ASRAC was established in 2013 to support and administer a catchment-based network of ranger groups including the Gurruwiling, Wanga Djakamirr and South-East Arafura Catchment rangers, and five satellite groups. Together, these eight groups are responsible for looking after 14,000 square kilometres of Country for Bininj and Yolŋu people from 27 clans.

The ASRAC Rangers protect the Arafura Swamp, the largest paperbark wetland in Australia, as well as its catchment areas upstream and extensive sea country in the Arafura Sea.

The greater Arafura Swamp region has some of the NT’s richest and most extensive rainforests and supports an abundance of threatened, rare, or little-known wildlife. The Arafura Swamp itself, known to Traditional Owners as Gurruwiling, sits within a basin covering nearly 1000 square kilometres and its tall tropical forests, savanna woodlands and a weathered sandstone plateau provide an elaborate mosaic across the surrounding catchment.