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Space-age Technology Developed to Monitor Rock Art

25 August 2004 - Space-age technologies developed by CSIRO and Murdoch University are being used to monitor Aboriginal rock art on Western Australia's Burrup Peninsula for signs of damage, which could be caused by industrial emissions.

Burrup Rock Art Monitoring Management Committee chairman Associate Professor Frank Murray said the region is notable for its indigenous rock art, particularly its many examples of incised or engraved designs (petroglyphs) which date back thousands of years.

"The Burrup Peninsula is also home to some of the country's major industries, including the north-west Shelf Project and Hamersley Iron," Professor Murray said.

"Concerns about possible effects of current and future industry emissions on the significant rock art collection recently prompted the Western Australian Government to commission a series of monitoring studies.

"This monitoring program, which is supported by the local Aboriginal communities, will be the most thorough scientific research of impacts on rock art ever undertaken in Australia.

"The studies are aimed at assessing the whether industrial emissions are affecting the natural weathering of the rock surfaces.”

The program consists of five separate studies, two of which entail measuring the current condition of the rock art.

The first involves a team of CSIRO exploration and mining researchers using a state-of-the-art mineral mapping tool - a visible/infrared spectrometer - to accurately record any subtle changes in the surface minerals of the rock art over time.

In a related study, scientists from CSIRO's Division of Manufacturing and Infrastructure Technology (CMIT) are recording the differences, over time, in colour between engravings and adjacent undisturbed rock surfaces. CMIT is also conducting accelerated weathering tests of rock samples to assess what changes may be expected over many decades of exposure to industrial emissions.

Studies of the micro-organisms that can live on petroglyphs are also underway. Murdoch University microbiologist Dr Graham O'Hara is looking at the growth of organisms such as bacteria and fungi on the rocks.

A comprehensive analysis of atmospheric conditions rounds out the research package.

To establish the origin of air pollutants and dust, CSIRO Atmospheric Researcher Rob Gillett will sample airborne dust, rainwater and gases at seven sites on the Peninsula and more distant control locations.

CMIT's Dr Deborah Lau said these studies will enable us, for the first time, to provide a complete set of scientific data on the natural processes and emissions that might degrade rock art.

"If necessary, we will then be able to propose appropriate management measures."

Monitoring sites were selected in consultation with the local Aboriginal community and include locations that are both close to and distant from industrial emission sources on the Peninsula.

The Western Australian Government will consider the management implications of the outcomes of the work in 2008.

This project is funded by the Western Australia Departments of Industry and Resources and, Conservation and Land Management.

Source: Australian Mining News

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