Across the dam on the north bank of Melville Bay is a large bauxite refinery that processes ore extracted from the Gove bauxite mine at Yirrkala . Both are owned by Rio Tinto Alcan Gove . Additional operational facilities of the refinery such as catch basins are located along the coastline of Melville Bay.
The settlement was built from the late 1970s to the early 1980s by Galarrwuy Yunupingu and his family, who were then living in Yirrkala. With the construction of the settlement, the Aboriginal clan of the Gumatj wanted to live again in their traditional land and according to its traditions. Galarrwuy Yunupingu , a Gumatj elder , was named Australian of the Year in 1978.
Twelve different clans live in Gunyangara and speak different dialects of the Yolngu language Matha. The dialect of the Gumatj is spoken by 37.7% and Galpu by 29.4% of the population. The mining town of Nhulunbuy , 13 kilometers to the east, offers the opportunity to visit schools and hospitals and to work. Tourism plays an increasingly important role for Gunyangara, as does the production of didgeridoos .
On September 20, 2007, the Australian government signed the Ski Beach Memorandum of Understanding with Galarrwuy Yunupingu for the Gumatj clan for a period of 99 years.
