• Change text size
• Skip to content

Australian Natural Resources Atlas

Natural Resource Topics

• About us
• Contact us

Search

• ANRA home
  • Map maker
  • Natural resource topics
  • Data Library

• Natural resource topics
  • Agriculture
  • Coasts
  • Dryland Salinity
  • Invasive species
  • Irrigation
  • Land
  • Natural resource economics
  • People
  • Rangelands
  • Soils
  • Vegetation and biodiversity
  • Water
  • Publications

• Vegetation and biodiversity
  • Overview
  • Assessment
    • New South Wales
    • Victoria
    • Queensland
    • South Australia
    • Western Australia
    • Tasmania
    • Northern Territory
    • Australian Capital Territory
  • Landscape health
  • NVIS framework
  • Extent
    • New South Wales
    • Victoria
    • Queensland
    • South Australia
    • Western Australia
    • Tasmania
    • Northern Territory
    • Australian Capital Territory
  • Clearing
    • New South Wales
    • Victoria
    • Queensland
    • South Australia
    • Western Australia
    • Tasmania
    • Northern Territory
    • Australian Capital Territory
  • Management

Letter of Transmittal

Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry
Parliament House
Canberra, ACT 2600

Minister for Environment and Heritage
Parliament House
Canberra, ACT 2600

Dear Ministers,

I have pleasure in presenting to you Australian Terrestrial Biodiversity Assessment 2002—a report of the National Land and Water Resources Audit.

The assessment:

• details the condition and trend of wetlands, riparian areas, threatened species and threatened ecosystems across Australia;
• provides a listing of Australia's threatened ecosystems;
• identifies the processes that threaten biodiversity and their relative frequency in each of Australia's bioregions;
• details the special values, patterns and trends for Australia's birds and mammals, eucalypts and acacias; and
• presents conservation opportunities at both Australia-wide and regional scales.

This report identifies the need to significantly enhance biodiversity conservation through:

• investing in protective management in order to minimise the impact of threatening processes such as clearing of vegetation, overgrazing, weeds, feral animals and inappropriate fire regimes;
• consolidating the national reserve system across priority bioregions to protect poorly conserved and threatened habitats;
• engaging the broader community in the recovery of threatened species and ecosystems;
• identifying specific biodiversity conservation objectives as part of integrated natural resource management;
• building awareness and identifying priorities for investment through the continued collection and assessment of information on Australia's biodiversity.

In many parts of Australia, it is demonstrated that there are currently major constraints and limited regional capacity to achieve effective biodiversity conservation. To overcome this will require significant investment, cooperation across agencies and a strategic focus on key issues if national and regional priorities are to be addressed. This assessment demonstrates the breadth of information that resides with State and Territory agencies and the need to build on and strategically use this information to achieve conservation outcomes at the regional scale.

The information now available through the National Land and Water Resources Audit is needed to underpin regional planning and actions under the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality, the Natural Heritage Trust extension, State biodiversity plans and local government planning. I am pleased to present this final assessment report from Audit 1 to the Natural Heritage Ministerial Board.

Yours sincerely,

Dr Roy Green
Chair
National Land and Water Resources Audit Advisory Council

December 2002

• Next
• Contents
• Previous