Protecting Victoria's Environment - Biodiversity 2036 (Public Consultation Draft) by DELWP Biodiversity

DRAFT

PROTECTING VICTORIA’S ENVIRONMENT – BIODIVERSITY 2036

CONSULTATION PHASE

Consultation process The Victorian Government is seeking public input into the development of an ambitious new twenty-year plan for the state, Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036. This draft plan will be available for public consultation from 17 March 2016 to 15 May 2016. Once the public consultation period has ended, a final plan will be prepared. All information on Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036 can be found online at the consultation website for the draft plan – HaveYourSay at DELWP. You can find this website at haveyoursay.delwp.vic.gov.au/biodiversityplan. Supplementary material – including a supporting technical document containing references, further reading and sources for all factual statements included in the draft plan – can also be found on HaveYourSay. HaveYourSay is also the place to provide feedback or to answer the consultation questions from the draft plan. Your feedback will help us to bring together the final plan, and then together we can take the action needed to ensure Victoria’s biodiversity is healthy, valued and actively cared for.

ELECTION COMMITMENT

DELWP RESEARCH, PLANNING & REVIEW

TESTING AND REFINING WITH STAKEHOLDER REFERENCE GROUPS

PUBLIC CONSULTATION (DRAFT PLAN)

MODIFICATIONS FOLLOWING REVIEW OF PUBLIC SUBMISSIONS

FINAL PLAN RELEASED

IMPLEMENTATION

CONTENTS Foreword

Introduction

Victoria’s challenge

A fresh vision for Victoria’s natural environment

Principles of Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036

A healthy environment for healthy Victorians

Linking our society and economy to the environment

Investing together to protect our environment

Better, smarter management of our biodiversity

Biodiversity leadership across government

Photo Credits

FOREWORD

Victoria’s unique natural assets – from its spectacular forests and coastlines, to its green spaces in cities and towns – all support rich and diverse plant and animal life and provide Victorians with fresh food and clean air and water. Our communities and visitors alike spend time enjoying these wondrous natural spaces with family and friends, and appreciate the vast array of recreational opportunities they provide, from hiking and camping through to four-wheel driving and fishing. Victoria’s natural environment provides an abundance of economic advantages. It provides vital life-sustaining resources and supports many of the productive activities that generate value for Victorians. Our iconic landscapes, such as the Grampians and Great Ocean Road, boost jobs and attract millions of tourists each year. But none of us can afford to take for granted all the benefits provided by our natural environment. A 2013 report, State of the Environment, described a concerning outlook for Victoria’s environmental condition. It showed that many species were at risk from a range of pressures such as habitat loss, fragmentation and degradation. Combined with the added pressure of climate change, we knew we had a challenge. As soon as we came in to Government, we formally responded to this report, as we were eager to put the environment back on the agenda. One of the commitments outlined in the response at that time was for the development of a statewide plan for managing Victoria’s biodiversity, Protecting Victoria’s Environment - Biodiversity 2036.

The draft plan is big step towards developing a new direction for Victoria’s natural environment, and delivering measurable and beneficial economic and environmental outcomes for the Victorian community. This is a draft plan, as we want this to be your plan – with your views and ideas on how we can enhance the health of our natural environment to benefit all Victorians. Delivering on this new plan will not be an easy job, but we know that Victorians are up for the challenge. Every day we witness the huge efforts of so many individuals, communities, businesses and organisations in improving our natural environment. We must all continue to work together to galvanise action and help us realise our goals. The plan is an important opportunity to work with private landholders to increase permanent protection of important bushland and to continue efforts to be stewards and rebuilders of our natural capital, to complement the reserve system on public land. It recognises the need for more cost-effective targeting of investments to protect threatened habitats and species, and better statewide information systems to track the health of the environment.

I encourage every Victorian to participate in the development of Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036, and to position Victoria as a rich and progressive environmental leader.

Our new twenty-year plan is part of a broader plan to restore and sustain Victoria’s natural environment. It will be complemented by a review of the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988, Climate Change Act 2010 and Native Vegetation Clearing Regulations. I encourage every Victorian to participate in the development of Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036, and to position Victoria as a rich and progressive environmental leader.

THE HON LISA NEVILLE MP MINISTER FOR ENVIRONMENT, CLIMATE CHANGE AND WATER

INTRODUCTION

Victoria’s natural environment is richly diverse, unique and precious. As Victorians, we treasure the environment not just for its own sake, but for its indispensable value to us as humans.

At one level we thrill to its beauty, grandeur and complexity; at a more basic level, we rely on it for our existence – it provides the raw materials that we require for our physical survival and material prosperity. Given the demonstrable health benefits of connecting with a healthy natural environment, we need to ensure all Victorians can share in these. A healthy natural environment is therefore good for all of us, and something to cherish and protect. Rich though it remains today, Victoria’s natural environment is not as healthy as it once was. Our biodiversity – the wonderful tapestry and multiplicity of plant and animal life that makes up our natural environment – has been under sustained pressure since the first colonists arrived in Victoria almost two centuries ago. Many indigenous native species have been lost, as successive generations of Victorians have exploited the natural environment in pursuit of economic development. In recent decades, as we have become more conscious of the importance of biodiversity, the rate of clearing of terrestrial native vegetation has slowed. Yet, despite our efforts to look after what we have, many indigenous plant and animal species in Victoria remain under threat from the cumulative actions of humans. We are continuing to lose biodiversity, and our current level of remedial effort is not sufficient to make up for these losses. It is clear that we need to: • radically increase our efforts and investment in actions such as private land conservation, and • take stronger action to reduce threats to biodiversity on public land. We also need to increase the effectiveness of our actions – firstly to slow and halt the loss of biodiversity, and then begin to rebuild – before further irreversible losses occur. We know we can’t save everything, because the impacts of climate change are upon us. But with a concerted effort we can give our native plants and animals the best opportunity to survive and adapt into the future. We also need to increase our efforts to ensure that future generations of Victorians inherit a healthy environment that continues to provide the same or improved economic and social benefits. Biodiversity has been a key component of government programs in Victoria for many years, and much has been achieved. But we are not yet where we want to be when it comes to protecting our natural heritage. Now, as in the past, it is necessary to update, renew and modernise policies and strategies in response to continuing changes in our built and natural environments, and to make improvements in our knowledge base.

A renewed plan is needed to ensure that all Victorians can enjoy the benefits of a healthy natural environment now and into the future. The Victorian Government’s draft biodiversity plan, Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036, will assist Victorians to recognise the multiple values that biodiversity provides, and to identify the tools, tasks and roles needed to ensure that Victoria’s natural environment is healthy and positioned to cope with the effects of future population growth and climate change.

What is biodiversity? Biodiversity encompasses all the components of the living world: the numbers and variety of plants, animals and other living things, including micro-organisms, across our land, rivers, coast and ocean. It includes the diversity of their genetic information, the habitats and ecosystems within which they live, and their connections with other life forms and the natural world. Indigenous biodiversity refers to the living things that originate in and are characteristic of a particular place – such as Victoria.

Fulfilling national and international commitments to biodiversity Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036 represents the Victorian Government’s commitment to national and international biodiversity programs and agreements. In 2010 the 196 signatory nations to the Convention on Biological Diversity, including Australia, adopted the international Strategic Plan for Biodiversity 2011-2020. This provides an overarching framework on biodiversity for all partners engaged in biodiversity management and policy development. One of the commitments of the Convention for signatory nations is that the international framework be translated into national biodiversity strategies and action plans within two years. In 2010 Australia delivered on this commitment by producing the Biodiversity Conservation Strategy 2010-2030. The vision and goals of Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036 are consistent with those of the Convention (see adjacent panel) and of the Australian Strategy. The draft plan also addresses the three main priorities of the Australian Strategy, and will establish priorities for action and clear outcomes and targets that will support the Government to align its specific priorities and investments within a broader national context. Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036 is also consistent with the relevant sections of the Victorian Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 (FFG Act), which requires the preparation of a Flora and Fauna Guarantee strategy. That requirement is currently fulfilled by an existing Biodiversity Strategy, which was prepared in 1997. Once Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036 is finalised in 2016, it will replace the 1997 Biodiversity Strategy, and become the Flora and Fauna Guarantee strategy for the purposes of the FFG Act.

The five strategic goals of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity are to: • Address the underlying causes of biodiversity loss by mainstreaming biodiversity across government and society. • Reduce the direct pressures on biodiversity and promote sustainable use. • Improve the status of biodiversity by safeguarding ecosystems, species and genetic diversity. • Enhance the benefits to all from biodiversity and ecosystem services. • Enhance implementation through participatory planning, knowledge management and capacity building.

Making the case for biodiversity Victoria’s biodiversity is an important part of our identity We take pride in our unique flora and fauna. We value things that are important to our personal or social identity, such as iconic species or sites of historical or cultural significance. We identify with landscapes and the plants and animals they contain, such as the Dandenongs, the Grampians, Port Phillip Bay, Red Gum plains, the Murray River, our coasts and the High Country. Traditional Owners attach great cultural significance to the plants, animals and medicines that feature in their Dreamtime and creation stories. Many of life’s principles and lessons have been transmitted across generations through stories, songs and dances about significant species and their living cultural landscapes. It is a basic human right for Traditional Owners to practise their culture, which relies on good management of our biodiversity. The Victorian Government’s Aboriginal Inclusion Framework recognises and respects the value of Aboriginal knowledge and culture, and commits to deliver better outcomes for Aboriginal Victorians.

Victoria’s natural environment is fundamental to the wellbeing of every Victorian We connect with nature in a myriad of ways. We enjoy the benefits of nature and are enriched by the process of caring for it. Many Victorians spend much of their recreation time in the outdoors – playing sport, walking, hiking, climbing, sailing, fishing or just relaxing in the splendid natural surrounds of the bush, the coast or a local urban park.

Being in nature is good for our minds and bodies There is much evidence to show that time spent in natural spaces is linked to positive long-term health outcomes. These outcomes include hastening recovery from surgery, lowering blood pressure, strengthening the immune system, reducing stress levels, mitigating the symptoms of hyperactivity disorder, and helping to mitigate disease. Playing in natural environments is essential to our children’s development. Numerous studies have demonstrated the importance of nature play for development of core skills, including observation, problem-solving, reasoning, creativity and imagination, along with emotional and intellectual development and the acquisition of gross motor skills, such as agility, coordination, and balance.

Scientists believe that phytoplankton (singlecelled marine plants) contribute between 50 to 85 per cent of the oxygen in the earth’s atmosphere.

Victoria’s natural environment is our biggest tourist attraction

Victoria’s biodiversity is the foundation of our healthy ecosystems

The beauty and function of our ecosystems and our unique plants and animals underpin the billions of dollars that tourism contributes to Victoria’s economy. In 2013-14, tourism was worth an estimated $20.6 billion to the economy, and employed approximately 206,000 people, many of them in regional areas. Nature-based tourism visitors represented 70 per cent of all international overnight visitors to the state in 2013-14, and approximately 4.3 million day trips were undertaken to and within Victoria by domestic nature-based visitors in the same period. For example, in 2012 it was estimated that the Little Penguins at Phillip Island contributed $125 million to the state economy, with half of that spent in the Bass Coast area. Aboriginal cultural tourism is also expanding to meet the growing international demand for Aboriginal cultural experiences and products.

Victoria’s natural environment is fundamental to the wellbeing of every Victorian. It is both diverse and unique, with its own mix of plants, animals, soils, seas, waterways and habitats that function together as ecosystems.

Biodiversity can help reduce the impacts of climate change, not only by sequestering carbon

At a basic level, a healthy environment provides Victorians with vital life-sustaining resources, and it underpins many of the productive activities that generate value for Victorians.

Vegetation, soils, rivers and wetland habitats can play major roles in slowing run-off from catchments to reduce floods. Coastal habitats can be managed to help address the effects of rising sea levels and increased storm surges. In towns and cities, we can use trees and shrubs around buildings and in public open spaces to provide shade and shelter, thus reducing energy demands for cooling and insulation.

Fact Victoria’s coastal waters are part of The Great Southern Reef. The reef spans more than 71,000 square kilometres as a network of small reefs and marine habitats that have been identified as a ‘biodiversity hot-spot’. The reef supports many fisheries and tourism attractions that contribute billions of dollars to the Australian economy each year.

Healthy, functioning ecosystems provide humans with “ecosystem services” that result in public benefits such as clean air and water, productive soils, natural pest control, pollination, flood mitigation and carbon sequestration. Our ecosystems also provide us with food (seafood, crops, wild foods), raw materials (timber, grazing, fertilizers), genetic resources, pharmaceuticals, and contribute to waste decomposition and detoxification. They provide essential “green” infrastructure services to society at low cost.

Ecosystem services is a term that defines the important benefits that flow to humans from a healthy ecosystem. In the absence of those services our society would suffer. For example, healthy biodiversity in water catchments saves us from having to treat water for consumption or use bottled water. Mangroves and seagrass meadows are the nursery for many of our native fish, including those targeted by fishers. The tall wet eucalypt forests of our catchments provide the health benefits of purified air and water at a regional scale, but also make a global contribution to limiting climate change by storing carbon.

Our ‘Natural Capital’ The term “natural capital” is often used to describe the various resources provided by nature that are essential for human survival and economic activity. Natural capital includes minerals, soil, air, water and all living things from which we derive not only material or financial value, but also ecosystem services. Biodiversity is a crucial component of natural capital. Victoria’s agriculture, forestry and fisheries sectors, which directly rely for their existence on natural capital, contribute around $8 billion, or 2.8 per cent, to annual Gross State Product. Such sectors are exposed to declines in natural capital, where substitutes cannot be found or are more costly. In the water sector, for example, if natural water purification and flood protection benefits were diminished or lost, they would need to be replaced by built capital infrastructure, resulting in an increase in water bills for customers. Other sectors that may also draw heavily on our natural capital more indirectly include financial and insurance services, health care and social assistance, and accommodation and food services.

Natural capital and the business sector “National Australia Bank recognises that all companies are dependent on ecosystem services, either through their supply chains, around their operating sites or via their customers. We see that managing natural value includes the economic valuing of ecosystem services and the natural environment – that is, recognising impact and dependency on biodiversity and ecosystem services and accounting for them within traditional business frameworks and the way we do business. This is important for the sustainability of our business and economic systems. NAB has been investigating these issues and is starting to explore how we can review our business models. And for these reasons National Australia Bank endorses the Natural Capital Declaration.” Cameron Clyne, former CEO NAB The Natural Capital Declaration (NCD) is a finance sector initiative, endorsed at CEO-level, to integrate natural capital considerations into loans, equity, fixed income and insurance products, as well as in accounting, disclosure and reporting frameworks.

As with any capital assets, the condition of environmental assets is critical to their functioning. Natural capital can be eroded by external impacts such as pollution and climate change, which can degrade the condition of ecosystems and their ability to generate or support the provision of essential products and services. Unlike other capital assets, however, many of our environmental assets exist in complex ecosystems, and the services they provide are either very costly or impossible to recover if the assets are degraded or lost. Investment in the sustainable management of our natural capital therefore represents a least-cost way of ensuring that we can continue to enjoy its benefits into the future. Investment in the protection of Victoriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s natural capital will also be an important aspect of our response to climate change.

The concept of investing to protect natural capital was explored in a report1 by the Future Economy Group.2 The modelled scenarios suggest that in the long-term, shifting investment from environmentally damaging industries towards less resource intensive sectors of the economy is likely to result in economic benefit, and greater prosperity and wellbeing for Victorians. The Future Economy Group estimated that, by 2028, healthier natural capital could provide between $15 billion and $36 billion in economic benefits for Victoria. On the other hand, continuing without deliberate action could result in an economic loss of between $16 billion and $78 billion.

