Fraser Coast Solar Farm, Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Management

The Fraser Coast Solar Farm is a 350-Megawatt solar farm located on approximately 625ha, 46km west of Maryborough. Converge, alongside the Kabi Kabi People, conducted broadscale cultural heritage investigations across multiple field programs. This included pedestrian surveys and a program of mechanical scrapes that identified stone tools, resource areas, and culturally modified trees, a number of which were subsequently registered on the Queensland Aboriginal cultural heritage database. The project also involved preparation of a technical report which combined traditional knowledge and previous studies with Converge’s breadth of experience in the region to develop an occupational model for a patchily understood part of Kabi Kabi Country.

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A significant component of the work was the management of ecological values and culturally significant vegetation. The preservation and promotion of these values through the development of an Environmental Management Plan was a major outcome and a significant step forward in holistic Aboriginal cultural heritage management.