Bores, wells and spring water are important for communities in very dry areas of Australia. It is vital that the water from these sources is managed well so that the water supply is always available and safe enough to drink. Bore water is the major source of water for remote Aboriginal communities.
Small-volume water sources exploited by Aboriginal people include natural features such as rock holes, and living creatures such as frogs. Rock holes are hollows on hard layers of rock surfaces that don't allow the water to soak in (impermeable) so the water collects.
Aboriginal Peoples in Victoria have a deep connection with waters and waterways. They are essential to Spiritual and Cultural practices, as well as environmental management, food production, language and (Lore) law. Water connects People and communities to land, and to each other.
In the past, Aboriginal people tapped the trees to allow the sap, resembling maple syrup, to collect in hollows in the bark or at the base of the tree. Ever-present yeast would ferment the liquid to an alcoholic, cider-like beverage that the local Aboriginal people referred to as Way-a-linah.
The use of alcohol and other drugs is not a traditional part of Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander culture. Although people did consume weak alcohol made from various plants, traditional rules controlled how and when it was used.
The stereotype that aboriginal people have a genetic intolerance to alcohol persists in Canada and around the world, but a Manitoba medical expert says studies show a possible predisposition to alcoholism really boils down to social conditions such as poverty.
The liquor restrictions prohibit anyone who lives in Aboriginal town camps on the outskirts of Alice Springs, as well as those in more remote Indigenous communities, from buying takeaway alcohol. The town itself is not included in the ban, though Aboriginal people there often face more scrutiny in trying to buy liquor.
Aboriginal people ate a large variety of plant foods such as fruits, nuts, roots, vegetables, grasses and seeds, as well as different meats such as kangaroos, 'porcupine'7, emus, possums, goannas, turtles, shellfish and fish.
In central Australia, the chewing of wild Nicotiana spp., a tobacco plant, commonly known as pituri and mingkulpa, is practised by Aboriginal groups across a broad geographical area. Until recently, there had been no health research conducted on the effects of chewing pituri.
One in eight (13%) Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 15 years and over had last consumed alcohol more than 12 months before the survey, 14% had never consumed alcohol, and 1% did not know when they had last consumed alcohol.
Prior to colonisation, the Kuku-Yalanji Peoples of the rainforest region of far north Queensland used large bailer (melon) shells or bark troughs for boiling water over a fire.
Aboriginal people have a rich culture involving a custom, lore and value system based on the sustainability of their spiritual connection, belonging, obligation and responsibility to care for their land, their people and their environment.
A practical example of filtering can be found in southwest Victoria, where in traditional times, Gunditjmara Aboriginal peoples used flowering honeysuckle cones (banksias) to filter water from muddy pools when clean drinking water was unavailable.
Resistance to imposed controls. Control forced on Aboriginal nations (e.g. the Northern Territory Intervention) is met with resistance. Social tension. Alcohol serves as a way to escape tensions and frustrations resulting from poverty, unemployment, discrimination, racism, boredom or dislocation.
Aboriginal people of the inland differentiate between permanent water, called Living water, and seasonal water that dries up during parts of the year. For Walmajarri people like Jimmy Pike, the word for permanent water is Jila, whereas the word for seasonal water is Jumu.
Since 2001, NSW Health has been monitoring public water supplies in discrete Aboriginal communities. Reports indicate that the water generally meets the microbiological standards of the Australian drinking water guidelines (2011).
Common animals that were hunted and eaten by Aboriginals included Kangaroos, Wild Turkeys, Possums, Emus, Anteaters, Lizards and Snakes.
Native Australian rice has been harvested and consumed by Indigenous people for thousands of years. Native rice may have the potential to underpin a wild rice enterprise as a “bush tucker”, “novelty” or gourmet product (either as grains or flour) for the tourism and niche gourmet markets.
The Aborigines ate simple, balanced diets prior to the arrival of the Europeans in the late 1700s. Their diets contained meat and fish, as well as fruits, vegetables, and nuts. Honey was a popular sweetener, gathered from the hives of native bees found among the rocky crevices or in muddy riverbanks.
Dairy milk (cow, sheep and goat) was consumed by just over two thirds (69%) of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population (see Table 4.1). This was similar to the proportion of non-Indigenous people that consumed these products (68%) (see Table 4.3).
Their plant menu included fruits such as the native cherry, native currant and kangaroo apple, and vegetables such as the native potato and native carrot. (The adjective 'native' emphasises that these were quite different species from their European namesakes.)
In the 60s and 70s Aboriginal people were allowed to drink in hotels, but only in the public bar. Sadly, in more isolated areas, this continued well into the 80s and 90s.
Laws that apply anywhere in Australia
Legal drinking age – you must be 18 or older to buy alcohol or to drink alcohol in a licensed venue. Selling alcohol – it's illegal to sell alcohol to anyone under 18 or to someone who is already drunk.
Axel Vodka is 100% Aboriginal, female-owned and operated, and is made from 100% Australian ingredients.