Valuation of benefits from Victoriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Parks Examples of industry benefits and potential exposure to decline in natural capital. Tourism: $1.4 billion in spending per year is associated with visits by tourists to parks in Victoria. This generates $1 billion gross value added to the state economy and 14,000 jobs. Health benefits: It is estimated that visits to parks save Victoria between $80 million and $200 million per year from avoidance of disease, mortality and lost productivity. Carbon sequestration: Victoriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s network of land-based parks store at least 270 million tonnes of carbon and marine parks store at least 850,000 tonnes. Water purification: Avoided costs are estimated at $33 million per year in metropolitan areas and $50 million per year in non-metropolitan areas. Flood protection: $46 million per year from avoided infrastructure costs. Coastal protection: $24 million-$56 million per year from avoided costs.

1 Nous Group (2014) The Future Economy Project: The economic impact of diminishing natural capital in Victoria. A report for The Future Economy Group, May 2014. 2 The Future Economy group comprises environment and business leaders from organisations including Bank Australia, VicSuper, Sustainable Business Australia, Australian Ethical Investment, Whole Kids Organic Foods, Pacific Hydro, Intrepid Travel, Third Ecology and Environment Victoria.

Figure 1 attempts to depict these estimated outcomes, using the Nous Group economy figures as examples of how restored natural capital and economic prosperity are linked. More recently, a CSIRO Australian National Outlook report3 has similarly predicted strong economic benefits if policies that mobilise technology and promote reduced pressure on the environment are appropriately pursued. Estimates of future economic impacts are only ever based on modelled scenarios. Specific figures cited are therefore indicative only but highlight the scale and relationship between natural capital and the Victorian economy.

There are multiple ways to rebuild natural capital, but the best and cheapest is to support and improve natural systems and environments, rather than trying recreate them from scratch. As demonstrated in the conceptual diagram in Figure 1, without deliberate action we risk our future prosperity. By increasing our efforts and by expanding our investment, we can reap the rewards.

Figure 1: Choosing a new trajectory for Victoria’s natural capital and prosperity

B = REBUILDING OF NATURAL CAPITAL

A = OUR CURRENT STATE

Natural capital Declining Improving

Significant challenges for Victoria’s biodiversity, fresh water, land and soil, forests and vegetation, oceans, materials and climate. A relatively strong economy with $295 billion in output

Providing an extra $15-$36 billion to the Victorian economy

Past actions

Now

C = A DECLINE IN NATURAL CAPITAL That puts Victoria’s future prosperity at risk costing $16 - $78 billion to the Victorian economy

Future

3 Hatfield-Dodds et al (2015) Australia is ‘free to choose’ economic growth and falling environmental pressures. Nature 527, 49–53.

VICTORIA’S CHALLENGE

Facing the challenge Biodiversity gives us clean water, productive soils, oxygen and other essential resources for our existence and material prosperity. But as a society, we tend to under-value the benefits that we derive from biodiversity – and the risks posed to it by our actions. Collectively, we have allowed the continued decline of biodiversity for a variety of reasons: • The immediate cost of avoiding harm to the natural environment is sometimes perceived to be too high. • The potential serious impacts of harming the environment are thought to be too far in the future. • Biodiversity has always been a free service, and therefore is taken for granted. • Biodiversity loss may be too abstract a concept for some to grasp, or its incremental impacts too obscure to see. In summary, while most of us happily enjoy the benefits of biodiversity, many are not fully conscious of its importance, or are not prepared to share the cost of – and responsibility for – sustaining it. This phenomenon has resulted in a continuing legacy of biodiversity loss in Victoria, with future generations denied the opportunity to see 18 species of mammal, two birds, one snake, three freshwater fish, six invertebrates and 51 plants that have become extinct since European settlement. Today, between one quarter and one third of all of Victoria’s terrestrial plants, marine, freshwater and terrestrial birds, reptiles, amphibians and mammals, along with numerous invertebrates and ecological communities, are considered threatened with extinction. Natural environmental processes, such as fire, grazing and water regimes, have at times undergone significant changes due to human requirements for urban, rural and coastal development, agriculture, and to protect people and property. We have inherited a legacy of loss, degradation and fragmentation of habitats across our state. The effects of this legacy will continue to be experienced, creating more pressure on species and increasing their vulnerability to other threats, such as pest plants and animals. Native terrestrial habitats on private land have declined to the extent that our existing network of conservation reserves cannot sustain a healthy environment on its own.

These impacts on biodiversity that we see today are the results of many individual decisions and actions, or inactions, over almost two centuries. Under-investment in planning, management, protection, evaluation and reporting for biodiversity and the natural environment has been conspicuous. Even today, decision makers in government, business and land management too often fail to fully consider the impacts of their actions on biodiversity – and are not routinely required to do so. Victoria is the most intensively settled and cleared state in Australia. Since the introduction of Victoria’s native vegetation regulations in 1989, rates of clearing have reduced and regulated clearing is now avoided, minimised and/or offset. Despite this we are still allowing the extent and condition of the state’s remaining areas of native vegetation to shrink by approximately 4000 habitat hectares each year4. This trajectory is largely the result of uses and threats operating outside of the regulatory framework. These include routine management activities on private and public land which, although necessary, do incur a local environmental impact. As shown in Figure 2, these impacts taken together are significant and far exceed the impact of regulated clearing.

‘Habitat hectares’ is a method for assessing native vegetation, in terms of both quality and extent. Quality is assessed by scoring habitat attributes at a site in comparison to a reference point (benchmark) for the relevant vegetation type - this provides a ‘habitat score’. The number of habitat hectares of a stand of native vegetation is determined by multiplying the score by the area of vegetation. For example, 10 hectares with a habitat score of 100 per cent is counted as 10 ‘habitat hectares’, whereas 10 hectares of vegetation with a score’ of 50 per cent would be scored as five ‘habitat hectares’.

4 2015 qualitative update of the 2008 Net Gain approximation report (DSE (2008) Native Vegetation net gain accounting first approximation report. Department of Sustainability and Environment, East Melbourne).

While native vegetation is only one component of biodiversity, it is an important and telling indication for the broader decline in Victoria’s biodiversity. We are still experiencing a decline in habitat condition (e.g. due to pest plants and animals, fire regimes and reduction in old growth forests). This in turn impacts on the persistence of species, which are also affected by localised threats such as introduced predators and diseases. The declining trend for species populations is worse than for habitat, because potential habitat is not always occupied (or readily re-occupied), or populations may be reduced to such low numbers that they cannot recover from additional disturbances. This phenomenon is often referred to as the ‘extinction debt’, whereby species populations may continue to decline even after habitat clearing has reduced, due to the legacy of historical clearing and disturbance. Furthermore, because many of our native species are long-lived – their life cycles are measured in tens or hundreds of years – we may not readily observe changes in population sizes. Species that seem to be secure may be failing to reproduce or adapt because of past impacts. For example, longlived trees may survive for many years after reproduction ceases to occur. This means that changes in forest structure may only be seen when the next generation of trees fails to grow. Introduced plants and animals are competing with, or preying on, our native plants and animals, and are a primary cause of biodiversity decline. Pest species also affect the productivity of private land. Weed invasion is the most commonly identified threat to native plants. After habitat loss, predation by introduced species (mostly foxes and feral cats) is regarded as being the major threat to endangered terrestrial native animals. The decline in habitats is occurring on both private and public land but, as shown in Figure 2, is significantly more pronounced on private land. When combined with the impact that legacy clearing has had in terms of creating fragmented and isolated landscapes, it becomes clear that solutions need to focus on the whole of the landscape and not just our parks and reserves.

Public land

GAINS

Private land 0

LOSSES Annual change in habitat hectares

Figure 2: Estimates of relative changes per year of native vegetation in Victoria (from Native Vegetation net gain accounting – see Chapter 8 ‘Better, smarter management of our biodiversity’ for further discussion)5 GAINS

LOSSES GAINS

LOSSES 15,000

-15,000

On-going legacies due to historical impacts (i.e. habitats / populations with insufficient resilience)

Losses due to permitted clearing

Losses detected by satellite imagery (could include some permitted clearing)

Insufficient management of threats on public land

Impacts of controlled management regimes and exemptions on public land

Entitled uses / exemptions (freehold land)

Government programs and general management on crown land

Government programs on freehold land

Voluntary actions on freehold land

Offsets for permitted clearing

5 The gains described in Figure 2 are primarily gains under management not necessarily through permanent protection.

Marine and freshwater environments are under threat from the previously mentioned impacts of climate change and invasive species. More than 100 introduced marine species have become established in Port Phillip Bay after arriving on either domestic or international ships, and now prey on or compete with native species. Both marine and freshwater environments are also threatened by ongoing coastal development and infrastructure, runoff of excessive nutrients and sediments from catchments, high levels of water consumption, altered flow regimes, pollution (including oils, pharmaceuticals and micro-plastics) and overexploitation of marine resources. Along the south-west, Bellarine and Western Port coasts, vegetation is often narrow, fragmented or absent. The health of the Gippsland Lakes has declined with reductions in freshwater flows from catchments, along with increased water salinity caused by the permanent opening of the lakes’ entrance. As our population continues to grow, the increasing demands being placed on our land, freshwater and marine ecosystems are resulting in diminished productivity from Victoria’s environment overall. Without remedial action, there is a risk that our material yields from the environment will decline further and, in the longer term, collapse, with potentially serious consequences for communities, businesses and jobs.

“The economy is a wholly owned subsidiary of the environment, not the other way around.” Gaylord Nelson, a US senator in the 1960s who was integral in the modern environmental movement, and founder of Earth Day.

Reviewing the performance of the current system of biodiversity management The current system does not adequately respond to legacy and current threats, so we continue to see losses of what the Victorian community highly values – our native plants and animals. In developing the new plan it is important to review how the current system (of legislation, protected areas, private land conservation, government agencies, research and community action) performs in addressing the decline of Victoria’s biodiversity. A number of audits, reports and court cases have highlighted specific problems with performance of the current system. Most fundamentally, the current system has not met the objectives of the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 or the previous Victorian biodiversity strategy. A large number of specific issues have been identified, but there are seven overarching issues: • Victoria has a world-class conservation reserve system, but it still needs some improvement. The system is comprehensive and adequate for some biodiversity areas (e.g. the Alps), but other areas (e.g. native grasslands) are still very poorly represented. There is scope for targeted additions and improved management. • Victoria is fortunate to have great community-based programs, such as Landcare, Land for Wildlife, Conservation Management Networks and the multitude of local “friends” groups, that contribute to enhancing our natural environment. However, we have not effectively engaged the whole community on Victoria’s biodiversity challenge. • There has been insufficient investment and effort from all sources to adequately address the legacy of biodiversity loss, and to counter-balance the ongoing losses that occur due to decisions and activities today. The inevitable result has been a reduction of on-ground investment to support community action and a reduced capacity in public land management, including inadequate management of threats from weeds, pests and other introduced animals. Addressing the challenge of biodiversity decline requires a sustained and cost-effective effort that ensures effective land management, alignment of actions and adaptive decision making when change is required. In addition to this, where individuals and businesses benefit from improved biodiversity, it is appropriate that they contribute – currently this does not occur at a level commensurate with the benefits gained or the biodiversity challenge.

• Biodiversity, as an essential component of our natural capital, is not adequately accounted for and managed across the Victorian economy in the same way that other essential capital assets are managed. • A lack of alignment across the biodiversity sector (both government and non-government) has meant that opportunities to work together to deliver the greatest impact from our collective investment and effort have been missed. Decisions are too often made in isolation and without using the complete suite of tools available. What is needed is an approach that ensures that all land and water managers work together to maintain biodiversity, share information, are accountable and support adaptive management. • Dispersed and unclear accountabilities across the conservation sector mean that progress towards overall biodiversity gains is not adequately coordinated and monitored. New approaches to monitoring and information collection will be required to effectively and comprehensively report on progress against the goals proposed in this draft plan. • A lack of action on climate change has increased the risks for the most vulnerable species and populations across landscapes and seascapes. To date, there has not been enough effort to understand how populations and ecological processes are changing, or what capacity species might have to further adapt. Without this understanding, management strategies may be ineffective. Separate reviews of the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 and the Native Vegetation Clearing Regulations are underway in parallel with the development of this draft plan, and the reviews will address these specific issues.

Creating more opportunities for private land While there are clear problems with the current system of biodiversity management there are also opportunities that need greater take-up – for example, opportunities to significantly increase biodiversity gains on private land. Private landholders play an important role in conserving biodiversity, as they manage two-thirds of the Victorian landscape. As shown in Figure 2, losses of native vegetation have been greater on private land than on public, mostly because of permitted uses and exemptions from regulations. This draft plan provides us with a real opportunity to turn around this trend and capitalise on the biodiversity conservation opportunities on private land. We need to see an increase in the area and quality of private land managed for conservation, to make up for significant ongoing losses of quality and extent of habitats, and for the legacy of past clearing. Opportunities to secure more biodiversity on private land, and to ensure that terrestrial, riparian and wetland habitats and species are managed to maximise the preservation of biodiversity can be enhanced by: • Clear conservation planning processes to identify the best places to protect, manage, restore and create linkages, so that our efforts are directed where they can make the most difference to biodiversity; • Better, increased and more targeted use of voluntary mechanisms to secure the protection of private land; • Clear standards and codes to support management of private land for conservation outcomes; • Increasing support and incentives from markets and from government investment, including making the most of related markets for carbon and water, and consideration of, for example, tax arrangements; • Supporting significantly increased private and philanthropic sector investment; and • Supporting groups such as Landcare or Conservation Management Networks to make it easier for people to be involved in private land conservation. These opportunities to improve the conservation of biodiversity on private land, and the importance of strengthening the network of biodiversity conservation areas on public and private land, are described later in Chapter 8.

Considering the potential impacts of climate change for Victoria Climate change will bring various challenges for Victoria’s species and populations, such as: • Increased frequency and severity of extreme weather events (e.g. droughts, floods, storms); • More severe fire weather; • Longer, more intense droughts;

We need to fundamentally change the way we plan for and act to manage biodiversity to ensure that we recognise the changing nature of our environment more effectively and the increasing pressures on it from climate change and population growth. It has always been a dynamic system, but now we need a management approach that can respond to change and account for a range of possible futures under climate change.

• Changes in ocean temperatures, currents and ocean acidification (which may affect zooplankton with consequent serious impacts on marine food chains);

There is a need to work closely with the Victorian community to build understanding of this changing context and determine the best way for us to manage Victoria’s biodiversity and support the natural assets that the community values. This is crucial to ensuring that the Victorian community can continue to realise the benefits of a healthy natural environment.

• Changes to freshwater flows, levels and regimes (including wetlands and estuaries);

What we need to do

• Rising sea levels;

• Loss of alpine habitats, reduced diversity of habitats; • Changes to plant growing seasons; • Changes to invertebrate species, including their range, distribution, abundance and seasonality; • Changes in the distributions of other species, and the interactions between them, to the disadvantage of some; • Changes in the range, distribution and impacts of introduced plants and animals, including the introduction of new pests taking advantage of a changed climate; and • Changes to habitat resulting from the flourishing of new invasive species. To date, there has been insufficient effort to understand how populations and ecological processes are changing, or what adaptive capacity species might have to further change. Without this understanding, the effectiveness of management strategies is limited, and Victoria is exposed to a number of risks – to our natural environment, to our economy and to our people. Where knowledge about climate change is limited, ideally we should apply a precautionary approach when managing for its impacts on Victoria’s biodiversity. However, this is likely to be insufficient. Change will occur. We need to be much more pro-active, planning in advance and investing in ‘emergency response’ and ‘resilient landscapes’ scenarios.

As Victorians, we must acknowledge the urgent need to reverse biodiversity decline. We share the risks and rewards of natural resource use, and have the responsibility to manage the consequences of our stewardship for current and future generations. We need to consider the consequences of losing biodiversity and its benefits, and the costs of incremental preemptive investment to protect the environment, against the cost of trying to recover a badly damaged system.

Getting climate ready To help natural areas adapt to a new climate, Victorians need to take action so that biodiversity is “climateready”. For an overview of climate change projections for Victorian regions, some of the expected impacts and how Victorians can become “climate-ready”, refer to Chapter 8 of this draft plan, and see the Victorian Government’s Climate Ready brochures. Also refer to websites such as VicNature 2050. www.vicnature2050.org

A FRESH VISION FOR VICTORIA’S NATURAL ENVIRONMENT

This section presents an outline of the plan’s vision for Victoria’s biodiversity – its goals and objectives, how targets will be set to meet these goals, and key strategic directions for measuring and managing these in the era of climate change.

