14 July
2006 - The Australian Minister for the Environment
and Heritage, Senator Ian Campbell, today announced
$6 million in funding to extend the amount of
high conservation value land protected under the
National Reserve System.
Applications are now open from
partners who wish to acquire properties for protection
under the scheme.
Senator Campbell said the nation-wide
network of reserves was being set up by the Australian
Government in partnership with local communities,
non-profit conservation groups, local and State
governments and private industry to protect Australia’s
unique natural environment.
“This is a system of environment
partnership envied around the world,” Senator
Campbell said.
“Nowhere else has a national
Government joined with other private and public
organisations in a concerted strategy to conserve
examples of all the nation’s important landscapes,
plants and animals.
“This innovative approach is
ensuring we have the capacity to preserve large
amounts of our natural environment and ensure
its future management.”
Senator Campbell said $80 million
had been invested by the Australian Government
in the National Reserve System scheme to add more
than 20 million hectares - an area equal to 250
million house blocks - to the nation’s protected
land areas. Eighty million hectares of land is
now protected.
“This investment has leveraged
almost $90 million from partners to purchase properties
and manage their native wildlife in perpetuity,”
Senator Campbell said.
“An important feature of the
National Reserve System is the successful public-private
partnerships with not-for-profit conservation
organisations such as Birds Australia, the Australian
Bush Heritage Fund and the Australian Wildlife
Conservancy.
“Typically we partner with bodies
like these to buy properties and the conservation
organisation commits to managing the land in perpetuity
with corporate and other philanthropic donations.
“These non-government conservation
groups often establish property management committees
that draw on local community knowledge and expertise,
enshrining community involvement in the management
of their natural landscapes,” he said.
Recently, the Howard Government’s
National Reserve System programme has assisted
partners such as:
the Australian Bush Heritage
Fund by contributing $1.9 million of the $3.1
million purchase of the 234,000 hectare Craven’s
Peak property on the edge of the Simpson Desert
with an exceptional array of native reptile and
small mammal species.
Birds Australia and the Australian
Wildlife Conservancy by contributing $432,000
to the $1.6 million purchase of the 262,000 hectare
Newhaven property in the Northern Territory that
includes habitat for the threatened Princess and
Night Parrots.
The Australian Wildlife Conservancy
by contributing $300,000 of the $2.8 million purchase
of the Mornington property in the Gayscoyne (WA)
that holds viable populations of the threatened
Purple-crowned Fairy-wren and Gouldian Finch.
the Hobart City Council to establish
the Porter Hill Reserve and preserve the city’s
bushland skyline and threatened species.
the NSW Government to purchase
several properties in the state’s west to create
the Paroo-Darling National Park.
Funding is available for the
purchase of high priority and poorly reserved
land to establish private or publicly managed
protected area, or to establish a protection in
perpetuity over an area of already owned land.
Applications close on 23 August
2006.
For application forms and more
information contact the National Reserve System
Section via nrs@deh.gov.au, phone 02 6274 1759
or visit www.deh.gov.au/parks/nrs/program/apply.html
Rob Broadfield
