Dealing with culturally sensitive areas in industrial project design

Abstract

Potential cultural impacts from proposed industrial developments can affect culturally sensitive areas that are important to Aboriginal peoples. These cultural impacts are important for legal, political, and moral reasons and can have a major influence on project approval or rejection during environmental impact assessment. It is in the interest of developers to identify and consider potential impacts on culturally sensitive areas early in the project proposal process in order to design projects that minimize or avoid these impacts. A key strategy is to engage communities effectively in the process. Different types of mitigation measures, including off-site cultural mitigation, may be appropriate for different types of culturally sensitive areas, but avoidance may be the only option for certain non-negotiable areas.