Mining and the Rainbow Serpent
Location: McArthur River, Australia
A mine alongside the McArthur River, owned by Xstrata, have stated that they wish to convert to an open cut mine. This would involve diverting the river. Local people are concerned that this would disrupt the dreaming of the rainbow serpent and cause the serpent to become unsettled (potentially bringing floods and storms).
The mine dismissed the concerns, saying they have consulted with local people. The ones with the complaints are further down the river.
John Bradley, an anthropologist, commented on the issue of it not being taken seriously: “Look, I could go a step further probably and say Australia generally fails to take any of this into consideration seriously and more often than not, we give it token gesture acceptance and, you know, put it away as cute little stories that really have no relevance to the world that we’re operating in, but we forget that there are people born and bred to this way of thinking. It’s their reason for being.”
Sources:
ABC