The introduction of government-subsidised low-aromatic Opal fuel across many remote regions in the mid 2000s helped cut off supply and is now considered a broadly successful initiative.
Research published by the Menzies School of Health Research in 2016 found overall rates of petrol sniffing had reduced by about 88 per cent between 2005 and 2014.
But some Indigenous service providers say the harmful practice has been creeping back in communities where it had previously been stamped out.
Scott Wilson, the CEO of the Aboriginal Drug and Alcohol Council, says his organisation is seeing it in some remote South Australian communities as well as other states and territories.
He warns the situation could spiral back to crisis levels if left unchecked. “If organisations like us, or just communities, don’t actually try and get on top of it straight away, before you know it, you’ll have a couple of people, then you’ll have a few more kids and they’ll end up going to the bad old days where it’ll dominate the life of those communities," Mr Wilson says.
"At the moment, it’s an ongoing battle (because) the reasons kids sniff are still there."
The Central Australian Link Up Service was set up as a petrol sniffing prevention project in 2002. Supporting youth programs across central Australia is a big part of its work. Blair McFarland, the co-Manager of the Central Australian Youth Link-Up Service, says he’s seen as many as 48 flare-ups in remote regions in the past 12 months.
Mr McFarland says the organisation aim to mitigate some of the underlying factors that can lead to substance abuse, such as poverty, hunger and boredom.
“At the moment, it’s an ongoing battle (because) the reasons kids sniff are still there. We’re trying to address those through the youth programs,” Mr McFarland says. He also stresses that funding for his program, which comes in part from the federal government, can be hard to find.
The Aboriginal Drug and Alcohol Council's Scott Wilson concurs adding that gaps in funding could put children at risk.
Indigenous Affairs Minister Nigel Scullion has been contacted for comment.
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