Halting the rate of biodiversity decline in Victoria is a massive challenge. The Victorian Government must lead and coordinate our overall response to the challenge. However, it cannot succeed in this endeavour alone; it needs all Victorians to be actively and enthusiastically engaged with the protection of our natural environment. To achieve a higher level of involvement

by Victorians, we must first aim to increase our collective understanding and appreciation of the importance of biodiversity to our personal wellbeing and prosperity, and share the benefits of healthy biodiversity more equitably. For this reason, ensuring that individual Victorians value nature highly is seen as a goal in itself, to be pursued in parallel with – and in support of – our overriding goal of a healthy environment.

GOALS

VISION

Vision and goals of Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036 VICTORIA’S BIODIVERSITY IS HEALTHY, VALUED AND ACTIVELY CARED FOR

GOAL 1: TO ENCOURAGE MORE VICTORIANS TO VALUE NATURE

GOAL 2: TO ENSURE THAT VICTORIA’S NATURAL ENVIRONMENT IS HEALTHY

Victorians understand that their personal wellbeing and the economic wellbeing of Victoria are dependent on the health of the natural environment.

Victoria has flourishing plant and animal populations, improved habitats and functioning resilient ecosystems.

Looking at a vision of success What would the future look like under a better biodiversity management system? How different, and how much better, could our management of the natural environment be than it is today? Here is an example – a vision – of what future generations of Victorians might see. Victoria is leading Australia in effective biodiversity conservation, and is renowned globally as a role model. The decline in Victoria’s biodiversity has halted. Unauthorised clearing of native vegetation has ceased, and habitat protection, management and restoration programs undertaken by government, business and community organisations – individually and in partnership – have led to the recovery of important populations of threatened species, on land, in waterways and seas. The area of private land under voluntary protection has increased, and significantly adds to the improved parks and reserves system, especially in strategically targeted areas. Protected private land, conservation reserves and other public land (such as roadsides) are managed to protect important species, habitats and ecosystems. Conservation reserves are managed to world’s best practice standards. The community cares deeply for the environment, enjoying the benefits that it provides, and environmental considerations are part of everyday life. Environmental education is an essential part of school curriculums, and children are as environmentally aware as adults, if not more so. Melbourne continues to maintain its status as “world’s most liveable city”, and Victoria’s population enjoys the physical and emotional wellbeing associated with a healthy environment. Both urban and rural dwellers across all sectors of society have access and opportunities to visit natural places, and have daily contact with nature in the places they live and work. So too do the numerous tourists who visit Victoria for its natural beauty and clean air and waters, thus contributing to employment growth in the services sector. Regional and statewide biodiversity targets continue to be revised upwards every ten years and priorities for achieving these are widely known, giving investors in environmental programs a simple way to maximise their effectiveness. Land managers act as stewards of the natural environment, working to not just maintain the natural value of the land, but to improve it. Biodiversity management is integrated across all public and private land, as well as in freshwater and marine environments.

Accounting of our environmental assets is published annually by state and local government alongside economic accounts, and a majority of medium and large businesses report environmental performance. Government and businesses work together to attract investment in key sectors, such as nature-based tourism, and create partnerships to ensure long-term investment in positive environmental outcomes. Businesses have expanded corporate and social responsibility into environmental action, and actively “give back” and invest in the environment. Climate change impacts continue, but community awareness of adaptation to climate change is high, while state and local government and community responses have assisted the management of and adaptation to climate effects. Stormwater and pollution from high rainfall events are managed by improved infrastructure, and all-of-community water efficiency has significantly increased. Soil and land quality remain stable, stream flows and wetlands are maintained by “environmental water” inputs, and better protection of marine reserves and planning regulations reduce impacts on coastal landscapes and marine biodiversity. The agricultural sector remains strong, and a growing social and environmental conscience leads to a greater demand for locally grown primary produce. Agriculture focuses on “clean and green” food production, leading to increasing export markets for this high quality produce.

GOAL 1: TO ENCOURAGE MORE VICTORIANS TO VALUE NATURE CHAPTER

A HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT FOR HEALTHY VICTORIANS 1 Encourage all Victorians to connect with nature on a daily basis. 2 Raise the awareness of all Victorians about our State’s natural environment and its cultural and economic importance. 3 Encourage all Victorians to take positive personal action to protect and preserve our natural environment.

CHAPTER

LINKING OUR SOCIETY AND ECONOMY TO THE ENVIRONMENT

e the first state in Australia to adopt the UN System of B Environmental-Economic Accounts as a way to embed environmental considerations into whole-of-government decision making.

5 Develop Environmental-Economic Accounting tools that help Victorian industries move towards environmentally pro-active business opportunities and manage risks associated with the loss of natural capital. 6 Support communities to plan for future climate change scenarios that impact our natural assets.

PRIORITIES

rive the expansion of green infrastructure and the use D of native species, to help create liveable and climateadapted communities that include opportunities to connect with nature.

8 Showcase Victoria’s environmental assets as worldclass nature-based and cultural tourism attractions.

CHAPTER

BIODIVERSITY LEADERSHIP ACROSS GOVERNMENT 21 Apply the principles of Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036, and embed early consideration of biodiversity and climate change impacts, in planning and decision-making processes across government.

PRINCIPLES

VALUES

SHARED RESPONSIBILITY

GOAL 2: TO ENSURE THAT VICTORIA’S NATURAL ENVIRONMENT IS HEALTHY CHAPTER

BETTER, SMARTER MANAGEMENT OF OUR BIODIVERSITY

9 Establish a sustainable funding model that leverages and aligns all sources of investment to improve Victoria’s natural environment, and including the use of innovative mechanisms such as crowd funding to supplement other funding sources. 10 P ublish a Regional Biodiversity Investment Prospectus and establish a business community roundtable to effectively communicate key areas in which communities and investors can act to improve biodiversity on public and private land. 11 Develop a holistic biodiversity conservation credit market to leverage future interactions with markets for water and carbon and other public benefits that could be traded between producers and beneficiaries. 12 Investigate options for significantly increasing incentives for private land owners to permanently protect important habitat on their land.

13 Establish a whole-of-government approach to ensure effective and timely response to tackle the most pressing biodiversity threats on public and private land. 14 Deliver excellence in national park and conservation reserve management, and ensure that the system is sufficiently adequate and comprehensive to provide its core function as the backbone of nature conservation in a changing environment. 15 Significantly increase the extent of private land under voluntary permanent protection and managed under conservation stewardship arrangements and improve the management of protected land now and in the future, to strategically complement the protected area system. 16 Ensure that all activities that impact on biodiversity are consistently and transparently reported at statewide level. For those activities that are outside the regulatory system, counter-balance these impacts through investment, management or other means. 17 Significantly increase our collection of targeted data for evidence based and adaptive decision making and information products that underpin reporting. 18 Deliver the most cost-effective biodiversity outcomes by developing world best practice decision support tools to identify areas and activities that will inform state and regional planning and local community decision making. 19 Deliver an effective, best-practice regulatory and legislative framework to protect our habitats for future generations and support the achievement of Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036. 20 Reform Victoria’s conservation planning and investment framework to better focus on biodiversity conservation priorities, promote regional partnerships, and report consistently.

BIODIVERSITY LEADERSHIP ACROSS GOVERNMENT 22 Embed Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036 into legislation, regularly review the effectiveness of the plan, and report on progress towards targets and goals in collaboration with the Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability every five years.

KNOWLEDGE

CHAPTER

DECISION MAKING

LIVING SYSTEMS

PRIORITIES

INVESTING TOGETHER TO PROTECT OUR ENVIRONMENT

GOALS

VISION

Vision, goals and objectives of Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036 VICTORIA’S BIODIVERSITY IS HEALTHY, VALUED AND ACTIVELY CARED FOR GOAL 1: TO ENCOURAGE MORE VICTORIANS TO VALUE NATURE

GOAL 2: TO ENSURE THAT VICTORIA’S NATURAL ENVIRONMENT IS HEALTHY

Victorians understand that their personal wellbeing and the economic wellbeing of Victoria are dependent on the health of the natural environment.

Victoria has flourishing plant and animal populations, improved habitats and functioning resilient ecosystems.

MEASURABLE OBJECTIVES

MEASURING PROGRESS TOWARDS GOALS Increase the number of Victorians spending time enjoying nature.

Halt the overall decline of threatened species and secure the greatest possible number of species in the wild in the face of climate change.

Increase the percentage of Victorian organisations reporting and managing their performance against measures that support the natural environment.

Improve the overall extent and condition of native habitats across terrestrial, coastal, marine and freshwater environments.

Increase the number of Victorians acting to protect nature (e.g. volunteering, making everyday choices).

Improve ecological regimes to best support biodiversity in a changing environment.

CONSULTATION QUESTIONS 1, 2 & 3 What do you think of the proposed goals and objectives of this plan? What might they mean for you personally and professionally? What might they mean for the organisation that you represent?

Goal 1: To encourage more Victorians to value nature To achieve this goal, the Government should seek to: • Increase the number of Victorians spending time enjoying nature. To achieve this, Victorians not only need a desire to get out into nature, but the access and the opportunity to do so. The principles of environmental justice require that all Victorians have access to nature and can experience its benefits. However, some parts of the community may have fewer opportunities than others to enjoy nature. We therefore need to increase opportunities for access to natural places and reduce the barriers to accessing those places. We must enrich the places where Victorians live, work and travel with natural features – such as revegetated public spaces and more native trees and plants in parks, gardens and transport corridors. • Increase the percentage of Victorian organisations reporting and managing their performance against measures that support the natural environment. Victorian businesses must be supported in efforts to innovate and improve their environmental management. The development of corporate tools based on ‘EnvironmentalEconomic Accounting’ (see Chapter 6, Linking our society and the economy to the environment) has the potential to help the business community identify synergies between efficient business practices, and the sustained social and economic benefits that flow from a healthy and biodiverse environment. To encourage more Victorians to be involved in protecting the environment, measures must be taken to ensure they know how and where they can best contribute. • Increase the number of Victorians acting to protect nature (e.g. volunteering, making everyday choices). Making simple decisions in our daily lives, such as responsible pet ownership or improving management and protection on private land, can have lasting positive outcomes for the environment. In addition, volunteering and working in nature to improve the environment creates a feeling of connectedness, of personal attachment to nature, and an overall greater community commitment.

These objectives are expanded upon in Chapter 5, A healthy environment for healthy Victorians, which describes the links between a healthy environment and the health of the general population. Chapter 5 also explores the importance of ensuring that all Victorians have opportunities to learn about and connect with nature, and how they can act to make significant contributions to the protection of Victoria’s environment. The objectives are further explored in Chapter 6, which discusses the importance of increasing the community’s understanding of our environment, the benefits of accounting for our interactions with the environment, and making decisions that address the environmental challenges that Victoria faces.

Measuring progress Collecting conclusive evidence on people’s attitudes towards the environment, and the degree to which they value their environment, is challenging. However, there are indicators that can assist in drawing general conclusions about attitudes, and to monitor changes in these. A potential source of information could be a regular statewide survey, perhaps conducted every five years, which would monitor pro-nature values and behaviours and how they change over time. Indicators could include: • The type of connections Victorians are making with nature; • Who is currently engaged in actions to protect and improve the natural environment; • What actions to protect nature are currently taking place; and • Whether there are any barriers to access and/or actions to protect nature. In addition to a statewide survey, other potential sources of information already collected by DELWP and other agencies can be used to help build a picture of current behaviours and connections with nature and pro-nature values among Victorians. An example is the regular surveys conducted by the Victorian Coastal Council over the past 20 years to gauge the attitudes of Victorians towards marine and coastal values, conditions, threats and responses. These surveys assist in the preparation of the council’s coastal strategies.

Valuable indirect indicators of how Victorians value the environment can also be gleaned. For example, we could usefully include information on: • Numbers of visitations made to Victorian parks and reserves; • The range of experiences that are supported or enhanced by the natural environment; • Volunteering and community participation in the conservation, protection and interpretation of natural environments (this would include the number of people and hours worked in volunteer-based projects); • Numbers of people contributing to information sets as part of “citizen science”; • Areas of private land under covenants or management agreements; and • The number of businesses reporting on environmental performance. Current measures might not provide conclusive evidence of people’s values regarding nature, or of whether this will lead to action. For example, park visitation might increase because of easier to access parks, rather than due to a change in people’s values. However, taken together, they could provide general guidance about the degree to which Victorians value, experience and act to protect nature.

Goal 2: To ensure that Victoria’s natural environment is healthy To achieve this goal, the Government should seek to: • Halt the overall decline of threatened species and secure the greatest possible number of species in the wild in the face of climate change. Victoria has many threatened species that are subject to a wide range of risks, which must be addressed to achieve this objective. Successful conservation of threatened species in the wild requires understanding and management of habitats, ecosystems and the ecological processes that sustain them. Overall success is rarely achieved by individual actions focussing on individual species. We are moving away from the traditional approaches of single-species-at-a-time planning and short-listing of priorities as our primary way of working. While sometimes species require specialised, focussed attention such as that set out in the Zoos Victoria Wildlife Conservation Master Plan, and demonstrated by the work of organisations such as the Australasian Native Orchid Society and the Friends of the Helmeted Honeyeater, this approach is not sustainable across all species and will not on its own deliver the overall biodiversity outcome we need. The most effective overall approach is to consider needs and options for all species – to provide secure habitats that contain all the necessary elements for their survival, and that are large enough and connected enough to other areas for multiple species to survive climate change. We can identify the ecosystems and places that can best deliver success, and the most effective actions that people can take in their own areas of interest or responsibility across Victoria (see Goal 1). In seeking to secure species in the face of climate change, we cannot realistically state which or how many threatened plants and animals will be conserved; instead our focus must be on providing the best outcome for the greatest range of species. This approach acknowledges that not everything can be saved; small population sizes, ongoing threats and climate change may mean that some individual populations or even species might not survive. But we will sustain as many as we can.

• Improve the overall extent and condition of native habitats across terrestrial, coastal, marine and freshwater environments. Improving habitat quality can be effective in maintaining the persistence of threatened species, and also in preventing more species from becoming threatened. Such improvements can include:

- Increasing the number, extent and condition of ecosystems protected under secure conservation tenure, on both public and private land and waters;

- Providing more protection to ecosystems that are poorly protected in the current reserve system;

- Increasing the connectivity of fragmented landscapes and seascapes; and

- Supporting the continued presence of key structural features within ecosystems (e.g. canopy trees, kelp beds) even though species distributions will be changing due to climate change.

The overall goal for terrestrial native vegetation – “Net Gain” – is nested within this objective. • Improve ecological regimes to best support biodiversity in a changing environment. Victoria’s land, waters and seas are subject to a range of ecological regimes and processes that have the potential to directly or indirectly impact on the condition of native species, habitats and ecosystems. Victoria’s environment must be managed to prevent the spread of weeds and pest animals, to ensure that water flows, fire regimes and nutrient cycles are appropriate and adequate, that resource use is sustainable, and that the roles of important classes of species (e.g. pollinators, native apex predators such as owls, quolls and dingoes) are acknowledged and considered in management planning. The first steps towards achieving Goal 2 will involve halting the overall decline of species persistence and habitat condition. Then, through measures to protect and restore habitats and improve ecological regimes, we will progress from the objective of halting decline to achieving a steady improvement. While this might not seem overly ambitious, it will stand as a considerable achievement given legacy issues and the impacts of climate change.

This approach will be adopted across the full range of freshwater, marine and terrestrial environments. In marine environments, the focus will be on maintenance of key habitats, managing key threats and restoring degraded systems. For freshwater environments, approaches will vary according to what type of waterway is desired: near natural, ecologically healthy, working or highly modified. The government has released the Water for Victoria discussion paper and will release a final water plan in mid 2016 to guide Victoria’s water management for decades to come.

