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October 23, 2025
Country Needs People congratulate Arafura Swamp Traditional Owners on the launch of their Indigenous Protected Area (IPA) this week. The Arafura Swamp IPA is over 1.3 million hectares and at its centrepiece is a globally significant vast wooded perennial freshwater wetland. Known as Gurruwiling to Traditional Owners, it has been assessed as eligible by the NT Government for international listing under the RAMSAR Convention as a High Conservation Value Aquatic Ecosystem. As the largest freshwater ecosystem in Arnhem Land and the largest paperbark swamp in Australia, the biodiversity is globally significant, supporting over 300,000 waterbirds, comprising 22 species.
“Traditional Owners have worked for a number of years consulting carefully on their IPA Plan which combines management and protection of the incredible biodiversity of the Arafura Swamp region with the vibrant continuing cultural practices and governance that only Traditional Owners can provide”, says Patrick O’Leary, CEO of Country Needs People.
“We’ve been really pleased to provide some modest support for this IPA, including working with Traditional Owners to make the program is more secure and better funded across Australia. There is more work to do but it’s important to take time to acknowledge the hard work of Traditional Owners and the support of the Federal Government for the IPA program today.”
“Australia’s growing IPA system is internationally significant combining genuine leadership by Traditional Owners and constructive collaboration by the Federal Government, and has a long history of support across politics”.
The Arafura Swamp IPA covers wetland ecosystems, tropical savannas, coastal areas and rainforest patches and was also the location of the well-known film 10 Canoes. More than 1,510 plant species have been recorded on the Arafura Swamp, including 60 endemic plants only known in the NT, many of which reside in the wetland and rainforest bioregion. The IPA is a refuge to 30 vertebrate species listed as threatened at either national or Territory levels – including 8 critical weight range mammals, 7 migratory shore birds, 4 woodland birds, 2 cave-restricted bats, 3 reptiles impacted by cane toads, 1 sea turtle and 1 NT endemic snake.
There are a number of Indigenous Ranger teams caring for the Arafura Swamp IPA, with up to 60 rangers in total. With Arafura Swamp coming under increasing pressure from destructive feral animals like water buffalo and invasive tropical weeds it’s vital that Indigenous Rangers are properly funded so their operations can reach into the many remote areas they look after across their IPA. Delivering management of fire, feral animal control, invasive weed removal, threatened species protection and environmental monitoring is complex and challenging work. This work was made harder by the recent decision of the NT Government to break its election promise to Rangers by withdrawing $12M for equipment and project grants they promised before the 2024 NT Election.
In contrast, the Federal Government is delivering on its commitment to expand Indigenous Protected Areas with the funding of the Arafura Swamp IPA now progressing to operational stage.
“It’s good to see the Federal Government strengthening its Environment Department staffing to better support IPAs now that they make up over half of all Australia’s protected areas on land, across an incredibly diverse array of environments and cultural contexts” says Patrick O’Leary.
“The government still has a challenging situation supporting Ranger work in IPAs, as this was unfortunately split between two departments under previous administrations. This decision has led to unnecessary and ongoing complexity and needs reform if we want Indigenous Ranger teams to strengthen and succeed nationally.”
Led by a majority Indigenous board, Country Needs People is a leading national non-profit non-partisan organisation committed to Indigenous Land & Sea Management. Alongside 50 Indigenous Partners Country Needs People works to grow, strengthen and advocate for Indigenous Rangers, to ensure Traditional Owners and their organisations are properly supported to deliver land and sea management Australia-wide.
Banner image: Arafura Swamp Rangers protecting their internationally significant wetland which forms part of their new Indigenous Protected Area. Photo: Daniel Hartley-Allan, courtesy ASRAC.
We pay our respects to all the First Nations people around Australia and their unbroken commitment to keep Country strong on land and sea. We acknowledge Indigenous partners, Traditional Owners, Elders past, present and emerging and extend our appreciation of their support and guidance of our daily work.
