Private National Parks

This blog aims to draw together information about large conservation areas in the National Reserve System which are not government owned or managed. 

GUIDE TO LARGER NON-GOVERNMENT NATURE CONSERVATION AREAS IN THE AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL RESERVE SYSTEM

INTRODUCTION

The task of securing and maintaining land for nature conservation in Australia has traditionally been the role of governments.  This has been done in various national parks and other government owned conservation areas throughout the nation. However, the work to reduce the rate of species extinctions and loss of biodiversity has become too great a job for governments alone.

Current and past agricultural land management practices have resulted in massive biodiversity loss and species extinction. Practices such as the clearing of native vegetation, overstocking of marginal land, introduction of exotic plants and animals, and other commercial expediencies are continuing and accelerating the losses and extinctions.

 In recent years private conservation groups have come into being to try and protect other vulnerable areas at risk. These groups, with the support and assistance of governments, are working to implement large and practical environmental programmes throughout the nation. They are acquiring a significant and growing area of land in Australia and managing it for nature conservation. These private ‘national parks’ currently account for 2.5% of the area of land supervised under the National Reserve System. The area held in these private parks is predicted to grow 10 fold in the next..........years. They have a great and growing significance to the conservation of native biodiversity in Australia.

While substantial financial assistance is received from governments, the private groups receive a big proportion of their support from private and corporate donors. Governments recognise their outstanding cost effectiveness in nature conservation. Every dollar invested by them in the private reserves has leverage at least another dollar from the private conservation groups and their supporters and donors. The reserves secured by NGO’s become part of the National Reserve System (see below). In fact conservation NGO’s are becoming the key to developing and maintaining the national reserve system. Private reserves and sanctuaries are not hampered by the high cost structures, political considerations and other restraints which government national parks must work under. These costs and restraints have meant that the various public national park systems have been unable to adequately respond to the continued degradation of the continents natural heritage.

  

Conservation is looking after country. It is the responsibility of all citizens and an issue for federal and state governments. The Australian continent is among the most biologically diverse. Preserving this wealth is an important task for us all.

THE NATIONAL RESERVE SYSTEM

The National Reserve System was set up by the Australian Government in 1997. It is part of the National Heritage Trust and was established to assist with the purchase and maintenance of nature reserves in Australia. It is the nation’s premier investment in biodiversity conservation. The reserve system comprises all national parks, many indigenous Protected Areas, and reserves owned by conservation NGO’s. It also includes 1,000’s of private properties under perpetual conservation covenants. It comprises a nation-wide network of nearly 9,000 properties which together total 88 million hectares, or 11% of the continent.

This guide details that part of the System owned and managed by NGO conservation groups.  It excludes those owned or managed by governments and those which are included in the NRS due to having a conservation covenant placed over them.

NEXT BLOG

This will be about the owning organisations of the Private National parks