Measuring progress The diversity of native species and the cycles of change within ecosystems make measuring progress a significant challenge. We increasingly need to take account of our native species’ ability to adapt to climate change. Many species are long-lived; their life cycles can be measured in tens or hundreds of years, so the effects of history can be long lasting, and recovery can be slow. Therefore, we need to plan, invest, manage and adapt over a range of time scales. As a first step, DELWP will work with the Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability and other relevant agencies such as the Victorian Catchment Management Council to develop consistent, workable indicators that are relevant to terrestrial, coastal, marine and freshwater environments. We need to measure biodiversity condition and progress against the three objectives for Goal 2: • Security of species – For vertebrates and vascular plants in the terrestrial and aquatic environments, Victoria has some good data on species distributions and attributes, but information on invertebrates and non-vascular plants is less plentiful. Data for marine systems is generally poorer. Citizen science provides good information on some species, particularly birds. But information on the persistence of populations is generally limited.

• Habitat condition – There are well-established measures for native vegetation, streams and wetlands. However, measures could be enhanced by the consideration of ecological function. For marine environments, indicators will be developed with reference to other key environmental projects, such as the review of the State Environment Protection Policy (Waters of Victoria), fisheries stock assessments, and the first State of the Bays report, to be released in 2016-17. These will provide insight into the potential statewide and regional targets that could be set for Victoria’s marine environments and the indicators needed to measure progress towards those targets. • Ecological regimes – There has been some recent experience with identifying current and desirable regimes for fire and environmental flows. Further work needs to be undertaken to adapt these for practical use across relevant spatial scales and reporting requirements. It will also be important to better record management actions so we can understand how much we are influencing outcomes. Each of these needs to be assessable under current and future management and climate scenarios, taking account of the uncertainties of measurement and prediction.

Focusing our effort Given the immensity of the challenge to protect our state’s biodiversity, we must make the most of our available resources. We will need to direct our efforts into areas of high biodiversity value, and where we can achieve strong, cost-effective biodiversity benefits. Previous reports have identified broad areas that are important for biodiversity values (see Figure 3, for example). However, modern data-driven tools now allow us to develop more refined views of these values and of the potential benefits of action.

Healthy biodiversity Healthy biodiversity consists of a wide range and abundance of native plants, animals and other living organisms, down to the level of invertebrates, bacteria and fungi. These components can grow and thrive over the long term, interacting as populations, communities and ecosystems. Healthy biodiversity has a high level of genetic diversity, and consists of healthy ecosystems that have the capacity to respond to shocks by recovering or adapting. It is part of our frontline defence against climate change impacts.

BIOLINKS FLAGSHIP AREAS

These modern tools will be used to identify the areas of the state where we can achieve the greatest biodiversity success. To do this, we are bringing together information on: • Where all species occur across the state (this will include not just threatened or iconic species, but every species for which we have data); • Where threats are occurring; • The cost and feasibility of actions to manage threats; • How species will respond if a threat is managed; and • How climate change may affect habitats and ecological processes.

Figure 3: An example of how strategically important areas for biodiversity across Victoria can be summarised (from DSE (2009) Securing our natural future: a White Paper for land and biodiversity at a time of climate change).

By combining this information, we will be able to compare all places, based on their relative contributions to cost-effective improvement across all species. Information-rich, simple and accessible products will identify the best places to focus on within major ecosystems and local landscapes, the most appropriate actions that could be undertaken, and the species that will benefit. This approach could be directed at several levels: • At a regional level, important species and the most effective biodiversity actions can be identified (e.g. in areas such as the Mallee or the grasslands of the Western Plains.) • For each species, the best management options across their range can be selected. • For each landscape-scale threat, the most beneficial places to act can be identified. Regions and communities will be able to select from the highest ranking options in pursuit of achieving regional targets. The first versions of these products will be released with the final plan, with an on-going program of improvement to accommodate new information and increase the range of issues that are considered. This approach will be used across terrestrial, freshwater and marine environments. Priority setting in marine environments will also take into account the government’s response to the Victorian Environment Assessment Council’s Marine and Coastal Investigation Report.

Proposed target-setting approach To deliver the vision for Victoria’s biodiversity, statewide targets will be set for 10 years (medium term commitments) and 50 years (longer-term aspirations). We will report on progress, refine strategic directions where necessary and review the targets every five years. We will seek to embed Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036 and these requirements into legislation. Targets will be outcome-based and focus on the most beneficial actions and places in each major ecosystem. An example of a statewide target could be: • By 2025, demonstrate a 20 per cent improvement in biodiversity (defined as an improvement or stabilisation of habitats and/or species populations) in the places that have been identified as having the greatest potential (in the top 20 per cent of Victoria) for cost-effective improvement. The statewide target will then translate to regions, according to the biodiversity priorities of each. For example, the priorities for the Riverina region might include specific improvements in Riverina native grasslands, or in wetland bird populations. This approach will enable state and regional planning to best connect community decision-making and action to the available information on where success is most likely (see Goal 1). The choice of targets will be based on what can reasonably be achieved over the first 10 years towards the delivery of our goals, outcomes and vision. The targets will be partly defined by the likely level of system investment and effort. The establishment of realistic targets will therefore be assisted by input from Parks Victoria, catchment management authorities and the Australian Government, as well as terrestrial, marine and waterways programs across DELWP. Specific regional and statewide targets will be set in the final plan.

Unfortunately, irrespective of the level of effort to protect them, it is likely that some individual populations will not survive in the long term. However, our efforts will aim to maximise the number of populations that can be sustained across the state. Past experience shows we can create substantial changes in direction, even if the current patterns of behaviour seem entrenched (see case studies below).

Projects that have made a difference • An important trigger in the rise of environmental consciousness in Victoria was the successful campaign in the late 1960s to save the Little Desert from subdivision for farms. It led to the establishment in 1971 of the Land Conservation Council (now the Victorian Environmental Assessment Council). This resulted in a systematic effort to protect representative habitats and led to protected areas increasing in area from one per cent of Victoria to approximately 17 per cent in 2015. • Controls to regulate the clearing of native vegetation from private land were introduced in 1989. This resulted in the extent of native vegetation loss dropping from 15,000 hectares per year to 4000 hectares per year by 2010. (Note that this is not the same as the net loss in native vegetation extent/ condition, which is measured in habitat hectares and was reported in the 2008 Net Gain Approximation report. The number 4000 for both measures is coincidental.) • Establishment of the world’s first network of marine protected areas in 2002, covering 5 per cent of Victoria’s coastal waters.

CONSULTATION QUESTION 4 Do you support the approach to target setting that focuses investment efforts on places in the landscape where the most cost-effective actions are possible?

PRINCIPLES OF PROTECTING VICTORIA’S ENVIRONMENT – BIODIVERSITY 2036

The development of Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036 has been guided by eleven key principles that apply to Government and, at a broader level, to all Victorians. The principles will also guide the future implementation of the plan. VALUES 1 We acknowledge that the life forms that make up biodiversity have intrinsic value and warrant our respect, whether or not they are of immediate benefit to us. 2 We recognise the connections and dynamics within and between ecological, social, cultural and economic systems. We understand that biodiversity delivers many ecosystem services on which we fundamentally rely.

LIVING SYSTEMS 3 We live in a changing environment increasingly driven by climate change, with a finite capacity to recover from demands and disturbances. We need to plan and manage for a resilient system and work towards long-term sustainability. 4 Biodiversity protection is best achieved in natural habitats because the needs and roles (known and unknown) of species, and their capacity to continue to persist, are most likely to be met and retained within the ecosystems in which they have evolved.

DECISION MAKING 9 T he logic of our decision making is clear and defensible: • We consider the context across space and time in which assets and issues exist, and we focus on causes and solutions. • We assess risk and return and our decisions are evidence-based, but we do not use a lack of complete evidence as a reason for postponing measures to take protective action to prevent significant impacts. • We consistently account for all interventions and changes that we make to the environment. • We consider changing environmental circumstances and adapt our thinking to new information. 10 Our decision-making processes are fair, transparent, efficient and consistent. The effort required by these processes is proportionate to the level of risk or reward.

KNOWLEDGE 11 We value the generation and application of knowledge. In particular:

SHARING 5 We engage citizens and communities – local, and statewide – in decisions that affect them, and work together to ensure that our various contributions to protecting biodiversity are complementary and aligned to a common purpose, even though our perspectives may vary. 6 We value environmental justice, which holds that there should be equity in access to natural resources, and in sharing the risks and rewards of their use, both for present and future generations.

• We recognise multiple sources of knowledge (e.g. science-based, traditional, community) and make it accessible as a common foundation for decision making. • Managing complex systems requires information that characterises components and relationships, enables us to track and anticipate changes, and allows us to evaluate options. • As working with incomplete information is sometimes inevitable, we consider the limitations and uncertainties while continually improving our knowledge base.

7 We share responsibilities appropriately, by: • Taking collective responsibility for addressing the legacy impacts on biodiversity from historical use of the environment. • Collectively investing in conserving biodiversity, valuing and encouraging voluntary community contributions. • Regulating to manage risks of further damage, and where significant losses of public benefit occur, we expect those who caused the losses to make good the impacts of their activities. 8 We work together to ensure that our various contributions to protecting biodiversity are complementary and aligned to a common purpose, even though our perspectives on the value of biodiversity may vary.

CONSULTATION QUESTIONS 5, 6 & 7 What do you think of the principles of this plan? Which ones make sense, which ones do not? Is this the right mix of principles to guide the plan’s implementation? What principles might be missing from this plan?

A HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT FOR HEALTHY VICTORIANS

Victorians connect with nature in a myriad of ways. This section discusses the links between a healthy environment and a healthy society, and the importance of ensuring that all Victorians have opportunities to connect with nature.

RELEVANT GOAL

To encourage more Victorians to value nature. Victoria’s natural environment is deeply valued and enjoyed by many people. Use and appreciation of our splendid natural assets takes many forms: from quiet contemplation in open spaces to walking, camping, hiking, surfing, diving, bird watching – and a multitude of other outdoor sport and leisure activities too numerous to list here. Being connected with nature is beneficial not just for individuals, but ultimately for society and the environment itself. This is because people who spend time with nature are more likely to recognise its importance to their own wellbeing and to society, and therefore to behave in ways that help to protect and sustain the environment. Of course there is nothing remotely new about Victorians connecting with – and caring for – the environment. For thousands of years, Victoria’s Traditional Owner communities have relied on nature for their survival, prosperity and culture. They expertly managed their natural resources to ensure livelihoods were sustainable, and have retained important knowledge about how Victorian landscapes function under a range of conditions and pressures. As native title and traditional owner settlements are resolved and negotiated, the involvement of Traditional Owners in the management of the public land estate in particular is being restored to the benefit of all Victorians.

Why nature is good for us While many Victorians may not be connected to special or cultural landscapes in the way that Traditional Owners are, there is at least a growing community-wide appreciation of how important nature is for our health and wellbeing. The evidence is clear: nature is good for us. Just being outdoors enriches our minds and bodies, making us feel energised and alive. The Healthy Parks Healthy People approach, created by Parks Victoria more than 15 years ago, reflects this philosophy. Park experiences can be inspirational, relaxing, physically rewarding – or simply fun. Technology is also helping to connect people to nature through tools like interactive websites that cultivate curiosity about the natural world and GPS enabled devices that can help families explore new landscapes.

The Victorian Government recognises evidence of the correlation between Aboriginal health and access to Country. The Government has committed to the national Closing the Gap agenda (which seeks to address the disadvantages faced by Aboriginal Australians in life expectancy, health and education) and to recognise Traditional Owners’ rights on public land and waters. It is working to establish Traditional Owner Land Management Boards and joint management arrangements for a growing number of National Parks and Reserves. Aboriginal ranger teams are being created, giving young people the opportunity to implement joint management plans and work on Country.

The Victorian Government’s recent Victorian Public Health and Wellbeing Plan 2015-2019 highlights the importance of creating liveable neighbourhoods to improve health and wellbeing, and recognises that interacting with nature contributes to a reduction in chronic disease risk factors, increases social inclusion and builds strong communities. Reported health outcomes include physiological benefits from improved fitness and psychological benefits from improved attentional capacity and stress reduction. The health benefits experienced from contact with nature have been linked to increased work productivity and faster recovery rates from surgery, fewer medications, and a strengthened immune system. In Victoria, The Royal Children’s Hospital meerkat enclosure and aquarium were established to deliver such benefits, creating happy experiences for recovering kids in a hospital environment that is otherwise devoid of nature. Additionally, there have been local trials in which GPs have prescribed “green scripts’’, which provide a weekly program of exercise in local parks for suitable candidates with chronic diseases such as diabetes or heart conditions. These are just a couple of examples of how protecting and developing natural landscapes can be a powerful form of preventive medicine. In recent years, we have seen the emergence of concepts such as environmental equity and environmental justice. These concepts hold that all people should have equitable access to nature for sustainable enjoyment, recreation, cultural and spiritual reasons, and as a way to enhance their mental and physical health. The concepts have emerged against the background of research showing that the prevalence of ill health and mental disorders is lower among households that are closer to green spaces, especially among children and those with lower socioeconomic status. The Victorian Government has committed to refreshing and updating Plan Melbourne to reflect a long term vision for housing, increasing jobs and liveability, integrating public transport and infrastructure and addressing climate change. The Plan Melbourne Refresh report, released by the Victorian Government in October 2015, recognises that protection of our natural assets and open space networks will help connect people with nature and lead to a healthier community. It seeks to develop a network of accessible high-quality local open spaces, including through a metropolitan open space strategy. The current public open space planning provision for growth areas and urban infill sites aims to locate local parks within safe walking distance (400 metres) of at least 95 per cent of all dwellings. In assessing long term infrastructure needs, this standard could be broadened to support creation of additional “greening” in established urban areas.

These planning objectives, while influenced by a range of drivers for open space, will nonetheless contribute to more liveable communities and improved access to nature for many people. Another important aspect of environmental justice is the notion that people with disabilities should have easy access to the benefits of nature. Almost 1 in 5 Australians has a disability of some type (ABS Survey of Disability, Aging & Carers 2009), and their numbers are expected to increase considerably in the next 10-20 years due to the ageing population. Parks Victoria is undertaking work to overcome barriers to park access and participation for visitors with disabilities by: • The acquisition of all-terrain wheelchairs that could be used free of charge at selected parks by people with mobility limitations; • Working in partnership with Blind Sports Victoria to recruit and train community volunteers as park ‘companions’ for blind or vision-impaired visitors; and • Improving access information for 24 parks in and around Melbourne to assist visitors with disabilities to plan their visits. The initiatives undertaken by Parks Victoria and its partners has increased park visitation by people with disabilities and, by inference, significantly contributed to their health and wellbeing. Despite the known positive health effects of connecting with nature, there is strong evidence that increasing urbanisation is leading to a decrease in people accessing nature, which in turn has been linked to more ill health, obesity and mental illness. Urbanisation and cultural changes in life pursuits (particularly through advancements in technology for entertainment and transport purposes) also appear to have resulted in a breakdown of the human-nature link. Many of us are leading increasingly busy lives, resulting in less physical contact with nature than ever before. In addition, with over one-quarter of Victorians born overseas, our vast array of natural environmental experiences will be unfamiliar to many. By providing the right natural spaces and facilities in the right places, we can encourage all Victorians to spend time in nature. This, in turn, could bring people from multiple cultures into shared spaces.

