Arakwal National Park and Cape Byron State Conservation Area selected for the International Union for the Conservation of Nature's new 'green List' of protected areas

Sunrise at the most easterly point of Australia. Arakwal National Park and the Byron Bay Lighthouse see the first light of the day in Australia. Photo and caption byCheryl Styles

ABC North Coast NSW 14 November 2014:

Arakwal National Park was established in 2001, as part of a historical land use agreement between the Arakwal Indigenous community and the New South Wales state government.

Its management committee chairwoman Yvonne Stewart says the joint management arrangement has paid off.

"The biggest achievement is being able to have a say in the management," she said.

"We're just very pleased, we're very excited to be one of the first parks to be green listed in the world," she said.

Arakwal National Park employs about 12 Aboriginal people in ranger, maintenance and administration roles.

"A lot of our young people are working on the park and learning about their country, connecting back to country," Ms Stewart said.

"A lot of those are long-standing from the inception of the national park."

Ms Stewart says regeneration of flora and fauna and the removal of the introduced bitou bush species are some of the park's biggest environmental achievements.