Before it was destroyed by Rio Tinto,the Juukan Gorge in WA held evidence of human habitation dating back 46,000 years.
The committee has also recommended Rio Tinto negotiate a restitution package with the traditional owners,the Puutu Kunti Kurrama and Pinikura (PKKP) people,who were left devastated by the the gorge's destruction in May and that the miner fund a"full reconstruction"of the two rock shelters.
"Rio Tinto's role in this tragedy is inexcusable,"the committee's majority interim report said."Rio knew the value of what they were destroying but blew it up anyway.:
The destruction of the gorge in May ignited worldwide condemnation,the federal inquiry and a shareholder revolt that eventually forced the resignations of Rio Tinto's chief executive Jean-Sebastien Jacques and two of his deputies – iron ore boss Chris Salisbury and head of corporate affairs Simone Niven.
The blasting of the Juukan Gorge site was legally sanctioned,but went against the wishes of the traditional owners who told the inquiry they were not aware of Rio Tinto's intention to destroy the site until it was too late for the explosive charges to be removed.
The miner was given permission in 2013 to blast the site under Section 18 legislation of the WA Aboriginal Heritage ACT,1972 that provides only the applicants,not the traditional owners,the ability to seek a review of earlier decisions in the event new information comes to light.
Ancient artefacts unearthed at Juukan Gorge following the 2013 approval – including grinding and pounding stones,a 28,000-year-old marsupial bone sharpened into a tool and a 4000-year-old belt made of plaited human hair with DNA linking directly to today's PKKP people – had placed the caves among the most significant archaeological research sites in Australia.
Across the mining sector,the loss of the Juukan Gorge rock shelters and the federal inquiry have drawn attention to the power imbalance underpinning relations between mining companies and Indigenous groups,including"gag"in land-use contracts that ban traditional owners from publicly objecting to projects on their ancestral land,and the outdated Section 18 legislation,which is now being reviewed by the WA government.