in a difficult position. We have a responsibility to look after country, but it’s also crucial we participate in the modern economy.”

Mr Hunter elaborated, telling ABC Kimberley that engagement with companies often provides an uncomfortable tension for Indigenous people.

“The tension (is) between how you engage with economic development without compromising your cultural integrity.”

Mr Bergmann says the solution lies in creating economic opportunities that affirm Aboriginal cultural and social values.

“We want the choice to be able to practice the culture and values of our ancestors and to walk on Wall Street, as part of the mainstream economy,” Mr Bergmann says.

Mr Bergmann and Mr Hunter leave for New York on the 9th of May.

Keep your eyes on our Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter and Instagram accounts for updates, as we’ll be sharing selfies, conference snaps and speech excerpts.

For more information on the trip, contact Media and Communications Officer Madelaine Dickie at KRED Enterprises (08) 91928782.

KRED donates to keep children’s bellies full

Cooking for 3 kids is generally okay—you might even have a bit left over for lunch the next day. Cooking for 13 kids is starting to get tricky—will you have enough for everyone? Now imagine what it must be like cooking for 300 kids …

Broome-based organisation Feed the Little Children are doing just this. In the space of only two years they’ve gone from preparing 15-20 meals a week, to preparing 300 meals twice a week for children and young people who’d otherwise be going hungry.

The motivation behind Feed the Little Children’s work is that if children have a full belly, they’re less likely to commit crime. Feed the Little Children’s CEO Clint Durham says there’s evidence to suggest many young delinquents commit their first crime because they’re hungry.

“If you don’t have food or glucose then you don’t think properly. You get cranky and you do silly things. Although the program hasn’t been running for long—and although I might be a bit biased— I’ve definitely seen a change in a number of families I’ve been to. The kids look healthier, mum’s not as stressed out and the increased levels of nutrition will help the kids fight things like ear, nose and throat infections,” Mr Durham says.

KRED Enterprises understands that our young people can’t reach their full potential on an empty belly. Our young people have no chance of going on to further study at university, or of becoming active and engaged participants in our communities and economy, if they’re too hungry to pay attention at primary and high school.

We also understand that breaking cycles of poverty and neglect is a community effort—not just one that should be left to the police, or to the schools. It’s about standing together and working together, because collectively we’re more powerful, collectively we have the ability to create real and positive change.

This morning, KRED Enterprises handed over a cheque for $1,580, making good on our promise to match dollar for dollar donations received by Anthony Watson for the OzHarvest/Qantas CEO Cookoff back in March.

Anthony Watson, as Chairperson of KRED and Chairperson and founder of the Yirriman Project, is adamant that community organisations like Feed the Little Children receive continued community, government and corporate support to ensure their longevity.

“We see programs come and then disappear when the funding is cut. We would like to see more community-run organisations, tailored particularly to our community needs, receive the support they need to keep helping our young people.”

It’s an issue close to Anthony’s heart, particularly with the future of the Yirriman Project uncertain. Although the men’s program will continue in 2015, funding for the women’s program is yet to be secured.

If you would like to find out more information, either about KRED’s support for Feed the Little Children through the OzHarvest/Qantas CEO Cookoff, or would like to speak with Anthony about the Yiriman Project, please call KRED Enterprises on 91928782.

Mining update: fracking

Buru Energy is continuing exploration and development of the Canning Basin. They’re interested in further testing and exploring for gas at two sites—Yulleroo and Valhalla, where there are four existing wells.

The gas they’re keen to test is buried between 2-4km below the ground. It’s known as ‘unconventional gas’ because it’s locked tight within the rock. To get to it, Buru needs to use a process called fracking or hydraulic fracturing. Fracking could potentially pose a risk to Country and a risk to human health.

Here’s how it works: a mixture of water, sand and chemicals is pumped down into the well and shoots out through holes in the well wall and into the rock. The sand in the mixture causes tiny cracks in the rock and this is how the gas is unlocked and released.

