The Brewarrina Local Aboriginal Land Council (Brewarrina LALC) will have its work ahead of it to make use of the land transferred to it under an historic resolution to a land claim that went for 40 years.

The land transfer was part of a native title resolution formalised in an open-air court at Cobar's Newy Reserve on 14 August. 

At the court, Justice Melissa Perry delivered a determination recognising the native title rights of the Ngemba, Ngiyampaa, Wangaaypuwan and Wayilwan peoples across 95,000 square kilometres of land and water (12 per cent of NSW).

The patchwork of land runs from the Barwon River in the north, to the Lachlan River in the south, the Castlereagh River in the east and Ivanhoe to the west.

Acting Brewarrina LALC CEO Urayne Warraweena said the resolution will allow the land council to create more employment opportunities, such as ranger jobs, and to protect the environment of their lands.

"This is a monumental moment in Brewarrina's history," she said.

However, Ms Warraweena pointed out they will rely on government funding to bring their ideas off the ground.

"We are looking at ways of creating revenue. We need to be able to sustain ourselves as a land council," she said. 

"We do need money to do it. Land councils obviously don't get funded very well, so everything will have to come through government grants.

"Because that's what happens a lot with land councils. Government will give land back, but with no help in how to activate and use it. So, it becomes a debt.

"We have a fair few businesses popping up now in Brewarrina with language programs, cultural dancing, so now to actually have property and space to do this, that's going to be very significant.

"Because it was crown land, there has been a lot of destruction with feral and farming animals, so we would like to have access to a clean space where we can practice culture."

Dancing in Cobar at the site of an history native title settlement in August. PHOTO: supplied

NSW Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Treaty David Harris said the outcome had been a long time coming.

"The resolution of the Brewarrina Common claim is the product of years of hard work and a strong partnership between the Government, Brewarrina LALC, and NSWALC,” he said.

On 13 August 1984 Ernest Gordon, who was chairperson of the Brewarrina LALC at the time, made a claim for 3,760 hectares under the Aboriginal Land Rights Act.

The Act was introduced in 1983 for the return of eligible Crown Land to Aboriginal Land Councils. 

However, under the Aboriginal Lands Act, Aboriginal land claims cannot be made to land that is subject to an application or approved determination of native title. 

“During the seven years of negotiations between the Land Council and Native Title with the ILUA (Indigenous Lands Use Agreement) a compromise was made between both parties," Ms Warraweena said.

"Whereas Native Title would extinguish their claim in order to receive some of the land in the ALRA claim. In doing this Brewarrina was able to make history that will benefit everyone.”