Sometimes there is a need to bring elements of nature closer to where people are, and not just rely on good quality parks. There is potential to enrich the places where Victorians live, work and travel with natural features and native plants. We can also consider how to connect people better with nature through their current recreational pursuits and leisure time activities such as fishing, walking or four wheel driving. There are so many reasons, beyond those described above, why people cannot or choose not to, have daily contact with nature. To overcome this problem, we must be innovative and considered in our approaches to providing all Victorians with access to nature. It is not just about providing green spaces, but ensuring that these spaces are in the right places and that they cater for a range of uses and needs, including cultural and social needs. We need to tailor our approaches based on a better understanding of barriers, such as those faced by people of different socio-economic backgrounds and CALD (Culturally and Linguistically Diverse) communities. An example of an improved approach is the Aboriginal Inclusion Framework, which aspires to actively strengthen the inclusion of Aboriginal culture in the workplace and support Aboriginal participation in the design and implementation of policies and programs which directly or indirectly affect people. Acknowledgment and respect of Aboriginal culture, values and practices is at the heart of successful engagement with Aboriginal people. The need to connect Victorians to nature has never been greater. The message is clear – connecting with nature enriches our lives, improves our health and wellbeing, and drives positive environmental attitudes and vales that promote a lifelong positive relationship with nature.

PRIORITY 1 Encourage all Victorians to connect with nature on a daily basis.

RELEVANT OBJECTIVE Increase the number of Victorians spending time enjoying nature.

CONSULTATION QUESTIONS 8, 9 & 10 What do ‘nature’ and ‘biodiversity’ mean to you? Are these important to you? Why? What does a ‘healthy’ environment look like for you? What do you think the barriers are that prevent some people experiencing nature and utilising parks and open spaces? What could you, your community or the government do to encourage and provide more opportunities for all Victorians to spend more time in nature, including disadvantaged parts of the community?

Making education a key to change An important way to connect people with nature and to increase their awareness of Victoria’s biodiversity is through education. Informal settings like zoos and natural conservation areas provide information on native species and how the actions of people can help to support (or destroy) habitats. This in turn can often lead to positive shifts in people’s behaviour as it affects the environment. ResourceSmart Schools is a Victorian Government initiative that is helping schools to embed sustainability in everything they do. This includes minimising waste, saving energy and water, promoting biodiversity and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The biodiversity module helps schools to incorporate biodiversity, land management and ecology into the curriculum. It also encourages schools to use school land to develop habitat (for example frog bogs), establish food gardens and green spaces, and to work on community projects. By doing so, schools are helping students to learn about sustainability and climate change and take practical action to live more sustainably. This knowledge and expertise can then be shared with the broader school community. Schools with a strong emphasis on sustainability programs report that students have a heightened sense of belonging and greater understanding of how people can affect environmental change. Many schools also partner with local organisations to participate in practical projects such as tree planting, weed removal and wildlife conservation. Spending time playing and learning in nature provides children with developmental benefits including reduced stress and mental calming, and contributes to engagement and enthusiasm in all areas of study. Playing in nature – particularly unstructured, imaginative, exploratory play – is increasingly recognised as an essential component of child development. Bush Kinders are becoming increasingly popular, allowing children to play outdoors without classroom tools or props to develop their imagination and appreciate what nature has provided. There are currently 16 Bush Kinders operating in Victorian parks.

Engaging children with nature increases the likelihood that as adults they will be more actively concerned about biodiversity conservation for future generations. Conversely, a lack of connection and/or appreciation for nature can contribute to the destruction and vandalism of natural environments by children and teenagers.

Formal and informal education opportunities provide important platforms to foster connections with nature that can lead to actions that support biodiversity. Developments in interactive technology have opened up the possibility of new and innovative ways of connecting people with nature.

As an important way to help strengthen peoples’ connection to and understanding of Country, Victoria’s Traditional Owner groups regularly perform ‘welcomes to Country’ and provide cultural awareness training to a broad cross-section of the community. These groups, along with a range of other Aboriginal organisations, also regularly share their traditional knowledge of our living cultural land and seascapes through school programs, cultural centres, festivals and performances such as Tanderrum.

PRIORITY 2 Raise the awareness of all Victorians about our State’s natural environment and its cultural and economic importance.

RELEVANT OBJECTIVE Increase the number of Victorians spending time enjoying nature. Increase the number of Victorians acting to protect nature (e.g. volunteering, making everyday choices).

CONSULTATION QUESTION 11 How can we raise awareness of biodiversity across the community?

Victorians acting for nature Getting involved in protecting our natural heritage is easy, and many Victorians already do so. State and local governments invest in environmental programs, such as the research work of the Arthur Rylah Institute, Zoos Victoria’s “Fighting Extinction” program, and local government revegetation and bushland restoration projects. Private landowners set aside land for conservation, via conservation covenants or management agreements, and manage it to enhance biodiversity values. Others contribute as members of Committees of Management or Conservation Management Networks. Members of the wider community contributes through making simple pro-environment decisions in their daily lives, supporting government policies for a better environment, and by volunteering for local environmental groups. Making simple decisions in our daily lives can have lasting positive outcomes for the environment. Responsible disposal of litter, as encouraged by Zoos Victoria’s Seal the Loop campaign, protects wildlife from being harmed by plastic waste, with the additional benefits of making our beaches and waterways cleaner and more attractive and increasing plastic recycling. Responsible pet ownership – such as registering, de-sexing and keeping them indoors at night – also makes an important contribution, helping to reduce the number of attacks on native animals. In addition to making simple pro-environment decisions, many Victorians contribute time and energy to the cause by participating in local volunteer organisations such as ‘Friends of’, Coastcare or Landcare groups or participating in Land for Wildlife. These volunteer groups possess valuable local knowledge, and deliver on-the-ground projects that address local and state conservation priorities. In doing so, they make a significant contribution to the protection of Victoria’s environment and, of course, to their own mental and physical wellbeing by being actively engaged with the environment and their local communities. These networks also build resilience among communities during times of crisis such as droughts, bushfires and floods.

Some Victorians contribute in another way by adding to society’s accumulation of scientific knowledge – a practice sometimes referred to as citizen science. The ever-growing use of technology, such as mobile phone applications that facilitate the collection of environmental observations by individuals, is helping to facilitate this phenomenon. Victorians participating in citizen science are not only helping to improve outcomes for our natural environment, but are spending priceless time engaging with nature while doing so. The role of citizen science is further explored in Chapter 8, Better, smarter management of our biodiversity. Participation of Traditional Owners in natural resource management is not only important to enable connection to Country, but also provides an opportunity for Traditional Owners to apply their knowledge and skills in managing and conserving Victoria’s natural environment, and enables others to learn from them. Encouraging and empowering more Victorians to act in ways that benefit our natural environment will require more than just showing people where and how they can participate. It will involve developing a better understanding of what Victorians value, why they value it, and the barriers that prevent them from taking action. This will assist greatly in the development of a dedicated campaign that inspires practical action by a large number and cross-section of Victorians.

PRIORITY 3 Encourage all Victorians to take positive personal action to protect and preserve our natural environment.

RELEVANT OBJECTIVE Increase the number of Victorians acting to protect nature (e.g. volunteering, making everyday choices).

CASE STUDY

Friends of Fabbro Fields Our initial motivation for convening a ‘Friends of’ group was to get involved in the local community and do our bit for the environment. When we discovered a new environmental reserve was planned for our local area, we knew the time was upon us and we were excited to get involved. Commencing work in 2012, the Friends of Fabbro Fields started with the humble (yet considerable) task of removing rubbish from the five hectare parcel of land. Now, having removed countless bags of weeds and installed thousands of local native plants, we’ve made immense improvements to ecological values throughout the reserve. Dozens of passionate people have attended our working bees and we’ve made lasting connections with like-minded people in our neighbourhood. With assistance from Nillumbik Shire Council, grant funding from DELWP and Melbourne Water, and hundreds of volunteer hours, we are making great progress with our restoration efforts.

We have enhanced vegetation values on the reserve and have improved connectivity of habitat along the Diamond Creek corridor. In so doing, we hope the aesthetic improvement to the site will inspire others to admire local plants and actively engage in environmental volunteering. With continued regard for state priorities and guidance from the local council, we hope to restore the best example of riparian forest on the Diamond Creek and foster community admiration for our local environment. Jeremy Neal and Poppy Lukav Friends of Fabbro Fields Eltham

LINKING OUR SOCIETY AND ECONOMY TO THE ENVIRONMENT

This section discusses the importance of increasing the community’s understanding of the state of our environment. It also looks at the benefits of accounting for our interactions with the environment, and how local communities can meet and adapt to environmental challenges, including climate change.

RELEVANT GOAL

To encourage more Victorians to value nature. Victoria has a rich base of environmental assets – or natural capital – which, in addition to its intrinsic value, helps to sustain our economic growth, our living standards and the liveability of urban and regional communities. Terms like ‘environmental assets’ recognise the close interdependence that exists between the health of the environment, the economy and society in general. Managing our environmental assets is challenging enough; doing so with due regard to the economic and social needs of the community adds extra dimensions of difficulty to the task. Environmental assets are managed by multiple agencies with different specialised approaches. Sometimes, in their efforts to protect the environment, management agencies do not always account for the social and economic benefits generated by our environmental assets. Nor do these agencies always share a common language or act with full knowledge about the condition of these assets. A key challenge, therefore, is to acquire better, integrated and more consistent information – information about which assets have been depleted or lost, which are declining in condition, and how the health of these assets affects our well-being as a society. Such information will enable government agencies to make more informed and coordinated decisions on how to manage those assets more effectively. It will also strengthen the ability of businesses, local government and community stakeholders to recognise benefits of protecting the environment and to develop more informed plans that capture their interactions with the environment.

6 SEEA: http://unstats.un.org/unsd/envaccounting/seea.asp

The Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists believes that key transformative, practical, long-term economic and institutional reforms for Australia can lead to a healthy environment with a productive economy. One of these key reforms is to put in place regional scale, national environmental accounts that monitor the condition of our environmental assets, so that people can make better decisions to support a healthy and productive Australia. In 2012, the United Nations launched a new global environmental accounting system as a framework for linking the quantity and quality of environmental assets to socio-economic benefits. The System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) is being adopted by DELWP and other lead agencies internationally. It is an internationally accepted standard, with a set of established accounting principles that can help recognise the interdependence of societies, economies and the environment6. It aims, in short, to support governments and environment agencies make more informed, integrated and coherent decisions.

ACCOUNTING FOR THE ENVIRONMENT Recognising the benefit our environmental assets contribute to our communities and the economy

Retail

Housing

Transport Tourism

Forestry

Biological diversity, freshwater food, enjoyment and tourism, water for consumption and irrigation Climate change mitigation, reduced flood impacts, biological diversity, clean water, reduced pollution Biological diversity, local food products, clean fresh water Reduced impact of storm surges, biological diversity Enjoyment and tourism, biological diversity, fish products, views and relaxation, reduced pollution

Carbon sequestration and storage, flood regulation, habitat for wildlife, water purification, Habitat for wildlife, primary production, water filtration Coastal protection, habitat for wildlife Amenity, habitat for wildlife, primary production, recreation, waste assimilation

South west wetlands

North east catchment

South east coastal dunes

South central marine

Report the market and non-market benefits that people obtain from ecosystem services and support social and economic analysis

Ground water storage

Water supply and filtration

Habitat for wildlife, primary production, recreation, water supply

Soil health

Native species habitat

Benefit accounts

Health and wellbeing

Amenity

Eastern waterways

Report on the flow of goods and services that environmental assets provide and assess how changes in asset extent and condition affect these flows

Agriculture

Recreation and tourism

Clean fresh air, climate change mitigation, biological diversity, timber products

Pollination

Air filtration Carbon sequestration

Ecosystem service accounts

Health and community services

To account for environmental assets and the benefits they provide, the System of Environmental-Economic Accounting (SEEA) has been developed as an international accounting standard

Environmental-economic accounting

But these measures donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t take into account the state of environmental assets and our reliance upon them

Air filtration, carbon sequestration and storage, habitat for wildlife, primary production

Report on the health of environmental assets and assess how policies, climate and economic activity are impacting on them

Asset condition accounts

Banking

Traditionally, our measures of progress have focused on economic activity (e.g. gross domestic product, labour)

North east forest

Construction

Report on the area of environmental assets and assess how they are changing over time

Asset extent accounts

Sequence of accounts

Power generation

Economic accounting

Environmental-economic accounting A framework for decision-making

Recognising the benefit our environmental assets contribute to our communities and the economy

Accounting for the environment

After accounting for the services and benefits our environment provides itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s easy to see why a healthy environment is the foundation of a healthy economy.

Agencies can identify and better balance tradeoffs when making policy, planning and investment decisions, and can better communicate these decisions to others

Scientists have access to more coherent data over time and provide access to asset condition measures to a broader audience

Communities' decision-making capacity improves with more consistent and coherent information about the environment

Planning agencies, businesses and communities improve their management by using a common organising framework to respond to changes in environmental assets

Investors can compare the outcomes of management actions and develop benchmarks

Parties active in the natural resource management sector share a common language and improve coordination

Victorians appreciate the interdependencies between our wellbeing and the environment

Government and stakeholder decision-making recognises the benefits from protecting and investing in the environment

Advantages of environmentaleconomic accounting

Leading the way in accounting for our environmental assets The Victorian Government has a primary, overarching role in managing the state’s environmental assets. A key part of this role includes the collection of consistent information about the condition and needs of our environmental assets – and using this to inform decision-making about protecting and investing in those assets. Historically, however, we have not been particularly good at measuring and tracking the health of the natural environment in Victoria. To the extent that we have kept account of our environmental assets and their condition, the efforts have been inconsistent and, in some instances, inadequate. In all likelihood, this has led in some cases to less-than-optimal decision-making due to a lack of basic reliable information. So how can this change? How can the Government and its agencies more fully and reliably account for how our environmental assets are tracking through time? And how can we use this information to improve policy development and decisionmaking, while integrating this process with society’s economic and social needs? A game-changing development is the planned integration of Environmental-Economic Accounting (EAA) into reporting, decision-making and evaluation of social, economic and environmental outcomes and trade-offs. State of the Environment reporting by the Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability will also utilise this framework to inform community, policy and decision-making. This integration of EEA has been set out in a DELWP strategy on valuing and accounting for Victoria’s environment, which is about to be implemented. Through this strategy, the Government will publish a set of environmental accounts for portfolio partners at the state level, such as Catchment Management Authorities, Parks Victoria and Melbourne Water. It will provide us with an internationally recognised framework for assessing our environmental assets, their services and the benefits they provide to society. Establishing common terminology, standardised concepts and consistent measures on environmental assets and their condition is critical to understanding the link between our actions, the health of our environment, and the business case for protecting and investing in the environment.

Work on this initiative has already begun through a recent collaboration between Parks Victoria and DELWP to develop environmental accounting and valuation frameworks to inform park management. As part of this collaboration, the Valuing Victoria’s Parks study assessed a wide range of benefits that parks provide, including tourism expenditure of $1.4 billion per year and supporting 14,000 jobs.

PRIORITY 4 Be the first state in Australia to adopt the UN System of Environmental-Economic Accounts as a way to embed environmental considerations into whole-of-government decision making.

RELEVANT OBJECTIVE Increase the percentage of Victorian organisations reporting and managing their performance against measures that support the natural environment.

CASE STUDY

Benefits from nutrient regulation processes in Port Phillip Bay Marine ecosystems provide natural waste assimilation processes that help regulate nutrient loads. For example, a recent study by the University of Melbourne has shown that Port Phillip Bay naturally removes 5,000 tonnes of nitrogen each year. The value of this benefit is estimated at $11 billion per year, which represents the costs that would be incurred to achieve equivalent denitrification through alternative means, considering options such as upgrading the Western Treatment Plant or wetland enhancement works.

If Port Phillip Bayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s nutrient regulation processes are degraded, water bills may increase, as Melbournians would need to pay to maintain the same level of water quality through artificial means. Benefits from natural waste assimilation processes in marine areas enable development of fishing and tourism industries, along with other social and recreational activities, which make Melbourne a great liveable city.