One worry, is that although the fracking at Yulleroo and Valhalla will be 2-4km underground, the process might poison our drinking water, which is 20-500m from the surface.

Buru Energysay fracking is a safe process and that the technique has been perfected by operators and thoroughly assessed by independent scientists and analysts. They say the aquifer located under Buru Energy’s sites does not flow into Broome’s water supply, so there is no chance of contamination of the town’s drinking water.

The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA), wrote to Buru saying Buru do not need to have a formal environmental assessment as their tests are ‘unlikely to have a significant effect on the environment.’

APPEA says incidences of water contamination were not from fracking but from problems will wells such as minor leaks.

WA’s Water Corporation says there are potential risks to the public’s drinking water from fracking.

WA’s Government says the protection of water resources is it’s highest priority and all chemicals used in a well must be approved.

The National Toxics Network says the group of chemicals Buru will use in fracking are toxic, with some known to cause birth defects in animals.

The Australian Council of Learned Academies says there have been no cases internationally where fracking has accidently hit a water source and caused contamination.

The Conservation Council of WA says fracking has the potential to cause permanent damage to WA’s environment, ecosystems and natural and cultural heritage.

We believe there should be no fracking on our members’ Country without our consent. KRED are currently in the process of assembling an expert panel to offer independent advice on Buru’s suggested environmental modeling. While there is currently no fracking on our members’ Country, it is likely there will be in the future, and the data that Buru collects from these first tests at Yulleroo and Valhalla will form the baseline data for all other fracking experiments. Culturally, our Dreamtime stories connect underground water from Jaru right through to the west Kimberley coast. A large part of the west Kimberley is also on the National Heritage List, for its ‘rich and dynamic Aboriginal culture’, its ‘biological richness’, and its ‘geological and fossil evidence of Australia’s evolutionary history’. We want to ensure we have in place the most rigorous environmental assessment possible so our Country is protected. We act on the direction of our members: the Traditional Owners in the Kimberley.

Who's in our backyard?

The development of the Canning Basin could mean millions of dollars for WA. The Superbasin extends under Broome, the Dampier Peninsula, Derby, Fitzroy Crossing and Yampi Sound training area and is estimated to hold up to 229 trillion cubic feet of gas and 10 billion barrels of oil. This means there’s a great opportunity for economic participation by our people—if you consider the jobs, apprenticeships and training opportunities it may provide—but at the same time, it also poses the biggest threat to our traditional lands.

We hope to support our members in making informed decisions about what happens on their Country and negotiate to ensure any development meets the highest possible cultural and environmental standards. For us, prosperity must be about three things: people and culture, country, and economy. KRED firmly believes companies should have a social license when involved in projects that affect people and Country. This means projects have the ongoing approval and acceptance of the community and Traditional Owners.

Some of the key companies involved in oil and gas exploration in the Canning Basin include:

Buru Energy/Mitsubishi are the biggest players. They’re a joint partnership and have exploration permits mainly in the northern part of the Canning Basin, covering Nyikina Mangala, Karajarri and Ngurrara Country. They own the Yulleroo gasfield, the Valhalla gasfield and the Ungani oilfield. They are supported by the WA government, howeverthe WA government has not sought KRED’s input into any agreement with Buru and Mitsubishi.

Rey Resources currently holds a coal exploration tenemant and has commercial interests in Buru’s tenemant. Their permits are on Nyikina Mangala Country.

New Standard Energy owns exploration permits mainly in the southern Canning Basin. They’re interested in oil, unconventional gas, and are partnered with ConocoPhillips and Chinese oil and gas giant PetroChina. Their permits cover Ngurrara, Yawinya and Karajarri Country.

Other companies with interests in the Canning include: Areva, a French multinational interested in uranium exploration on Nyikina Mangala Country; HESS, a US company which now has two permits in the Canning Basin; and Shell which has an acreage in the Offshore Canning basin in conjunction with Woodside.