Proposed Protections for Kati Thunda-Lake Eyre Ask Visitors Not to Walk on the Salt Lake

The public is being asked to have their say about preserving the cultural significance and increasing visitor safety for South Australia’s Kati Thunda-Lake Eyre.

A new management plan for Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre National Park in South Australia’s far north has been drafted. The proposed plan will assist Traditional Owners in managing the area, helping to preserve cultural significance and improve safety by preventing visitors from walking on the salt lake. The community are now being asked for feedback.

Under newly proposed protections, walking on the salt lake wouldn’t be allowed | @adrianmascenon

About the Kati Thunda-Lake

The Kati Thunda-Lake Eyre National Park is South Australia’s second-largest national park. It covers over 1.3 million hectares and is co-managed by the state government and the Arabana Aboriginal Corporation, the native title holders of the lake.

Kati Thanda/Lake Eyre is a registered site under the Aboriginal Heritage Act 1988, covering around 9,500km. It’s primarily a dry lake bed, but is known to flood, experiencing a small flood every three years, a large flood every decade, and it only fills up on average, four times every 100 years.

The lake is considered in lore to be sacred and dangerous to visit without the guidance of cultural authority. The knowledge and responsibility for park visitor safety is passed down through the dreaming stories from Elders.

What will the plan be protecting?

The draft Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre National Park management plan proposes to ban visitors from entering the lakebed on foot without permission.

Director of National Parks Programs with the National Parks and Wildlife Service Jason Irving said, ‘The request for visitors not to enter a sacred cultural site is made in recognition and respect for Arabana culture, and to ensure the safety of visitors’.

Recreational activities such as driving, boating, swimming, and landing aircraft are already restricted under the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972.

‘People are still encouraged to enjoy the park and view the spectacular lakebed from designated visitor areas or from the air’, Mr Irving said.

Chairwoman of the Arabana Aboriginal Corporation Bronwyn Dodd says they’re proud to share this part of their Country, but urge visitors to respect lore and culture.

‘We have a responsibility to look after the lake and in turn it looks after us. Preservation of this lake is also the preservation of our culture’, Ms Dodd said.

How can you give your feedback?

The public has until Friday 19th of July to provide feedback on the proposed Kati Thanda-Lake Eyre National Park management plan.

Visit www.yoursay.sa.gov.au/ for more information.

Feature image thanks to South Australian Tourism Commission