Australia’s Ancient Murujuga Rock Art Gains World Heritage Status

Australia’s Ancient Murujuga Rock Art Gains World Heritage Status
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The Murujuga cultural landscape in Western Australia, home to more than a million Indigenous rock carvings up to 50,000 years old, has been added to UNESCO’s World Heritage list, The Guardian reported.

The decision, made in Paris, followed two decades of campaigning by the Murujuga Aboriginal Corporation (MAC) and Australia’s government, which successfully argued that nearby industrial emissions posed no threat to the site despite UN concerns.

Murujuga is Australia’s 21st World Heritage site and only the second recognised for its Aboriginal cultural significance, after Budj Bim in Victoria. The petroglyphs, created by the Yaburara people and now cared for by the Ngarda-Ngarli, depict extinct animals and early human figures.

While the listing provides greater protection, some groups warn industrial emissions remain a risk. MAC’s chair hailed the recognition as honouring 50,000 years of stewardship. Campaigners vow to keep pushing for stronger safeguards as gas plant operations continue nearby.