They persisted as far as the High Court, where the chief justice agreed that they had rights as traditional owners. In 1981, Sandra Onus and Christina Saunders (nee Frankland) took legal action to prevent a proposed aluminium smelter from damaging Gunditjmara cultural sites. Gunditjmara people have been vigorously defending the environmental and cultural values of their country for decades. Just-built keeping place at the site of the old Lake Condah Mission, modeled on the circular stone houses of Gunditjmara ancestors, which used Budj Bim teeth for the base wall, timber for framing a domed roof, and sods, reeds and bark for cladding and waterproofing. Gunditjmara ancestors also used the teeth to build stone houses throughout the area. Large woven baskets enabled the harvesting of mature eels. The system was engineered to ensure a plentiful supply of short-finned eels and other fish to support a settled community. Around 6600 years ago, Gunditjmara people started using the volcanic rocks-Budj BimвЂ™s teeth-to build ponds to hold the water, and channels to control its flow in and out. The lava flow extended over 50 kilometres, changed the drainage system in the area and created large wetlands. When the Budj Bim volcano erupted 37,000 years ago, the Gunditjmara witnessedВ an ancestral creation being revealing himself. It was a thrilling watershed moment for Gunditj Mirring Traditional Owners Aboriginal Corporation (GMTOAC)-the culmination of 30 yearsвЂ™ work, and the beginning of a new era for the corporation.Д«udj Bim peak, in the national park named after it In July 2019В it was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list, the first Australian landscape to be included for its cultural values. Heywood, south-west Victoria: Budj Bim Cultural Landscape is an ancient and still-functional aquaculture system for catching, storing and harvesting short-finned eels and other fish.

Bim office