Encouraging a new ‘business as usual’ As stated in Chapter 2, several sectors of the Victorian economy are exposed to the risk of our natural capital degrading. One of the impediments to persuading businesses to consider the environmental consequences of their actions is a lack of clear measures and evidence showing the link between natural capital management and a productive economy. It is critical to engage with businesses to support innovation and improve environmental management. The development of corporate tools based on EEA has the potential to help the business community identify synergies between efficient business practices and a healthy and biodiverse environment. The Victorian Government will partner with the broader business community and industry leaders to promote the increased adoption of long-term initiatives that incorporate the impacts on natural capital into business decision-making. Better information could also enable businesses to monitor impacts on natural capital that are relevant to their operations, risk profiles, customer portfolios, supply chains and business opportunities. Leading companies in the financial sector, including National Australia Bank, VicSuper and Bank Australia, are already doing this in collaboration with agribusinesses, creating a market signal for the protection of natural capital. In doing so, these leading businesses are reducing risks in elements of their business portfolios and gaining a competitive edge with an increasingly environmentally-conscious investor base. Rigorous accounting for our natural capital can help inform investors about market risks, particularly in long-term investment options.

PRIORITY 5 Develop Environmental-Economic Accounting tools that help Victorian industries move towards environmentally pro-active business opportunities and manage risks associated with the loss of natural capital.

RELEVANT OBJECTIVE Increase the percentage of Victorian organisations reporting and managing their performance against measures that support the natural environment.

CONSULTATION QUESTIONS 12, 13 & 14 What are you currently doing – personally and professionally – to support and create a healthy and biodiverse natural environment? What else do you think you could do to support and create a healthy and biodiverse natural environment? What might help you to do this? What currently hinders you from doing this? What could businesses do to improve their environmental performance in relation to biodiversity? What might empower them to do this? What currently hinders them from doing this?

CASE STUDY

Puma’s environmental accounts

Bank Australia Conservation Landbank

In 2011, the multinational sportswear company Puma developed and implemented an Environmental Profit & Loss account for its business and estimated a financial value on its use of natural capital of around €145 million (USD 190 million), which included impacts like water use, greenhouse gas emissions, land use conversion, air pollution and waste. An independent expert panel judged the methodology as a valuable asset for strategic decision making, as well as for analysis of potential business risks linked to the use of natural capital. In Puma’s case, it has enabled the company to evaluate the water intensity of its raw materials and map these against regions where availability of water is an issue or where it could be in the future.

Bank Australia is demonstrating environmentally responsible business practices by driving biodiversity conservation in Western Victoria’s Wimmera. The bank is in a partnership with Trust for Nature in Bank Australia Conservation Landbank, a scheme that involves purchasing land for conservation and funding community groups such as Landcare to deliver on-ground action, which provides incentives to develop land for conservation rather than other purposes. For Bank Australia, the scheme helps to offset the loss of biodiversity resulting from its financing of new homes and vehicles, as well as emissions from running the bank. The Conservation Landbank mitigates biodiversity loss by, for example, setting aside the same amount of land that is lost through a new home construction to be protected or re-vegetated. New home owners with a loan from Bank Australia can access this financial service through Bank Australia Conservation Landbank.

CASE STUDY

VicSuper and Kilter Rural Future Farming Landscapes project Since 2007, VicSuper has invested in the Future Farming Landscapes project. The project is based in the southern part of the Murray Darling Basin in northern Victoria, one of Australiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s major regions of agricultural output.

Kilter Rural manages VicSuperâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s investments in the region, which aim for sustainable management of agribusinesses while maintaining commercial returns. Activities are diversified to balance precision-irrigated agriculture and the protection of key ecological areas, which service the site and generate additional returns through vegetation offsets, carbon sequestration, salt credit trading, and flood mitigation services.

Creating more liveable and climateadapted local communities Victoria’s environmental assets will play a pivotal role in helping communities to become more liveable and resilient, particularly in the face of challenges such as climate change and population growth. Environmental assets in the natural environment help to sustain, protect and enhance our communities and their built infrastructure, while also making them more liveable. For example, coastal mangroves not only support high levels of biodiversity, they also sequester carbon and help mitigate the effects of storm surges and sea level rise. Some environmental assets are purpose-built – as engineering solutions to improve the liveability of our communities – and save significant costs that would be incurred by providing such benefits through different means. One example of such green infrastructure is the use of constructed wetlands; these are increasingly being designed in an ecologically functional and biodiverse manner to improve water quality, mitigate floods and support native species.

There are other examples of green infrastructure with multiple benefits. Urban forests boost amenity and enjoyment for people, remove harmful air pollutants, filter water and help reduce the urban heat island effect – a phenomenon that is estimated to result in annual health costs within the City of Melbourne area alone in the order of $283 million. Green roofs are another example of how to improve the local environment by reducing energy usage and stormwater runoff. While green infrastructure in the urban context may often have limited biodiversity value per se, it can still be a useful way to connect people to nature. Environmental-Economic Accounting tools can be used to help government and communities understand these wide-ranging benefits, and also the vulnerabilities of environmental assets in the built and natural environment – particularly in the context of a changing climate. These tools can also help local communities plan for the future, maintain their environmental asset base and make their built environment more liveable. The development of guidelines or standards for green infrastructure, will give government, industry and communities a stronger ability to realise these benefits more readily, including delivery of services at lower cost and/or with additional benefits.

CASE STUDY

The utilisation of native plants in green infrastructure projects will become increasingly important, as native plants are adapted to the Australian climate and therefore may be more likely to withstand the impacts of climate change. The greater use of native plants will also create more opportunities for Victorians to reconnect with our rich botanic natural heritage. The Victorian Government recognises the unique roles that local governments and communities play in tackling climate change, and the important work that is already enhancing Victoria’s sustainability at the local level. Recent examples have included the planting of native vegetation, the establishment of community gardens, local sustainable food networks, green roofs and open spaces. Often these projects involve the conversion of derelict sites into inspirational public spaces, which has the additional benefit of lowering the incidence of illegal waste dumping and vandalism. These activities help communities connect with nature, stay healthy, attract visitors, maintain social support networks and become more climate adapted. The Victorian Government will support this tremendous momentum already underway in local governments and communities with initiatives such as the Victorian Climate Change Grants 2015 and the Local Government Climate Adaptation mentors.

Climate Change Adaptation Plans for Victoria’s catchments The Goulburn-Broken CMA’s 2015 draft plan takes a social-ecological systems approach to identify: • Priority landscapes for climate change adaptation and mitigation in the context of improving the resilience of natural resources; • Options for climate change adaptation and mitigation, including carbon sequestration, within focus areas and priority landscapes; and • Risks to catchment processes from carbon sequestration activities and mitigation actions.

PRIORITY 6 & 7 Support communities to plan for future climate change scenarios that impact our natural assets. Drive the expansion of green infrastructure and the use of native species, to help create liveable and climate-adapted communities that include opportunities to connect with nature.

RELEVANT OBJECTIVES Improve ecological regimes to best support biodiversity in a changing environment. Increase the number of Victorians acting to protect nature (e.g. volunteering, making everyday choices).

CONSULTATION QUESTION 15 In addition to existing government, private and volunteer programs, are there any other ways to help Victorian communities and local government agencies promote and create a healthy and biodiverse natural environment at local and regional levels?

Increasing nature-based tourism Victorian environmental assets attract millions of local, domestic and international visitors every year. Increasingly, a focus on personal, environmental and community wellbeing has helped drive growth in the demand for nature-based experiences. Victoria’s nature based tourism is built on the quality of our state and national parks and marine protected areas, along with our great natural icons, wildlife attractions and our vast array of landscapes, from our beaches to our mountains, rivers and lakes. To enhance and leverage existing nature-based experiences, Tourism Victoria has identified priority areas, including development of environmentally-sensitive tourism infrastructure in specific regions – such as the Phillip Island Nature Parks, Great Ocean Road, Gippsland, the Grampians and Victoria’s High Country. It is also focusing on targeted investments in our national attractions, such as the Grampians Peak Trail, Phillip Island Nature Parks, and the Shipwreck Coast. Other priority areas include Daylesford, the Macedon Ranges, the Yarra Valley and the Dandenong Ranges. More than 1.4 million international nature-based tourism visitors travelled to Victoria in the year ending June 2014, accounting for 35.8 million overnight stays. Nature-based tourism visitors represent 70 per cent of all international overnight visitors to Victoria. In addition, about 4.3 million day trips were undertaken to and within Victoria by domestic nature-based tourists in the year ending June 2014. According to the Valuing Victoria’s Parks study, $1.4 billion per year in spending is generated by tourist visits to Victoria’s parks. This generates $1 billion gross value added and supports 14,000 jobs. Regional economies that benefit most from park-based tourism include the Grampians, the Great Ocean Road, Phillip Island, the Yarra Valley, the Dandenong Ranges and Gippsland. In and around Melbourne, we also have a wealth of nature-based tourism, including our world-class zoos, aquarium and botanic gardens, as well as hundreds of kilometres of splendid coastline.

While Victoria’s nature-based tourism industry is thriving, it is also highly vulnerable to the future impacts of environmental degradation and climate change. Parks and tourism must be managed to ensure that environmentally-sensitive visitation rates are maintained so that parks aren’t receiving too many visitors in sensitive areas. The use of Environmental-Economic Accounting can help businesses to better understand the benefits they derive from natural assets, and to plan for potential threats to these benefits. Tourism Victoria and public land managers such as DELWP, Parks Victoria and local councils will work in collaboration with the community to ensure that our iconic natural and built assets keep offering opportunities to connect with nature. Recent projects like the Grampians Peaks Trail, the Harcourt Mountain Bike Trail and the Shipwreck Coast Master Plan represent a concerted effort to strategically look at opportunities to maximise access to nature.

PRIORITY 8 Showcase Victoria’s environmental assets as world-class nature-based and cultural tourism attractions.

RELEVANT OBJECTIVE Increase the number of Victorians spending time enjoying nature.

CASE STUDY

The Grampians long-term fire, climate and fauna research program – a collaborative approach The Grampians National Park is one of Victoria’s recreational and biodiversity hotspots, and as such is a perfect location to conduct long-term fire, climate and fauna research programs aimed at ensuring future generations can learn about our natural history and understand the ecological dynamics of the areas that they are enjoying. A research project launched in the Grampians in 2008 is investigating how species respond to major climatic changes and fires through time, and how this knowledge can be utilised to manage our ecological assets. Parks Victoria and Deakin University researchers established 36 long-term small mammal monitoring sites across the Grampians landscape. After several years of bushfires and significant flooding in 2011, this monitoring has become critical in establishing the roles that climate and fire play in driving faunal communities. The sites have been monitored annually since 2008 by Deakin University students, assisted by Parks Victoria staff.

With 65,502 trap nights of survey effort and captures of 5457 small mammals, the research has yielded significant information on how systems recover from fire under differing climatic conditions. Species monitored include the Agile Antechinus (Antechinus agilis), Common Dunnart (Sminthopsis murina), Heath Mouse (Pseudomys shortridgei) and the introduced House Mouse (Mus musculus). Outcomes of the Grampians research program are highly relevant to park management. The project has led to significant practical outcomes that support better decision making across the Grampians landscape. These include: • The development of a landscape-scale predictive model identifying ‘small mammal climatic refuges’, utilising longterm satellite imagery; • Species specific fire and climate response models to enable fire and predator management programs to be responsive to underlying climatic conditions; and • The ability to continuously adapt fox baiting for the ‘Grampians Ark’ project to ensure greater predator control effort is applied at locations where populations of significant mammals (e.g. Southern Brown Bandicoot) have been detected.

CASE STUDY

1980s

Phillip Island Nature Parks In 1985 the Hon. Joan Kirner, who at the time was Victoriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Conservation Minister, addressed the Victorian Parliament with a vision to embark on a ground-breaking project to protect the Little Penguin colony at the Summerland Peninsula of Phillip Island. Primarily due to a housing estate occupying their habitat, scientists predicted the colony was at risk of extinction, with only 12,000 breeding birds left. In a bold move, the entire housing estate was purchased by the State Government and Phillip Island Nature Parks was formed to manage more than 1805 hectares of Crown Land. Since its formation, the Nature Parks has achieved significant gains for the ecology and economy of Phillip Island. Of the annual surplus generated from its eco-tourism attractions, $3.5million is spent annually on research and environmental management programs. As a result, Phillip Island Nature Parks has become a world class destination that enables the local community and international and domestic tourists to connect with Victorian wildlife. In 2014-15, Nature Parks welcomed a total of 1,261,882 visitors (58 per cent international) with an annual economic contribution to the Victorian economy of $402.5 million, and underpinning 1753 full-time jobs.

2015 And importantly the number of penguins has grown â&#x20AC;&#x201C; more than 30,000 breeding penguins now utilise the reclaimed peninsula as their home. This success has been driven by a broad range of conservation initiatives by the Nature Parks including strengthening the protection and interpretation of significant Indigenous and cultural assets, major revegetation and habitat restoration, ongoing penguin burrow re-instatement programs and the multi-award-winning fox eradication program run in partnership with local farmers. In 2012, the Nature Parks completed a 20 year Vision and Master Plan for the Summerland Peninsula that further details the ongoing transformation of the Peninsula from the former housing estate to become a demonstration of world-class conservation, recreation and eco-tourism.

In 2014-15, the average daily number of penguins crossing the beach at the Penguin Parade (969) was higher than the long term average of 850 for the fifth year in a row.

Figure 6: Average number of penguins crossing the Penguin Parade beach each night, July 1977 â&#x20AC;&#x201C; June 2015

1,000 long term average 800

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Average number of penguins

1,200

INVESTING TOGETHER TO PROTECT OUR ENVIRONMENT

Protecting and sustaining Victoria’s natural environment for the long-term requires vision, financial resources and a collective effort across society. This section discusses new opportunities to realise that vision and to halt almost two centuries of human-induced environmental decline.

RELEVANT GOAL

Zoos Victoria – “Fighting Extinction”

To ensure that Victoria’s natural environment is healthy.

Zoos Victoria works locally and globally to deliver tangible conservation outcomes. It is committed to the recovery of 20 native threatened species through captive breeding and reintroduction, and is also undertaking broad-based conservation programs in six countries, six grass-roots community conservation campaigns and 54 research projects.

One of the keys to protecting our natural capital is to harness collective action across a broad spectrum of society. It is not enough for just government or a few committed individuals to take on the challenge; all over the world, there is an emerging view that a collective effort – spanning the voluntary, philanthropic, political, government and corporate sectors – is required to protect and sustain our natural resources. In Victoria we are embracing this approach, encouraging many sections of society to take a more active role, working together to support the environment from which we all benefit. Fortunately there are already many groups in Victoria that place a high value on nature, and that appreciate the social and economic benefits that flow from protecting our natural capital. Government agencies, private land owners, non-government organisations and thousands of volunteers already invest time, skills and money to improve and maintain Victoria’s biodiversity. But as a society we can – and must – do more. The Victorian Government, in addition to supporting existing efforts, is committed to increasing the overall investment and participation in biodiversity protection and restoration.

Zoos Victoria transfers research and on-ground action into opportunities for people to connect with nature and learn about conservation at world-class zoos that attract local and international tourism. By working with visitors, supporters and conservation partners Zoos Victoria aims to reduce threats facing endangered wildlife and build the reputation of Victoria’s rich biodiversity. As Zoos Victoria is a not-for-profit conservation organisation, all revenue raised goes directly towards work to fight extinction. This approach embodies key elements of the draft biodiversity plan, Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036.

Boosting our investment to change our environmental trajectory A realistic plan to halt the decline of Victoria’s biodiversity will require significant funding over the long term. A centrepiece of this model could be a new State Government-backed initiative to create significant and sustained investment in biodiversity conservation across Victoria. The model could include a variety of funding mechanisms that together maximise biodiversity conservation, including exploring innovative funding models and the emerging area of government backed Green Bonds, which would generate finance for biodiversity initiatives while providing investors with a government-guaranteed return.

Green Bonds A bond is a financial instrument issued by governments, companies and financial institutions as a means of raising funds. Purchasers of bonds (investors) are paid a fixed interest rate over the life of the loan and their initial investment is returned on maturity of the bond. A ‘green bond’ only differs from a regular bond in that the funds raised are invested in projects that have positive environmental and/or climate benefits (e.g. renewable energy, sustainable buildings and reforestation). The global green bond market is still relatively new but has grown strongly in the past couple of years in line with demand from an emergent pool of investors. In this initial phase, green bonds are often being applied to climate change projects. However, there is scope to explore options for them being used for more biodiversityspecific initiatives.

