Australia Neglecting Protection of Wildlife Habitat

Australia is the richest country in the world for vertebrates, but only 10.5% of the land area is safeguarded in protected areas. That’s less than that of ecologically and economically poorer countries such as Colombia, China, Peru, Malaysia and Venezuela.

The report, Building Nature’s Safety Net 2008, is WWF-Australia’s second comprehensive review of Australia’s protected areas on land.

“The Australian Government needs to invest at least AUD 250 million to save the country’s wildlife and natural ecosystems,” said WWF-Australia’s protected areas policy manager and report co-author, Dr Martin Taylor.
“Australia has a shocking record of species loss with the highest rate of mammal extinction in the world over the last 200 years, and without an adequate safety net for protected species Australia’s unique wildlife will continue to disappear.”

At last count, 72% of Australia’s threatened species were declining, but fewer were declining in regions with more land area protected.

About $8 million on average was spent annually by the Australian Commonwealth Government over the last decade in purchasing new protected areas. But experts believe at least $50 million a year over the next five years is needed.

Building a National Reserve System was one of eight priorities of the Natural Heritage Trust, but it received only 3.4% of past Trust budgets, the report said.

If the Australian government follows the report’s advice, protected areas would increase by at least 30 million hectares by 2012.

Building Nature’s Safety Net 2008 measures progress toward biodiversity protection commitments Australian state and territory governments agreed to in 2005, compiling the latest data state and territory parks agencies provided to WWF.

Except the Australia Capital Territory and Tasmania, the states and territories report that they do not expect to meet the targets they have committed to for protecting ecosystem diversity and endangered species by 2010-2015, given the present levels of funding.

Source: WWF

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