General News
8 February, 2026
DJAARA says it backs duck ban intervention
BENDIGO-BASED Aboriginal corporation DJAARA has come out in support of a bid for federal intervention to block duck shooting on Lake Boort.
The Dja Dja Wurrung corporation’s acting CEO Cassandra Lewis said a ban would align “with our desire to see Lake Boort’s culturally significant landscape protected”.
But she said that while DJAARA was not asked to endorse Gary Murray’s application for Commonwealth intervention it backed the bid by First People’s Assembly member Gary Murray.
“Individuals are entitled to submit applications to the Federal Minister requesting a protection declaration, under sections 9, 10 and 12 of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Heritage Protection Act 1984.”
Mr Murray’s move has been opposed by Loddon Shire Council and Murray Plains MP Peter Walsh.
He told the Loddon Herald that Lake Boort’s Aboriginal scar trees, middens and artefacts could not be preserved while duck hunting was allowed.
This week, Mr Murray hit out at Loddon Shire councillors in the National Indigenous Times.
The news outlet reported councillors voting “to oppose Mr Murray’s proposal, with councillors calling the ban ‘unjustified’ and noting duck hunting was closely regulated. Another councillor said it would be ‘Un-Australian’ to restrict access — a characterisation First Peoples groups reject.”
“They’re lying,” Mr Murray was quoted as saying. “We’re not shutting it down on all the non-Aboriginal people and Aboriginal people. We’re certainly trying to modify it — so it’s safe and it protects and showcases our culture. Isn’t that culture worth saving?”
Djaran Murray-Jackson is reported as backing Mr Murray’s call for state, national and World Heritage listing of the lake.
“If anything, more people will be coming to the lake,” Mr Murray-Jackson says.
“Because once we do our cultural tourism, you’ll find, instead of people going to Bendigo and turning back around to Melbourne, they’ll keep driving to Boort, because there’ll be that cultural experience for them to come and learn about the scarred trees and 60,000 years of history.
“I would hope Peter Walsh wouldn’t want to stop the growth of the regional economy, which we want to do through cultural tourism.”
Under State Government laws, traditional owners acting in accordance with a Natural Resources Agreement are exempt from the requirement to hold a game licence and can hunt on their recognised traditional owners settlement area.
The Commonwealth application was advertised a fortnight ago and feedback closes today.
The application seeks a ban before the 2026 duck season.