Bushfires have long played a major role in the regeneration of native vegetation across WA’s vast Kimberley landscape.
Now, those trying to rehabilitate the region's most well-known mine site are hoping fire could be the key to their success, through a new seed smoking technique.
Since Rio Tinto closed its Argyle diamond mine in 2020, traditional owners have been among those working to return the site, about 180km south of Kununurra, closer to its untouched state.
Gelganyem Group, which represents the site's traditional owners, has been involved in accumulating a bank of about 80 different native species, harvested from a 200km radius of the mine.
The group's seed operations manager Riley Shaw said a new smoking treatment was being trialled to encourage seed germination at the once bustling pink diamond mine.
"The idea is that we want to replicate a bushfire," he said.
"A lot of Australian natives need smoke to deactivate their dormancy mechanisms so it will make them wake up, so to speak, and germinate better once we spread them out on site."
The first round of seed smoking took place recently at Gelganyem's Kununurra seed collection hub.
"We need to seed when there's going to be imminent rains and continued wet season weather," Mr Shaw said.
To imitate a bushfire, a makeshift tunnel made of tarpaulin, star pickets and poly pipe was created and filled with the native collection.
A small fire was then lit in a contained drum, with smoke forced into the tunnel by a fan.
Gija man Andrew Daylight works for Top End Seeds, and is one of about 12 Indigenous men involved in the seed collection program.
Having seen many bushfires pass by his community of Warmun, Mr Daylight was optimistic the smoke treatment would have a similar effect at Argyle.
"When we got the fires ripping ... burning the trees and like when we get a bit of rain or something like that, it brings the leaves back and the seeds," he said.
"We need to put more seeds and trees in there to cover the holes and things like that.
"This my first time seeing something like this ... it's really good."
The smoked seeds have since been taken to the Argyle mine site where they will be replanted.
Since collection began in 2019, more than 5,000kg of seed has been gathered, with a target of 11,000kg for the mine's full revegetation program.
A Rio Tinto spokesperson said approximately 100 hectares of rehabilitation would be completed this wet season, using about 800kg of seed.
Trial results are expected to be clear by mid-2023.
