Fortescue

ACHM continues to provide dedicated cultural heritage support to Traditional Owners across multiple Fortescue projects, ensuring their knowledge, authority and rights remain central to all heritage processes on Country.
 
Our work includes delivering detailed environmental and social‑surroundings assessments for Fortescue proposals—such as the East Hamersley Railway—where ACHM captured and communicated Traditional Owners concerns about cultural values, water management, Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), and the need for all consultations and cultural mapping to occur on Country with the correct knowledge holders.
 
ACHM also undertakes extensive ethnographic and archaeological surveys, ensuring site identification, cultural landscape assessments and recommendations are grounded in direct on‑Country work with Banjima representatives.
 
Across all engagements, ACHM works to exceed expectations for culturally appropriate consultation, proper protection of heritage sites, and transparent project planning—ensuring Fortescue’s activities align with Banjima cultural responsibilities. 
 
ACHM have completed extensive archaeological and ethnographic surveys for the Fortescue Solomon rail alignment, Solomon rail camp, Fig Tree, White Knight, Flinders and Investigator projects.

Hancock Prospecting

ACHM has provided long‑term cultural heritage support to the Banjima People for more than twenty years across multiple HanRoy and Hancock Prospecting projects. Throughout this partnership, we have prioritised cultural authority, on‑Country decision‑making, and the protection of significant heritage places.

Our teams work collaboratively with the Banjima people throughout all stages of project delivery. This includes major archaeological site recording, as well as detailed ethnographic assessments across the proposed Mulga Downs Iron Ore Project.

Together, ACHM and Banjima representatives have assessed project impacts and identified culturally sensitive ethnographic locations requiring dedicated protection. These programs have also contributed to significant archaeological discoveries, including rockshelters with evidence of human occupation dating back approximately 46,000 years.

ACHM’s approach strengthens Banjima oversight, supports their cultural governance frameworks, and ensures that all HanRoy developments are managed in a culturally informed, respectful, and collaborative manner.

United Wambo Joint Venture Cultural Values Assessment

ACHM was engaged by Glencore to deliver the Aboriginal Cultural Heritage assessment for the United Wambo Joint Venture Cultural Values Assessment, a State Significant Development project located near Singleton in New South Wales.
 
Our work involved a comprehensive Aboriginal cultural values assessment that formed a core component of the project’s Environmental Impact Statement, requiring extensive consultation with Registered Aboriginal Parties and detailed documentation of the cultural landscape.
 
ACHM’s assessment contributed to major cultural heritage planning processes for the Joint Venture, supporting subsequent heritage management, salvage programs and ongoing consultation commitments documented by United Wambo. Our involvement reflects ACHM’s national capability in delivering rigorous, defensible cultural heritage assessments for complex, large‑scale mining developments.

Mt Owen Cultural Values Assessment

ACHM was engaged by Xstrata (Glencore) to undertake the Aboriginal Cultural Values Assessment for the Mt Owen Cultural Values Assessment project in the Hunter Valley. Spanning more than 12 months of intensive fieldwork and consultation, the project involved working closely with 66 Registered Aboriginal Parties across the region to document cultural values, assess archaeological significance, and capture community perspectives on Country.
 
This process culminated in a comprehensive Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Assessment Report submitted as part of the project’s Environmental Impact Statement—an exhaustive investigation that integrated cultural, ethnographic and archaeological knowledge into mine planning and impact assessment.
 
ACHM’s role in the Mount Owen assessment highlights our capability in large‑scale, multi‑stakeholder cultural heritage projects, ensuring that Traditional Owner knowledge, cultural values, and statutory requirements are rigorously embedded into major development approvals.

Rio Tinto Gudai-Darri (Koodaideri)

Located within the Banjima People’s Native Title determination, the Rio Tinto Gudai-Darri mine is one of the world’s most advanced iron ore operations, purpose‑built in Western Australia’s Pilbara region to showcase next-generation mining technology. Officially opened in 2022, the $3.6  billion project is Rio Tinto’s first greenfield mine in more than a decade.
 

ACHM have undertaken all of ethnographic assessments and archaeological surveys, excavations and salvages for the Banjima people since 2006, recording over 1,000 archaeological and ethnographic sites within the project area, including regionally rare rock art, stone arragements, ancestral remains and wooden artefacts. Evidence of the human occupation of this part of the Hamersley Range extends well beyond 40,000 years. 

Comprehensive archaeological and ethnographic assessments have been undertaken within the project area to facilitate the development of:

  • Hundreds of kilometres of exploration drilling tracks, pads and sumps:
  • A stockyard with associated stackers and reclaimer; 
  • A Train load-out facility; 
  • A 220kV transmission line connecting to the Yandicoogina transmission line; 
  • A 220/33kV switchyard; 
  • A 34mw solar energy farm; 
  • Site control systems and communications, fire detection and security; 
  • A bore field for water supply; 
  • Non-process infrastructure (administration buildings, workshops, warehouse, explosive storage facility, vehicle wash and fuelling facilities); 
  • A new airport; 
  • Bridges;
  • Access roads; 
  • 1500 person accommodation village and temporary construction camps; 
  • 170km of new railway including rail sidings and junctions; 
  • Level crossings; 
  • Rail maintenance track; radio base stations and fibre optic cabling; 
  • Signalling, communications and asset protection system upgrades; and 
  • Construction facilities such as laydown areas, haul roads, borrow pits, site offices and construction and potable water sources.   

Rio Tinto Hope Downs

Located in the Hamersley Ranges of Western Australia’s Pilbara, the Rio Tinto–Hancock Prospecting Hope Downs mining operations sit on the traditional lands of the Banjima people. The Greater Hope Downs hub — including Hope Downs 1 and Hope Downs 4 — is a major iron ore complex situated roughly 100 kilometres north‑west of Newman.

Cultural heritage management at Hope Downs is guided by a comprehensive Cultural Heritage Management Plan. This plan sets out clear protocols for protecting Aboriginal cultural sites across the full mining lifecycle, ensuring statutory compliance, active site protection, and transparent communication with Banjima Native Title Claimants and other Aboriginal stakeholders.

ACHM plays a central on‑ground role in this process, working directly with the Martidja Banjima people to identify, document and safeguard cultural heritage values across the project area.

Our archaeological programs — including excavations of 27 rock shelters — uncovered Pleistocene‑aged occupation sequences dating back at least 41,000 years, and potentially as early as 47,000 years. These findings extend the known antiquity of Aboriginal occupation in the inland Pilbara by more than 10,000 years.

Complementing the archaeology, ACHM’s ethnographic work has recorded dozens of  culturally significant places. These include key features such as the Djadjaling mountain range and sacred songlines that shape Banjima law, spirituality and cultural identity. These interconnected landscapes remain active cultural places today, where lore, knowledge and cultural practice continue to be shared.

Our role spans all stages of project planning and delivery. We work to avoid impacts wherever possible, and where disturbance cannot be prevented, we implement culturally informed salvage, mitigation and monitoring strategies. This work is undertaken in close partnership with Banjima Elders, ensuring their authority, knowledge and decision‑making remain central to managing heritage on their Country.