The determination area is situated in a remote environment of the northern Great Sandy Desert in the East Pilbara region that has never been the subject of settlement by non-Aboriginal people. The nearest community is Punmu, located approximately 60 km to the southwest of the determination area.  Two language dialects of the Great Sandy Desert were traditionally spoken within the determination area, being Nyangajarra [pronounced Nyahn – a – jarrah] and Manyjilyjarra [Mahn – jill – jarrah].

Kulyakartu peoples’ belief system is Tjukurrpa, which can be understood as "the Dreaming" or "the Law". First non-Aboriginal contact with people in the area was in 1896 when some members of the ill- fated Calvert Scientific Expedition passed through. This was followed by by William Rudall a government surveyor in 1897, who led an exploration party in search of the Calvert expedition. In his diaries, Rudall records encounters with Aboriginal people whose assistance he seeks to locate waterholes. There is no discoverable evidence of further contact until 1963, when an oil and gas exploration company constructed a track through the determination area.

By the 1960s, many Kulyakartu people travelled away from the claim area to reside in surrounding towns or Aboriginal communities, occasionally visiting their country. Some senior Kulyakartu people were living a wholly traditional lifestyle within the application area up to and including the 1960s. Kulyakartu native title holders hold exclusive possession of their country.

Determinations:

Consent determinations –

Part A 12 October 2016
Part B 27 October 2017