Remote WA communities head for closure

A significant number of Western Australia's remote indigenous communities will have their government-funded essential services cut off, the premier says.

Colin Barnett said the 282 communities were not viable in the long-term and senior ministers would meet on Thursday to discuss their future.

The premier said the state had no choice but to pull back on services like water and power after the commonwealth cut off its half of the funding for small communities.

But there was no immediate need to act because the commonwealth's $90 million parting payment had given the state at least a couple of years "breathing space".

"There's no intention to prevent people going back to their traditional lands," Mr Barnett told Fairfax Radio on Thursday.

"But we have to make some decisions as to which ones of those will get those continuing taxpayer funded services."

Mr Barnett told parliament in November that about 150 Aboriginal communities in the Kimberley were not viable or sustainable.