Nature Conservation Strategy

The native plants and animals of the ACT, their ecological communities and their habitats are part of our natural heritage and an important community and economic asset. Their conservation and protection is a task in which we all can participate.

The ACT Nature Conservation Strategy provides a framework for a coordinated and strategic approach to protection of our biological diversity and the maintenance of underpinning ecological processes. Implementation will be a continuing process subject to review and refinement in the light of progress made, challenges encountered and increasing knowledge about our natural environment.

The Strategy represents a broad consensus on where our nature conservation priorities lie and what are the most effective ways of securing a sustainable and quality environment for all. It is the outcome of a productive partnership between Government and the community and it makes a positive contribution to ecologically sustainable development goals for the ACT and region.

Information update January 2007

The Nature Conservation Strategy is designed to have a 5-10 year life. It is now nine years old. Inevitably, implementation progress and the detail of that implementation is influenced by policy refinement and development in response to changes in conservation priorities, new information and issues, altered administrative arrangements and the dynamics of resources available to pursue conservation goals and objectives. Chapter 5 (Implementation) discusses some of these uncertainties.

A review of the Nature Conservation Strategy is planned.  The review will be informed by the outcome of a review of the National Strategy for the Conservation of Australia’s Biological Diversity that currently is being undertaken by the Natural Resource Management Ministerial Council.

While the principles and objectives set out in the Nature Conservation Strategy remain valid and continue to underpin biodiversity conservation policy in the ACT, there are a number of documents that offer a more contemporary picture of how objectives are being pursued. Some of these are identified in the Nature Conservation Strategy as future outputs, others were unforeseen at the time of publication.

An area of nature conservation administration that has advanced significantly is the funding of regional natural resource management programs through the Natural Heritage Trust and the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality. While participation in these initiatives is foreshadowed in the Nature Conservation Strategy, there are now well-established bilateral arrangements between the ACT and Australian Governments for joint investment in natural resource management activities.  These arrangements accommodate a 2002 resolution by the Natural Resource Management Ministerial Council that identifies biodiversity conservation as an overarching objective of the Natural Heritage Trust.  There are a number of supporting documents that outline related investment priorities and programs.

The following publications augment references in the Nature Conservation Strategy to biodiversity conservation policies and programs in the ACT:

Aust. Govt and ACT Govt, 2003. Bilateral Agreement between the Commonwealth of Australia and the Australian Capital Territory to deliver the Natural Heritage Trust. http://www.nht.gov.au/bilaterals/act/index.html 

ACT Natural Resource Management Board, 2004. ACT Natural Resource Management Plan 2004-2014. ACT Government, Canberra.

Environment ACT, 2002. ACT Vertebrate Pest Management Strategy. ACT Government, Canberra. http://www.tams.act.gov.au/play/environment_act

Environment ACT—Action Plans prepared under the Nature Conservation Act 1980 for the conservation of declared threatened species and ecological communities. ACT Government, Canberra. http://www.tams.act.gov.au/live/environment/native_plants_and_animals

Downloads

• Nature Conservation Strategy ( PDF 587Kb) ( Word 203Kb)