Traditional owners halt $400m road project in WA

A plan to build a bridge in Perth’s eastern suburbs have been delayed because of a claim the land is a culturally sensitive site.

The $400m project to improve traffic in the suburb of Midland, east of Perth, was set go ahead until traditional owners submitted a Section 10 application under there Federal Heritage Act.

Whadjuk Noongar man Greg Ugle said the group was not against development but they were against the destruction of traditional sites and the land close to the Helena River was a cultural site and had long been a playground for Indigenous children.

The owners have proposed an alternative route that avoided the site but after considering their options the State government has shelved the project for at lest two years.

‘My connection is here, it was a playground for us, for Noongar kids,’ Mr Ugle told the ABC.