Western Bundjalung people

The Federal Court determined in 2017 that the Western Bundjalung people have native title rights and interests over areas of land and water between Casino, Tenterfield and Grafton in the far north coast region of NSW.

The native title rights of the Western Bundjalung people include:

• camping and erecting temporary shelters on the land
• taking and using water for personal, domestic, communal purposes (including cultural purposes)
• hunting, fishing, gathering and using traditional natural resources
• lighting fires for domestic purposes
• engaging in cultural activities, such as ceremonies.

These native title rights are non-exclusive. This means the rights do not affect existing land users (including those that hold valid Crown land licences and permits), as long as the users respect the rights of the native title holders. For more information, read the Western Bundjalung native title determination fact sheet (PDF, 126 KB).