Fortune Agribusiness faces High Court appeal over Singleton Station water licence
The native title holders of a vast Central Australian cattle station say they will continue to challenge the Northern Territory's largest-ever water licence and won't back down until "a good decision" is made.
The Mpwerempwer Aboriginal Corporation last week escalated its legal battle over a water licence at Singleton Station to the High Court, after the NT Court of Appeal rejected an earlier challenge in May.
Mpwerempwer will argue the court made a series of errors in rejecting its case, including that native title holders did not receive the same procedural fairness as the licence holder, Fortune Agribusiness.
Les Turner, chief executive of the Central Land Council, which is acting on behalf of Mpwerempwer, says native title holders believe the water licence is too large.
"[It] threatens their water security and puts the risk to many groundwater dependent sacred sites," he said.
'Mpwerempwer considered there was serious and complex questions of law that need to be settled by the High Court."
The High Court appeal is the latest development in a four-year legal stoush that has stalled Fortune Agribusiness's bid to transform a massive arid cattle station north of Alice Springs into one of Australia's biggest fruit and vegetable farms.
Fortune was granted a licence to extract 40,000 megalitres of water a year, for free, by the NT government's Water Controller in 2021.
That decision has drawn continued opposition from environment groups and some traditional owners, while others argue the project is a lifeline for a struggling region.
Dawn Swan, a director of Mpwerempwer, said she lived "smack bang in the middle of Singleton Station" and had a strong attachment to the area.
"We have to look after it," she said.
"We're just going to keep battling on."
Elder Ned Kelly said he was worried about the station and believed there was no other option but to "keep on fighting".
In a statement, NT Water Minister Joshua Burgoyne dismissed the ABC's questions about whether continued backlash from native title holders signalled the need for stronger water protections, instead pointing to Singleton's continued court wins.
Fortune Agribusiness has said its planned horticultural project could create 110 permanent and 1,350 seasonal jobs — although this number has been disputed — and could provide big opportunities for local shops and contractors.
Lachy Manns, a Tennant Creek resident of 10 years and owner of a cattle transport company and hardware store, said the region was "doing it tough".
"Tennant Creek needs all these big projects like SunCable and Singleton to boom," he said.
"If all of it goes ahead, it's great for the town, it's a no-brainer."
John Dickson, the owner of Outback Outfitters in Tennant Creek, said he was also "all for it", but hoped the produce grown at Singleton would stock local shelves instead of being sent overseas.
"We have a mine that just opened up that's given the town a boost, and anything extra is good," he said.
In a statement, Fortune Agribusiness chair Peter Wood acknowledged the importance of due process, and said the company remained "committed to full compliance" as it worked through further approvals.
He said the government's "rigorous water planning" would ensure Singleton was developed sustainably and that the project would be a catalyst for further investment, new infrastructure and ongoing local employment in the region.
Last year, the NT Supreme Court rejected an initial case brought by the Arid Lands Environment Centre (ALEC) and Mpwerempwer alleging the NT government had not followed its own Water Act when it approved the Singleton licence.
Native title holders appealed the decision, but that was also rejected.
Despite the court losses and frustrations, Mr Turner said native title holders would not back down until a decision "which protects Aboriginal people's rights in that area" was made.
Alex Vaughan, policy officer at ALEC, said the Singleton water licence posed a "catastrophic" risk to the region.
"Singleton is simply too big to be sustainable," he said.
He said it was "outrageous" one of Australia's largest groundwater licences for agriculture had been granted in a region where temperatures regularly reach over 40 degrees.
"This is a terrible project that resoundingly fails the pub test," he said.
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