PRIORITY 9 Establish a sustainable funding model that leverages and aligns all sources of investment to improve Victoria’s natural environment, and including the use of innovative mechanisms such as crowd funding to supplement other funding sources.

RELEVANT OBJECTIVES Halt the overall decline of threatened species and secure the greatest possible number of species in the wild in the face of climate change. Improve the overall extent and condition of native habitats across terrestrial, coastal, marine and freshwater environments.

Supporting more businesses to invest in the environment Businesses in Victoria are becoming more environmentally conscious – not just because they want to do the right thing, but because protecting the environment can benefit their business bottom line too. As described in the previous chapter, there is a growing recognition among private and philanthropic sectors that caring for the natural environment can reduce business risk. Despite this positive trend, many businesses in Victoria remain passive at best when it comes to protecting the environment. This represents a potential lost opportunity – not only for the individual businesses concerned, but also for current and future generations of Victorians. For governments and policy makers, the challenge is to not only reach out to businesses about the potential bottom-line benefits of not degrading the environment but also to highlight the opportunities that come from actively protecting the environment in a competitive marketplace that increasingly demands strong environmental credentials. To this end, we must engage more with private sector leaders and assist the development of investor networks to share information about how businesses can both profit from, and contribute to, a healthier natural environment. Engaging with the private sector will also help us to gauge investor needs – and to design and adjust opportunities accordingly. As a Government, we see great potential to promote coinvestment in the environment sector, partnering with businesses, philanthropists and landholders in projects that align both with Victoria’s environmental priorities and the financial objectives of the businesses involved. The Zoos Victoria AGL Marine Rescue Unit, as seen in the case study over the page, is an example of how this model can work. The Strategic Management Prospects tool (described in more detail in Chapter 8) will be pivotal in identifying conservation priorities that have the greatest potential to deliver the best biodiversity returns on investment. A Regional Biodiversity Investment Prospectus is proposed as a new platform to communicate Victoria’s priorities, where government is already investing to protect biodiversity, and where there are new statewide and regionally-specific conservation project opportunities on which government, business and the wider community can collaborate.

Private investors will be able to choose to partner with landholders, Catchment Management Authorities or other government agencies such as Parks Victoria or Trust for Nature and know they are making a contribution towards Victoria’s environmental aspirations. Investment guidelines that include principles for public-private partnership investments will be developed to ensure public probity standards are met and private sector investments are in the public interest. The guidelines will cover aspects such as accountability, transparency and fairness.

PRIORITY 10 Publish a Regional Biodiversity Investment Prospectus and establish a business community roundtable to effectively communicate key areas in which communities and investors can act to improve biodiversity on public and private land.

CONSULTATION QUESTIONS 16 & 17 What do you think of the idea to assist business and philanthropic sectors in protecting our natural environment? Should we consider any other approaches to this issue?

CASE STUDY

The AGL Marine Rescue Project In 2013 Zoos Victoria received a record number of calls from the public for assistance for injured marine life but resource constraints meant only one in 10 calls could be responded to. The problem required innovative thinking to develop a new funding model. When scoping the partnership, renewable energy company AGL Energy Ltd saw a logical fit between AGL’s brand promise ‘Energy in Action’ and the actionoriented goals of the Marine Response Unit. Other synergies included: • AGL is Australia’s biggest provider of renewable energy, which aligned well with Zoos Victoria’s ambition to be the world’s first carbon neutral zoo; • Both the AGL and Zoos Victoria brands are well known, household names with a long history (AGL was established in 1837 and Melbourne Zoo in 1862); and • Both organisations have a strong focus on families.

From the partnership, AGL has naming rights sponsorship of both the AGL Marine Response Unit and the Wild Sea precinct at Melbourne Zoo. The partnership is promoted across the Zoo, including through: • Branded signage and interpretation throughout the Wild Sea precinct; • Recognition of the AGL partnership in the daily seal show and behind the scenes experiences; and • A video to be played within the Wild Sea precinct highlighting the AGL Marine Response Unit and its achievements. The partnership has seen the issue move from a highprofile problem to a high profile success story through the establishment of the AGL Marine Response Unit.

Making it easier to protect biodiversity and tackle climate change More than two thirds of Victoria, including some of the stateâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s most important and irreplaceable remaining vegetation, is privately owned. Some industries such as agriculture already invest in biodiversity, for example through Landcare, maintaining biodiversity on farms programs, and investment in sustainable practices. Victoria also has a strong track-record of innovative market-based approaches to environmental conservation on private land. The BushTender, EcoTender and CoastalTender incentive programs are world-renowned for their cutting-edge approaches to protecting and improving native vegetation, while the native vegetation credit market provides an efficient and effective process for mitigating impacts from the removal of native vegetation. Currently, native vegetation credits are created and traded through the vegetation credit market. Credits are generated when landowners commit to permanently protecting and enhancing native vegetation above minimum land stewardship requirements. Landowners may then sell these credits to others who require offsets to mitigate impacts of native vegetation clearing, or to philanthropic organisations and other investors seeking to invest in biodiversity conservation. The native vegetation credit market has grown and matured since offsetting was first introduced in 2003. Further development of this approach will contribute to greater biodiversity protection, particularly on private land, and provide landowners with alternative approaches to managing their land (see VicSuper and Kilter Rural Future Farming Landscapes project case study in Chapter 6). The Victorian Government proposes to develop a biodiversity conservation credit market to promote potential future interactions with markets for water, carbon and other public benefits that could be traded between producers and beneficiaries. This will clarify the rules and processes for establishing credits and provide clear direction and transparency to market participants and regulators, ensuring that a credit represents a tangible improvement protected in perpetuity. The development of this approach will consider any relevant directions from the review of the native vegetation regulations, in particular improvements to the security and monitoring arrangements for offsets to ensure that expected gains are delivered. It will also examine opportunities to align the current markets for native vegetation, water and carbon trading and consider the legislative underpinnings that may be required to do this.

The Victorian Government has completed an independent review of the Climate Change Act 2010. The review investigated a broad range of issues including carbon sequestration, which has the potential to provide multiple benefits across a range of environmental and economic outcomes. Permanent protection of land for conservation, enabled by agencies such as Trust for Nature (using conservation covenants), makes such a valuable long-term contribution to Victoriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s environment that we need to find ways to increase its use. While conservation on private land is already encouraged through various incentive programs, it can still be difficult to secure permanent protection of biodiversity. We will investigate options to significantly increase the permanent protection of important areas of biodiversity on private land. This will consider the range of incentives available to assist landowners to achieve this, as well as identifying factors (e.g. existing tax systems) that may create disincentives.

PRIORITY 11 & 12 Develop a holistic biodiversity conservation credit market to leverage future interactions with markets for water and carbon and other public benefits that could be traded between producers and beneficiaries. Investigate options for significantly increasing incentives for private land owners to permanently protect important habitat on their land.

RELEVANT OBJECTIVE Improve the overall extent and condition of native habitats across terrestrial, coastal, marine and freshwater environments.

CASE STUDY

Dockers Plains Pastoral Company long-term land protection Settled in 1838, Dockers Plains near Wangaratta in northeast Victoria is one of Australia’s most enduring pastoral holdings. The Lower Ovens River and Reedy Creek which meander through the property support an active floodplain, intact riparian vegetation, healthy native fish community and native flora. Six generations of the Docker family have lived and farmed there for over 170 years, under the abundant River Red Gums which range from seedlings to 400-year-old monarchs. It was the spectre of these ancient trees dying which catalysed the decision by joint owners John and Mary Paul and John Docker to permanently protect the high environmental value areas on their property through a Trust for Nature conservation covenant. Their vision was to develop a sustainable farming enterprise that maintains the property’s environmental and cultural values. Established in 2009 in collaboration with Trust for Nature, the Victorian body with responsibility for enabling conservation on private land, this covenant is now one of more than 1300 covering such properties in Victoria where landowners have voluntarily elected to protect significant habitat on their land in perpetuity. The Dockers Plains Pastoral Company covenant protects almost 17 kilometres of Ovens River frontage which has been fenced to exclude stock, as well as 500 hectares of remnant Riverine Grassy Woodland, 600 hectares of farmland/stream mosaics, and 60 separate wetlands. Supported by funding from the Australian Government, Victorian Government and North East Catchment Management Authority, Dockers Plains Pastoral Company has been able to undertake a series of positive interventions on the protected area to improve river health, wetland health and biodiversity values, including strategic stream bank protection, off-stream stock watering, weed control, replanting of native understorey and establishment of additional areas of native vegetation.

With one third of their property – around 1100 hectares – permanently protected for conservation, Dockers Plains continues to operate as a working property, supporting a herd of about 750 Angus cows, and cropping of wheat, canola, triticale and oats. While the cattle are kept away from highly sensitive ecological areas, they prove useful for strategic weed control under the guidance of a covenant management plan. Monitoring of environmental quality through the Trust’s stewardship program is key to maintaining the qualities of this high value site. Dockers Plains Pastoral Company is also guided by a Whole of Farm Environmental Plan, which includes actions to establish nature corridors connecting the higher country on the property back to the riparian zone and to link the remnant vegetation on the property with remnant roadside vegetation With financial and technical assistance, and the passion of landholders who see themselves as guardians of the landscape for future generations, Dockers Plains has become one of Victoria’s largest conservation covenant properties, ensuring a balance between the needs of a healthy environment and a thriving farming business, and honoring the past while protecting for the future.

CASE STUDY

BETTER, SMARTER MANAGEMENT OF OUR BIODIVERSITY

To achieve our biodiversity goals, we need a clear plan that all Victorians can work to. The plan needs to provide the right information for decision making, set clear priorities, and use approaches that maximise biodiversity gain.

RELEVANT GOAL

To ensure that Victoria’s natural environment is healthy. Many thousands of Victorians are actively involved in rebuilding our biodiversity, not only for the immediate benefits to our society, but also for the benefit of future generations. They contribute in a variety of roles, from volunteering at the community level to land management, investment and the design and enforcement of environmental regulations. As the biodiversity conservation sector has grown in size and influence, there has also been a diversification of roles and ways of doing business in the sector. Amid these changes, it is now time for a modern plan for Victoria’s biodiversity that we can all work to and that consolidates our strengths. Government will play a critical role as the steward of this system, helping each party to make the most effective contribution to the big picture goals. With Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036, the Victorian Government is aiming to put the state on a smarter and more efficient pathway to a healthy natural environment. Essential components of the plan include: • The right mix of approaches to address biodiversity decline in different situations; • A shared information base for consistent biodiversity decision-making; • A modernised planning, investment and regulatory framework for biodiversity; and • Strengthened accountability arrangements to deliver measurable improvements to Victoria’s biodiversity.

A modern plan will enable Victoria to be adaptable to a changing environment – particularly with the onset of climate change – and will improve and strengthen alignment between government agencies, non-government organisations and the community. The key components of a modernised framework form the basis of this draft plan and are described in Figure 7.

Figure 7: Regional and community level conservation planning process CONSISTENT INFORMATION AND KNOWLEDGE

STRATEGIC POLICY DIRECTION

CONSERVATION PLANNING FRAMEWORK

Articulates long-term vision, principles, goals/outcomes and overarching approach to guide decision making and investment across scales and tenures

Statewide targets

Consistent, integrated spatial approach to set priorities for biodiversity planning

Regional targets

Regulation

Research

Conservation reserve systems

Investment

Education

Voluntary approaches

PORTFOLIO OF APPROACHES

Regional biodiversity conservation planning process

REGIONAL BIODIVERSITY AND COMMUNITY LEVEL CONSERVATION PLANNING PROCESS

Regional Biodiversity Investment Prospectus

Regional biodiversity implementation (priorities can also be delivered through implementation of statewide programs)

Outcomes reporting

EVALUATION AND REPORTING

Delivery and performance

Adaptive management and decision making

Meeting climate change and other management challenges Climate change challenges To achieve our long-term goal of a healthy natural environment, we need to progressively halt the overall level of biodiversity decline across landscapes and seascapes, and continue targeted improvement of biodiversity. This requires active and deliberate management intervention. However, the complexity of natural systems and the increasing level of uncertainty due to climate change make it difficult to decide which conservation efforts will be most worthwhile.

• Encourage gene mixing (where appropriate) to increase the genetic “fitness” of populations to adapt to a changing environment. This could lead to reduced emphasis on the use of “local provenance” material in revegetation projects or mean we are more likely to favour translocation of individuals between populations. Ensure that incursions of new and emerging pests are promptly managed and if possible, eradicated.

A changing climate will bring inevitable challenges for native species, which will need to cope with changing distributions and ecological relationships. Due to the complex interactions between environmental factors such as drought and competition between species, our ability to predict the future for each species is far from perfect and we must manage and make decisions against this background of uncertainty.

• Plan for dramatic changes in habitat where assessments indicate such change is inevitable. Examples of such changes could include a rise in sea levels, or more frequent fire. This approach could include replacing a struggling native species with another (see Alpine Ash case study), the removal of barriers to the inland migration of mangroves and saltmarsh impacted by rising sea levels, or translocation of species populations to additional locations to reduce the risk of complete loss of the species. Develop clear decision-making processes for how and when to respond to immediate biodiversity emergencies such as threats to the survival of species due to major bushfire or drought events.

To help biodiversity adapt to and maximise opportunities for survival under climate change, we will use the following management approaches: • Maintain or improve high quality, intact landscapes and seascapes. • Improve habitat management to restore threatened habitats and relieve other pressures on ecosystems and species – such as from habitat fragmentation and destruction, pest plants and animals, fire, flooding, grazing and pollution. This should improve resilience to climate change. • Enhance opportunities for species to disperse and interact within the landscape by reducing the isolation of protected areas, strengthening habitat networks and increasing the amount of available habitat. Where there are barriers to natural dispersal, or populations are isolated, undertake direct actions such as translocation of species. • Enhance habitat diversity and extent – for example, by increasing protection of remnants in areas of high environmental diversity, or creating new habitats by creation of artificial reefs or wetlands, or revegetation with “climateready” plants, such as species and genetic varieties that are most likely to survive in a newly hotter, drier climate. In some instances this may involve sourcing plants from other areas in Victoria, or even elsewhere in Australia.

• Take an adaptive approach to land and conservation management, which will involve changing objectives and management actions in response to new information. Managing the impacts of climate change may also provide additional benefits and opportunities for Victorians. As outlined in the Plan Melbourne Refresh Discussion Paper, the benefits that may arise include improving our health (e.g. better air quality, less exposure to heatwaves) and creating a more liveable city (a greener more attractive cityscape). Through early action we have the opportunity to see these benefits, and avoid the significant and escalating costs of inaction.

CONSULTATION QUESTION 18 What do you think of actively introducing species to new locations, or actively mixing genes within populations, as part of adaptation to climate change?

VicNature 2050: 10 things we can all do to help nature adapt to a new climate In late 2015, over 200 scientists and participants attended a symposium Managing Victoria’s Biodiversity under Climate Change, organised by the Victorian National Parks Association, The Royal Society of Victoria and The University of Melbourne’s Bio21 Institute. The symposium resulted in the presentation of 10 ideas that could help address the impacts of climate change on biodiversity. These ideas are: 1. Listen, engage and work with people 2. Accept natural areas will change 3. Protect reserves, look after nature on private land 4. Remove threats such as clearing, weeds and feral animals 5. Use natural processes like fire, floods to promote diversity 6. Connect landscapes using climate-ready plants 7. Welcome nature into our cities 8. Record changes in our local area 9. Promote diversity in all that we do 10. Stay positive, informed and engaged More information on VicNature 2050 and the 10 initiatives is available at www.vicnature2050.org

CASE STUDY

Alpine Ash regeneration It is now generally accepted that climate change will result in more frequent and more severe bushfires. This scenario has already started playing out in parts of Victoria’s Alpine National Park. Several major bushfires within only a few years have resulted in widespread death of alpine ash trees and the seed-crop that would enable the species to regenerate. Facing a likely pattern of more frequent fire into the future under climate change leaves land managers with some important choices. Should we replant alpine ash at these sites, knowing that they will need to survive fire for several decades before they are again able to regenerate? Alternatively, should we replant with a more climate-ready (but benign) eucalypt species that performs a similar functional role (including provision of hollows for threatened animal species) but is better able to survive fire?

