National Reserve System and non-marine aquatic ecosystems

Presented by:Tim BondScience CoordinatorNational Reserve System Section

About the NRS• The National Reserve System is Australia's network of protected areas, conserving examples of our native ecosystems, plants and animals for future generations.

• Its a natural safety net against our biggest environmental challenges; climate change and declining water availability.

• It is one of the world's great conservation partnerships.

• The NRS includes more than 9,000 protected areas ranging from huge national parks, Indigenous lands and conservation NGO properties to conservation areas on working farms.

• In all, over 90 million hectares are now protected - more than 11 per cent of the continent.

• Building the NRS is one of the six national priorities under Caring for our Country.

Caring for our Country A well managed, comprehensive, adequate and representative National Reserve System

• $180 million – NRS

• $50 million – IPAs

• 25% increase in the area of the NRS

• 25 million hectares (8 – 16m ha IPA)

• 20 new IPAs

What’s funded• Purchase of land to establish protected areas

• Perpetual Conservation Covenanting of land

• Projects to establish or support the establishment of protected areas on private land

• Establishing and managing IPAs on Aboriginal land

Australian Protected Areas

Imperatives for AEs• Directions for the National Reserve System

Direction 7 to better include freshwater ecosystems in the NRS

• National Framework for the identification and management of high conservation value aquatic ecosystems

• National Water Initiative – water for the environment

• International obligations to protect representative wetlands (Ramsar) and migratory waders and waterbirds (CAMBA, JAMBA, ROKAMBA and East Asian-Australasian shorebird site network )

Scientific frameworkThe systematic development of a comprehensive adequate and representative National Reserve System rests on a scientific framework. The scientific framework has a series of fundamental components:

– Bioregional Framework (IBRA)– Extent of Protected Areas (CAPAD)– Bioregional assessment of Australia's biological diversity– Guidelines for prioritising biodiversity values– Targets for achieving comprehensiveness and representativeness– Method for assessing adequacy – Ongoing review of the impacts of threatening processes such as climate change and water availability– Methods for assessing the potential contribution of individual properties– Management effectiveness framework including adaptive management, monitoring and reporting– Information on the nature and extent of biodiversity values

Bioregional Framework

IBRA regions

CARComprehensive: examples of all types of regional-scale ecosystems in each IBRA region should be included in

the National Reserve System. Adequate: sufficient levels of each ecosystem should be included within the protected area network to provide

ecological viability and to maintain the integrity of populations, species and communities. Representative: the inclusion of areas at a finer scale, to encompass the variability of habitat within ecosystems.

Achieving CARComprehensiveness:

– 80% of regional ecosystems in each IBRA region represented by 2015Representativeness:

– 80% of regional ecosystems in each IBRA subregion represented by 2020Adequacy:

– Ecological connectivity– Climate change adaptation– Effective management

Additions to the NRSFocus on the comprehensiveness of under-represented bioregions that have less than 10% of their area protected in reserves.Priority will be given to projects that:

– add to the representativeness of the National Reserve System; – will improve resilience and ecological connectivity of biodiversity within the landscape;– ensure greater adequacy of bioregions by providing long-term and increased security for one or more ecosystems and associated species;– add areas that have significant biodiversity values such a high diversity of ecosystems or species, centres of endemism, containing significant habitat for rare, migratory or threatened species;– identify target areas based upon a strategic assessment of reserve options and meeting key reserve system design criteria;– consider and address Indigenous interests, socio-economic interests and scientific importance; – are feasible in terms of an area’s availability and cost-effective in terms of acquisition, establishment and management; and– demonstrate the ability of the organisation to manage and mitigate threatening processes and ensures persistence of ecosystems and species over time.

Bioregional ApproachTo achieve an integrated landscape result the NRS advocates a bioregional approach.

– Based on IBRA regions or subregions– Biodiversity values and associated social and economic values– Integrity – resilience, CAR, climate change, ecological connectivity– Management – mechanisms, capacity and integration with NRM (CfoC)

Examples– Clarence lowlands wetlands– SEQ LGAs

Governance of protected areas Government

% of Aus 9.4%Ave size 10,600haNumber 6,800

IPA% of Aus 1.9%Ave size 695,000ha Number 25

Private% of Aus 0.3%Ave size 1,300haNumber 2,000

Protection of IBRA regions35 IBRA regions

that have less than the CBD target of 10%

50 IBRA regions exceed this target

Range from Tasmania West at more than 84% to Finke in central Australia at only 0.03% protected

Protection of IBRA sub regions 44 sub regions

(or nearly 11%) without representation in the NRS

144 sub regions have less than 5% representation in the NRS

Australian Government Structure

Australian Government

State and Territory Governments

Council of Australian Governments (COAG) Natural Resource

Management Standing Committee

Natural Resource Policies and Programs Committee

National Reserve System Task Group

National Reserve System Scientific Advisory Sub

Group

Natural Resource Management Ministerial

Council

CSIRO

Australian LGA

representation

NGO

Key Documents• Convention on Biological Diversity

– Program of works– Millennium targets

• National Biodiversity Strategy• National Forest Policy (JANIS)• Guidelines for Establishing the NRS• Directions for the NRS – A Partnership Approach• The Implications of Climate Change for the NRS– a Preliminary Assessment• www.environment.gov.au/parks/nrs/index.html