$20 MILLION ENVIROFUND OPEN FOR APPLICATIONS

23/02/2006 - Community groups and individuals across Australia are invited to apply for grants up to $50,000 from the Australian Government Envirofund.
Australian Ministers for the Environment and Heritage, Senator Ian Campbell, and Fisheries, Forestry and Conservation, Senator Eric Abetz, today announced the latest round of the Envirofund and welcomed applications for local projects aimed at conserving biodiversity and promoting sustainable resource use.
Senator Campbell said Envirofund is the local component of the Australian Government’s $3 billion Natural Heritage Trust.
“Since it was launched in 2002 the Government has approved nearly 6,000 community-based projects and provided over $90 million in funding,” Senator Campbell said.
“This has translated to massive on-ground action to protect the environment and improve natural resource management. Critical issues such as salinity, poor water quality, erosion, and loss of native plants and animals are just some of the problems being addressed by the Australian Government Envirofund.”
The last round of the Envirofund was a special drought recovery round targeting people in Exceptional Circumstances declared areas. Under that Round, the Australian Government provided $20 million to help people in the worst affected areas undertake projects to protect land, water, plant and animal life from the effects of the drought.
Senator Abetz said this new Envirofund round is for projects across Australia impacting on all aspects of the environment including tropical, and coastal and marine areas as well as agricultural regions.
“Types of eligible projects include dune protection through activities such as revegetation or construction of boardwalks, fencing to protect riverbanks and waterways, and planting native vegetation to improve habitat or manage erosion,” Senator Abetz said.
“Projects that increase the community’s skills and knowledge for undertaking on-ground projects are also eligible, as well as activities to raise awareness about local natural resource management issues.”
More information and examples of eligible activities are in the application form. Applications close at 5.00pm on Friday 28 April 2006.