When a set of bones were found underneath a home on the NSW Mid North Coast last year, the owner did exactly what he was expected to — he called the police.

Five cars and several officers arrived, setting up a crime scene before it was decided that the remains needed to be taken away for testing.

It has since been revealed by the NSW Office of Environment and Heritage (OEH), that the bones were around 750-years-old, male and of Aboriginal ancestry.

This discovery set into motion an almost year-long dispute concerning where the remains would be laid to rest.

Terence and Joanna Walker have been in a legal and moral limbo since the discovery of bones beneath their Nambucca property. ( ABC Coffs Coast: Meghna Bali )

Landowner Terrence Walker had intended to build his wife Joanna a riverside property they could spend their retirement years in.

"We'd love to build a house here but we think it's dishonourable, it's disrespectful, and I think the Aboriginal people probably feel the same," he said.

Local Gumbaynggirr man Michael Jarrett agreed that nothing should be built on top of the burial site, but said the bones had to be repatriated to the earth they were dug up from.

"The bones signify that it's one of our ancestors … and we do not know how many more bones are there or what else is left," he said.

"In Aboriginal culture, we are told as children that nothing gets taken away from country, nothing.

"You do not bring anything back to the house or back to where the community is because of a cultural belief that spirits are in those [bones] and the spirit will follow you back to the place where you take them."

What does the law say?

Local elders says cockle shells like this are an indication the site is a midden, Aboriginal places of occupation where the debris from eating shellfish and other food accumulated over time. ( ABC Coffs Coast: Meghna Bali )

The National Parks and Wildlife Act stated that it was an offence to harm an Aboriginal object, so a developer wanting to build a house on top of a potential Gumbaynggirr burial site risked breaking that law.

In this case, it was up to Mr Walker to investigate, assess and report the harm that may be caused by his development, and if harm to the Aboriginal object could not be avoided, he needed to apply for an Aboriginal Heritage Impact Permit (AHIP).

These permits are issued at the discretion of the Director General, and all applicants must undertake consultation with Aboriginal communities.

Mr Walker completed this process and received his AHIP in August this year.

Rising hostilities within community

Elder Uncle Martin Ballangarry says tensions will rise if the Walkers decide to build where the bones were found. ( ABC Coffs Coast: Meghna Bali )

Despite the legal go-ahead, Mr Walker said he had spent the past several months regretting his decision to call the authorities after the bones were found, as well as the $1.3 million he invested in the property.

"I believe that the Office of Environment and Heritage have caused a polarisation between the white and the black people here," he said.

"We had a great friendship with the elders here before they released to the media the bone findings, knowing it was going to compromise our situation.

"One of them can be quite aggressive, not physically, but verbally."

Nambucca elder Uncle Martin Ballangarry said all parties were trying to come up with a best-case scenario for everyone.

"Of course there's going to be hostilities, when you disturb an archaeological find, that is wrong," he said.

"I'd like to see the government come up with the money somewhere, so they can buy the land … a gift to go back to the people."

"If we all push for it, and everybody agrees, landowner, Shire Council, National parks and everybody, we can lobby or we can raise funds to buy back that land, because it would be a shame if another building goes on top of it now that we've discovered it's a burial site and a midden."

What happens now?

For now, a decision needed to be made about where the bones would go.

According to the law, ownership of Aboriginal human remained with the State of NSW, but it was up to the Aboriginal community to decide where they would be laid.

"These decisions are not up to OEH, although OEH will be facilitating the repatriation discussion with Aboriginal community members," an Office of Environment and Heritage spokesman said.

Mr Walker reiterated he didn't want to build on a burial site but would if the OEH "forced him to", because he didn't think he would recover his money by selling the block.

The State Government was yet to comment on whether buying the land was an option.

