NPA ACT has been awarded a heritage grant to help preserve and protect Aboriginal culture in the Territory.

 The $17,151 grant awarded under the 2025-26 ACT Heritage Grants Program will be used to contract specialised rock art conservators and other groups to assess the conservation condition of seven rock art sites in Namadgi National Park and one in Tidbinbilla.

 Conservation treatment work is urgently needed to protect the heritage values of the sites. The grant comprises half of the project expenditure and will be matched by with funding and volunteer support from NPA.

 The assessment is required under the Namadgi Rock Art Conservation Management Plan (2013) and will inform future conservation works, funding needs and the development of an updated Conservation Management Plan.

 NPA will prepare a report on the condition of the sites after consulting with Aboriginal organisations, including the traditional custodians of the sites, the Ngunnawal people, ACT Heritage and Parks and Conservation will also be consulted.

 The seven rock art sites were entered into the ACT Heritage Register in 1998. The last and only baseline assessment of the sites was completed in 2011, when a conservation management plan and the Namadgi Rock Art monitoring Program were established.

 Annual site inspections were carried out between 2011 and 2018, and sporadic rock art patrols by rangers have been carried out since then. Data from these patrols and inspections have not been formally reviewed to determine any changes in the condition of the sites or the effectiveness of monitoring techniques.

 The seven sites were inspected after the January 2020 Orroral Bushfires on Namadgi National Park for damage but there was no comprehensive evaluation of changes in the condition of the sites over time.