1
October 2008 - One million additional hectares
of native habitat will be protected and
farmers will be better supported to continue
improving land management under ambitious
environmental targets set by the Rudd Government
for the $2.25 billion Caring for our Country
program.
Minister for the Environment,
Heritage and the Arts Peter Garrett and
Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and
Forestry Tony Burke announced the targets,
saying it would provide unprecedented transparency
for natural resource management funding.
Minister Garrett formally
launched the Caring for our Country - Outcomes
2008-2013 with the Member for Newcastle,
Sharon Grierson, at Kooragang Island, near
Newcastle.
Specific five-year outcomes
have been identified across the six national
priority areas for the program including:
increase the size of
the protected-area estate under the National
Reserve System to 125 million hectares -
a 25% increase;
increase the area of native habitat and
vegetation managed to reduce critical threats
to biodiversity by at least one million
hectares;
reduce the impact of invasive species including
rabbits and rodents on Macquarie Island,
Tasmania and cane toads; and maintain viable
Tasmanian Devil populations;
assist at least 30% of Australian farmers
to adopt sustainable land management practices;
and
contribute to at least 30 partnerships with
Indigenous groups and at least five major
regional partnerships.
Minister Garrett said public funds had been
invested in the past without clear national
investment priorities or public statements
about the objectives of that investment.
"Caring for our
Country ensures greater transparency and
focus in Government investment as we work
towards an environment that is healthier,
better protected, well managed and more
resilient," Mr Garrett said.
"These ambitious
but achievable objectives will ensure funding
is invested strategically across the highest
national priorities to ensure the best return
in the management of Australia’s natural
resources.
"Since the commencement
of the Caring for our Country program in
July the Rudd Labor Government has begun
committing funds into the programs’ six
national priority areas including the Great
Barrier Reef, sustainable farm and land
management practices, World Heritage Areas
and Ramsar wetlands."
Minister Burke said
farmers were already leading the way in
sustainable land management and the Government
would provide further support.
"A more sustainable
environment benefits the whole nation -
whether it is our rivers and oceans, forests
or farming land," Mr Burke said.
"Farmers are already
leading the way on land management, working
to minimise salinity, increase water use
efficiency and fight weeds, including through
the Landcare program. We will continue working
with our farmers to help them adopt new
technology and maintain our reputation as
one of the most innovative and efficient
farming sectors in the world.
"Caring for our
Country will also have a strong emphasis
on larger projects that bring together primary
producers, regional natural resource management
organisations, agribusinesses, researchers
and scientists, community groups and all
levels of government."
Member for Newcastle,
Sharon Grierson, welcomed the launch of
Outcomes plan at the Kooragang wetlands,
near Newcastle.
"I am delighted
to join Peter Garrett in announcing the
targets for the first five years of the
Caring for our Country program to which
local projects right around the country,
like these wetlands, will make a real contribution
and provide a real environmental benefit."
The next key step in
the delivery of Caring for our Country will
be the release of the Business Plan later
this year, outlining short-term targets
for each outcome and inviting proposals
for funding against the strategic objectives
set out in these outcome statements.
Caring for our Country
aims to achieve an environment that is healthy,
better protected, well-managed, resilient
and protects essential ecosystems in a changing
climate.
It will focus on achieving
results through investment in six priority
areas:
A National Reserve System
Biodiversity and natural icons
Coastal environments and critical aquatic
habitats
Sustainable farm practices
Natural resource management in remote and
northern Australia, and
Community skills, knowledge and engagement.
For more information visit www.nrm.gov.au
