Neds Corner Station is set to be returned

The iconic Neds Corner Station conservation reserve is set to be returned to the ownership
of the First People of the Millewa Mallee Aboriginal Corporation (FPMMAC), in a process
committed to by Victorian conservation organisation Trust for Nature and State
Government.

Once completed, it will be the largest parcel of private land to be returned to Traditional
Owners in Victoria.
The 30,000-hectare Neds Corner Station is an important cultural landscape on Ngintait
Country. It was run as a grazing station from the 1840s and was purchased by Trust for
Nature – with help from donors and the Federal Government – in 2002. Continuing funding
from the State Government, the degraded land since the purchase has seen ongoing
restauration of revegetation by TFN across the area.
The land had degraded over time, however since the purchase, Trust for Nature has
restored the native vegetation and habitat in the area. The land has now recovered enough
to see the return of some threatened species including the Australian Bustard and Growling
Grass Frog.
Further conservation works are planned with the help of $2 million in funding from the
Victorian government, including a fenced-off area to protect wildlife from predators like
foxes and cats and the reintroduction of regionally extinct plants and animals.
FPMMAC has recently been working with Trust for Nature to locate and protect the
significant cultural heritage sites at Neds Corner, including ancestral burial sites, scar trees
and shell middens.
Before the land transfer is completed, FPMMAC and Trust for Nature will work together to
co-design a conservation covenant for the land to protect its conservation values in
perpetuity. It’s expected that the land transfer will be completed in two years.
Chair of FPMMAC Norman (Tinawin) Wilson said the handback was a “historic occasion.”
“Our lands were stolen, and our people killed, but we are still here today. Having our land
back will allow us to restore our cultural practices, and care for the land and river properly,”
he continued.

Chair of Trust for Nature Gayle Austen said the organisation was honoured to play its part in
self-determination for the First People of the Millewa Mallee.