given protection under both Commonwealth and state and territory laws. The Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) established the National Heritage List, which includes natural, Indigenous and historic places of outstanding heritage value to the nation. Under this Act there are penalties for anyone who takes an action that has or will have a significant impact on the Indigenous heritage values of a place that is recognised in the National Heritage List. Indigenous heritage protected to varying degrees by state and territory laws: they protect various kinds of areas and objects, but developers can apply for a permit to allow them to undertake activities which may affect such land or objects. Legislation relating to the protection and management of sacred sites and other Indigenous heritage items and places in Australia includes: Online registers Searchable online lists of sacred and Indigenous heritage sites are maintained by all states and territories under their legislation. Not all of them are publicly accessible, but logins can be obtained on application. They include: ACT: The ACT Heritage Register is a general register, which includes Indigenous heritage. Publicly accessible. NSW: The Aboriginal Heritage Information Management System (AHIMS) contains detailed information on over 93,000 recorded sites and over 13,500 archaeological and cultural heritage assessment reports Northern Territory: Heritage Register maintained by the NT Department of Lands, Planning and Environment Queensland: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultural Heritage Database and Register South Australia: Register of Aboriginal Sites and Objects Tasmania: The Aboriginal Heritage Register has over 13,000 places and objects on its database. Victoria: The Aboriginal Cultural Heritage Register and Information System (ACHRIS) is the online tool that is used to access the Victorian Aboriginal Heritage Register. Western Australia: The Aboriginal Heritage Inquiry System (AHIS) is publicly available and information about sites is accessible via an interactive map. Destruction of Juukan Gorge In May 2020, in order to expand an iron ore mine, Rio Tinto demolished a sacred cave in the Pilbara region of Western Australia that had evidence of 46,000 years of continual human occupation. The rock shelter known as Juukan 2 was the only inland site in Australia to show signs of continuous human occupation through the Ice Age, and had been described as one of the "top five" most significant in the whole of the Pilbara region, and of "the highest archaeological significance in Australia", being "[the only] site of this age