Strategies protect vulnerable species
THE Federal Government is deciding how to reform Australia's system of protections when hundreds of threatened species recovery plans have not been updated by past governments as required by the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act.
National laws require that plans be updated every five years, and many have expired or are due to expire within the next six months. This list included the plans for the critically endangered King Island Scrubtit and King Island Thornbill.
Environment and Water Minister, Tanya Plibersek is due to deliver her response to the review of national environment laws undertaken by the former competition watchdog head, Graeme Samuel. Cradle Coast Authority, in partnership with King Island Landcare and Birdlife Australia, were successful in obtaining a $250,000 grant, funded by the Australian Governments Environment Restoration Fund to help protect the King Island Brown Thornbill; one of the top five Australian bird species considered most likely to become extinct within 20 years without action.
King Island Threatened Bird Conservation Action Plan Committee chair Kate Ravich confirmed that the funded programs will not be affected by the current government's revelations and review. "Current projects are secure and both the Scrubtit and Brown Thornbill have now been placed on the Priority Species list, so we just carry on. I understand the expired Recovery Plans have also been extended until April 2023."
Ms Plibersek is due to respond to the Samuel Review of the EPBC Act shortly.
"The King Island Landcare Group (KILG) is currently in process of updating the King Island Biodiversity Management Plan. KILG chair Jenny Thorn said the King Island Biodiversity Management Plan (KIBMP) was one of 15 Recovery Plans that have had the sun-set timelines shifted to April 2023. The full implication of this is not clear to the King Island Landcare group as the Australian Government works through its targets under the "Threatened SpeciesAction Plan 2022-2032"."
Target 18 applies to the King Island Bird Management Plan (KIBMP): "National conservation planning for threatened species and ecological communities is contemporary, effective and fit-for-purpose." The planning approaches include multi-species recovery plans, such as KIBMP, that focus on landscape-scale solutions and reverse compounding local threats and align with the 2020 EPBC Act review recommendations."
"King Island Landcare group is working on a review and update of our strategy, with assistance from Cradle Coast Authority NRM."
"The strategy will incorporate relevant actions from the KI Biodiversity Management Plan where they are the responsibility of Cradle Coast NRM, KILG, King Island Council or the community. It will guide the group's activities for the next 10 years."
The group recently conducted a Future Directions workshop to determine our priorities and a number of projects are already in the planning stage or under way. "One project, for example, already under way is the Enhancing King Island Brown Thornbill habitat patches for future corridors project." This project is supported by Cradle Coast Authority, through funding from the Australian Government and encourages King Island Landholders to work together with King Island Landcare and Cradle Coast NRM to allow regeneration of native vegetation, especially along valuable freshwater bodies that eventually will shape a vegetation corridor between Pegarah State Forest and Yarra Creek.
Article Attrition: King Island Courier