Indigenous Environmental Health

Environmental health is about creating and maintaining environments which promote good public health. The National Environmental Health Strategy (1999) defines environmental health as those aspects of human health determined by physical, chemical, biological and social factors in the environment.

Improving the environmental health conditions of Indigenous communities in Western Australia is a key focus of the State Government. Creating and maintaining a healthy living environment requires different agencies to work with communities to provide adequate services such as housing, power, water, sewerage, rubbish collection, road sealing, and town planning.

The coordination of these services is crucial to minimising duplication or gaps in service delivery and helps to ensure communities with the highest priority needs are met first.

The Department of Indigenous Affairs seeks to improve the living conditions of Indigenous communities in Western Australia. DIA facilitates Government coordination and provides information and policy advice to Government and other stakeholders involved in environmental health service delivery. DIA plays a key role in this service delivery.

Interagency forums

• Indigenous Environmental Health Coordinating Committee
  The original governmental coordinating body for Indigenous environmental health in Western Australia, established in 1995. It involves representatives from three levels of Government. The Department of Health is the lead agency, with DIA providing the Secretariat.
• Sustainable Environmental Health and Infrastructure Senior Officer’s Group
  An inter-agency Committee which oversees environmental health, established in 2006 under the Bilateral Agreement on Indigenous Affairs 2006-2010. [link partnerships/Bilateral Agreement] The main task of this Committee is to develop models of adequate service delivery arrangements for power, water and sewerage disposal to Indigenous communities. The Department of Housing and Works is the lead agency, with DIA initially providing the Secretariat. Representatives from three levels of Government are on the Committee.
• Housing Senior Officer’s Group
  An inter-agency Committee which oversees the Bilateral Agreement on Housing, Infrastructure and Essential Services 2005-2008. The main task of this committee is to manage the budget for housing (construction and maintenance) and infrastructure for power, water and sewerage disposal in Indigenous communities. The Department of Housing and Works is the lead agency, with DIA and Commonwealth Department of Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs also on the committee.
• Aboriginal Communities Essential Services Steering Committee
  An inter-agency Committee which oversees the Remote Areas Essential Services Program contract. The Remote Areas Essential Services Program contract is managed by the Department of Housing and Works. Aboriginal Communities Essential Services Steering Committee also provides advice on equitable and adequate service delivery arrangements for power, water and sewerage disposal to remote communities.
• Aboriginal Town Based Communities Committee
  An inter-agency Committee that oversees the provision of services to Aboriginal Town Based Communities; managed by the Department of Housing and Works.
• Aboriginal and Remote Communities Power Supply Program Steering Committee
  Aboriginal and Remote Communities Power Supply Program Steering Committee is a program managed by the Office of Energy. It is aimed at improving community access to a reliable and affordable power supply. The program is currently being delivered to five larger remote Indigenous communities in Aboriginal and Remote Communities Power Supply Program Steering Committee Phase I, with Horizon Power responsible for delivering electricity. More communities are planned for Phase II.