Other management challenges Although climate change is a likely “game-changer”, it is not the only challenge for our management of biodiversity. We manage for a range of reasons – to provide ongoing conservation and protection, to allow sustainable harvesting of wildlife (e.g. fish stocks), to reduce native plants that have become environmental weeds, and to control over-abundant wildlife. In some cases a native species might become a problem to other species, through, for example, competition, exclusion, or by altering habitats. This occurs when a species has spread or been moved out of its natural range; when natural controls to its numbers are removed; or when it is limited to an area and can’t move out of it because of barriers to dispersal. It is then that managers have to decide whether it is enough of a threat to itself, to other species or to its habitat to justify action. Examples of native species that sometimes require management intervention to protect other biodiversity values include: • Kangaroos, which in some rural areas have increased in numbers due to the increase in reliable water supplies (e.g. stock watering) and pasture for grazing. High numbers of kangaroos can exert high grazing pressure on native plants and wildflowers, a bit like rabbits, and can destroy habitat that ground-dwelling native animals may need to survive. • Noisy Miners, a native honeyeater that aggressively excludes other native birds from favoured woodland habitat. Where woodlands have declined or become fragmented, competition for habitat resources increases, and the Noisy Miner has a significant impact on the survival of other birds. • Sweet Pittosporum is one of the many native plants that, when grown out of their natural area, can become “environmental weeds”. Sweet Pittosporum is a small tree native to coastal wet forests in far eastern Victoria. It is very popular in domestic gardens. It has now become widespread and naturalised in bushland areas outside its range where it affects native habitats through shading, competition and changes in soil nutrients. • Burgan, a tall, fast-growing shrub that, without the natural controls of grazing and natural fire regimes, out-competes other young trees and shrubs and shades out ground-layer plants. It‘s a particular threat to native grasslands in some areas of the state.

Introduced species are another primary cause of biodiversity decline; new marine pests and environmental weeds are emerging regularly. Although Victoria has implemented successful programs to control a number of widespread introduced species, there is a need for a more consolidated, consistent and sustained approach that can effectively tackle key threats such as feral cats – along with over-abundant wildlife and new and emerging threats that we are not yet aware of. But dealing with such threats can be complicated by considerations other than biodiversity, including animal welfare, cultural heritage and hunting (e.g. wild horses and deer). Our approach must therefore recognise that sections of the community value some of these species for particular reasons. Managing bushfires and their effects is also far from straightforward when it comes to protecting biodiversity. Depending on their frequency and type, fires can have significant positive or negative effects on biodiversity. The interaction of fires with other drivers of decline (such as animal pests and weeds) is also complex and not yet well understood. Nonetheless, Victoria’s new approach to fire planning – which divides the state into seven Bushfire Risk Landscapes, and includes extensive community input and solid science – is progressively finding ways to tackle these challenges. It has already shown how ecological values can be included in decision making. The Government’s approach to bushfire management will continue to evolve based on expert advice, current research and recent advances in emergency management planning. The recently released Victorian Government policy ‘Safer Together,’ sets out a new approach to bushfire management. This new approach will combine stronger community partnerships with the latest science to more effectively target actions to reduce bushfire risk. This will ensure fire management actions will be right for the local environment and driven by local community input. Safer Together accepts the recommendations of the InspectorGeneral for Emergency Management’s review of performance targets for bushfire fuel management on public land. Under the new approach, the Victorian Government will introduce a risk reduction target from 1 July 2016, replacing previous hectare targets.

Over-abundant native animals Native sea urchins (Heliocidaris erthyrogramma) have undergone significant population expansion in Corner Inlet, and have been creating ‘urchin barrens’ by grazing on seagrass meadows. They naturally occur there, and no one knows why the populations have suddenly grown, nor how badly they might impact the seagrass meadows that are so important for biodiversity, and consequently for commercial fishers.

The conservation reserve system and resource-use challenges Another major challenge involves how we reconcile competing demands on our land, waterways and seas. If we want a healthy environment, we need to enhance Victoria’s contribution to the National Reserve System, which covers both public and private land and waters, and is primarily managed for biodiversity conservation. The current management and extent of Victoria’s contribution to the National Reserve System may not in itself be sufficient to achieve our goal of a healthy natural environment. Some species and habitat types are well represented in the reserve system, while others are significantly under-represented, since they occur predominantly in agricultural or peri-urban landscapes. (For example, on the Victorian Volcanic Plains bioregion, only 1.3 per cent of the native vegetation is in conservation reserves, and in the Wimmera, only 1.5 per cent.) To deal with potential land use conflicts, it has been suggested that a ‘land sparing’ approach, where agriculture is intensified sustainably and is more clearly separated from areas managed for conservation, can most effectively reconcile biodiversity and land scarcity requirements. The alternative is a ‘land sharing’ approach, where lower-yield agriculture occurs over an increasing area but uses more ‘biodiversity-friendly’ techniques. While both approaches may have their place in Victoria’s future landscapes, we must make better use of regional land-use and marine planning under different climate scenarios to help us decide: • Where and how we set aside additional protected areas to meet baseline biodiversity targets; • Where and how we identify intensive production areas to meet our increasing human needs; • How we can better reconcile interactions between biodiversity conservation and other resource uses (such as sustainable agriculture, fisheries and urban development); and • The timing and location of interventions in changing landscapes and seascapes (e.g. alpine areas and coastlines) to relocate critical species and to identify suitable receiving locations.

The intended outcome for Victoria is: • A comprehensive, adequate and representative protected area system that:

- continues to be the cornerstone of conserving biodiversity

- contains representative populations of most of the state’s plant and animal species and major ecosystems, in terrestrial, freshwater and marine environments

- provides places where under climate change, new combinations of native plants and animals can establish, grow and evolve

- is well managed to best practice standards to increase the contribution of biodiversity outcomes, largely through mitigation of key threats.

• Other public land and waters that are not primarily managed for conservation (e.g. road and rail reserves, State Forests, recreation areas) are managed to deliver conservation outcomes as a secondary benefit, and complement the reserve system. • Expanded private land stewardship areas (managed under covenants, agreements, incentives, partnerships etc.) that are financially productive and biodiverse landscapes, and include species and habitats that may be poorly represented or not included in the formal reserve system. The priority should be on permanent protection. This will be particularly important in regions and ecosystems where the proportion of public land to private is low, and where the reserve system is not sufficiently large or representative.

Role of protected areas on public land The protected area system on public land and waters (which includes national parks, flora and fauna reserves, and marine protected areas) is the backbone of Victoria’s conservation management system. Our long history of public land use planning (Victorian Environment Assessment Council (VEAC), Land Conservation Council) has delivered a reserve system with relatively comprehensive inclusion of types of environments and habitats. However the pressures of climate change and changing circumstances of species mean the protected area system may be less adequate for conserving species than was originally expected. Regular reviews of the extent, representativeness and adequacy of the reserve system (particularly in times of climate change) and additional complementary measures on private land will be important for this backbone to continue to function as effectively as it has in the past. VEAC will play a crucial role in reviewing the extent and adequacy of the reserve system. VEAC conducts investigations that are requested by the Victorian Government relating to the protection and ecologically sustainable management of the environment and natural resources of public land.

PRIORITY 13 & 14 Establish a whole-of-government approach to ensure effective and timely response to tackle the most pressing biodiversity threats on public and private land. Deliver excellence in national park and conservation reserve management, and ensure that the system is sufficiently adequate and comprehensive to provide its core function as the backbone of nature conservation in a changing environment.

Achieving biodiversity improvements on private land involves many organisations and a variety of programs, that provide opportunities for landholders to get involved at different levels of commitment. The Trust for Nature, Conservation Management Networks, non-government conservation organisations (e.g. Bush Heritage Australia), Landcare and Land for Wildlife are all prime examples of organisations involved in private land conservation. There is an opportunity to strengthen, align and better coordinate action in this sector to ensure that our current arrangements are the most effective for biodiversity conservation.

Role of private land Private land has a critical role in conserving biodiversity and the network of private protected areas (e.g. Trust for Nature covenants) makes an important contribution to the state and national reserve system. In some parts of the state (e.g. the Victorian Volcanic Plains), very little of the most important habitats, such as endangered native grasslands, occur in the public reserve system. Some of the best and biggest grasslands, and threatened grassland species, occur mostly on private land. These grasslands have a history of light grazing, and continue to be productive grazing farms at the same time as they support important biodiversity values.

CASE STUDY

Trust for Nature In northern Victoria, between 1998 and 2010, Trust for Nature (TfN) undertook a partnership with the then Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) to conserve the critically endangered Northern Plains Grasslands. TfN undertook a targeted program of land purchase and covenanting, to supplement the existing and DSE-acquired conservation reserves. This created a landscape-scale, ecologically connected network of public and private land reserves on the Avoca and Patho Plains, with both public and private land managed to complement each other, using mutually agreed practices.

Environmental land stewardship standards There is a need to explore options to develop clear standards of land stewardship. Having such standards can contribute to the ongoing maintenance of public good values. Such standards should be designed to reward those who do the right thing and leave their land in good condition for future generations. They can also help to provide practical guidance to land managers on how to meet existing statutory obligations. The Victorian Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994 (s20) includes a requirement for land owners to conserve soil, protect water resources and control weeds and pests. Environmental land stewardship standards would not impose new regulation, but could build on this concept in a voluntary way, with the inclusion of other specific outcomes (e.g. maintaining the presence and regeneration of canopy trees over time, or maintaining current habitat condition). In the first instance the standards could be a set of principles that landholders could use to benchmark their land management practices. On private land that is under voluntary protection, meeting the environmental land stewardship standards would be voluntary but could be encouraged in different ways. For example, they could be linked to incentives and participation in government investment programs. Alternatively, they could be used as the basis of a standard ‘sustainability report’ issued when land is sold, as a signal to buyers and others of the status of the land (e.g. through a star rating system). More broadly, the standards could be integrated into a voluntary “biodiversity code of practice” for key industries to facilitate development of accreditation programs, markets or green bonds (see chapter 7, Investing together to protect our environment). On public land, the standards could help clarify existing statutory obligations and provide practical guidance to management activities. Land managers would be expected to meet the standards, but would show leadership and make further improvements to biodiversity condition.

PRIORITY 15 Significantly increase the extent of private land under voluntary permanent protection and managed under conservation stewardship arrangements and improve the management of protected land now and in the future, to strategically complement the protected area system.

Choosing the right tool for the right job In order to effectively address biodiversity decline and meet our biodiversity goals, we need the right combinations of tools in the right circumstances. For example, to work towards our policy goal of net gain (see adjacent panel) the management of Victoria’s native vegetation must involve investment in the protection and restoration of native vegetation, the management of weeds and pests, and the regulation of permitted clearing. While Victoria’s loss of native vegetation is estimated at about 4,000 habitat hectares per annum, it is important to note that different sources of vegetation loss have different levels of impact, as shown in Figure. 3 in Chapter 2. For example, loss due to permitted clearing is a relatively small part of the total annual loss of native vegetation (and is required by law to be offset by improvements elsewhere), whereas losses due to current natural resource disturbance regimes, such as weeds or excessive grazing, are likely to be much greater, and losses due to routine land use (which are outside the regulatory system and are not therefore offset) are much greater again. This demonstrates that the drivers of decline are those outside of the current regulatory offset system, and that it is essential to use the right combination of tools (e.g. not only regulation) that will address all the impacts that result in the loss of native vegetation.

If we broaden our consideration of biodiversity decline to waterways and marine environments, we need to consider the legacy of historical impacts that may make some species populations unviable, or the impacts of feral predators on our native animals. Water availability, water quality (which can be harmed by catchment pollution and rubbish), and unsustainable exploitation of particular species or habitat components, are other key impacts affecting marine and freshwater environments. These drivers of decline require different responses. Figure 8 summarises the different types of impacts and the combination of tools we need to manage some of the key drivers of biodiversity decline effectively.

Native Vegetation The objective for the regulation of permitted native vegetation clearing is no net loss in the contribution that native vegetation makes to Victoria’s biodiversity, through the application of the three step approach; avoid, minimise and offset. A review of the native vegetation regulations is currently underway to ensure the regulations sensibly protect sensitive vegetation. At a broader level, the Victorian Government remains committed to achieving an overall ‘net gain’, expressed as an improvement in the overall extent and condition of native habitats across terrestrial and marine environments. Not all habitats or vegetation types will need to be improved or increased in order to achieve this goal, but overall gains will need to outweigh losses. The most important places to achieve gains and to avoid losses, are locations with higher relative contribution to biodiversity benefit (as discussed elsewhere in this chapter).

Figure 8: Examples of drivers of decline: impacts and available treatments

IMPACTS OF PERMITTED ACTIVITIES

Ensure harvest is within ecological sustainable levels; and/or require regulatory offsets.

CURRENT REGULATORY INTERVENTION

IMPACTS OF USE OR ‘HARVEST’ THAT IS NOT OFFSET

IMPACTS OF CONTROLLED MANAGEMENT REGIMES

IMPACTS OF INTRODUCED THREATS

LEGACIES DUE TO HISTORICAL IMPACTS

Expand targeted control programs of feral predators (e.g. feral cats).

Counter-balance with investment to re-establish habitat & replenish or move populations.

Regulate to reduce scope of impacts; Enforce legal requirements; Establish voluntary stewardship standards; and/or counter-balance with investment.

REGULATORY AND/OR INVESTMENT OPTIONS THAT COULD BE CONSIDERED

CONSULTATION QUESTIONS 19, 20, 21 & 22 How do you think we should address the impacts of feral cat predation on wildlife in areas of high biodiversity value? What does environmental land stewardship mean to you and how might this help you manage the natural environment? Do you think there could be some negative consequences of voluntary environmental land stewardship standards? What do you think are the appropriate options to use to address the various impacts and drivers of decline? What type of regional land-use planning approach would you prefer to reconcile the trade-offs required at landscape scale as part of our adaptation to climate change?

Improving information management and decision making To conserve biodiversity, we need to be able to make informed decisions about how, why and where to act. Knowledge and information are essential to good decision making for Victorian biodiversity. We need to know what requires management, what are the best management techniques and what are the areas where we can achieve the best outcomes at least cost. We need to consider factors such as the relative risks, benefits and cost effectiveness of different options, their likelihood of success and opportunities for engagement with community and other partners. Information on government’s priorities, regulations, standards and procedures will be made transparent, clear and easily available through a new web-based biodiversity information portal that is accessible to the public. This will enable all sectors of the community to understand both obligations and opportunities for protecting threatened species and communities. The development of the new Strategic Management Prospects tool will be pivotal in identifying conservation priorities that have the greatest potential to deliver the best biodiversity returns on investment. It is also essential that we use the same information base to determine regulatory effort and investment priorities. This will help us to achieve consistency in our choices about where to act and where we most want to regulate potentially harmful activities. It will also allow us to use standard reporting, and to help us understand whether we have the right mix of tools. A wide range of knowledge and information is available from government agencies, NGOs, researchers, community groups, traditional owners and “citizen science” projects. The challenge is to ensure such information is current, accurate and available to all Victorians. The Government and key partners must continue to identify critical knowledge gaps, coordinate core datasets, and ensure that information is integrated across land, marine and freshwater environments, private and public land, habitats and species. Providing the community with accessible and equitable access to information and sharing information between research and delivery partners will enable more robust and transparent decision making. For example, interactive information systems can provide opportunities for the community to contribute local biodiversity information to the shared knowledge base. An example is the SWIFFT website, a knowledge-sharing network for people with an interest in threatened species and biodiversity conservation.

Due to the complexity of our biodiversity and its management requirements, we need to make decisions that will give us the “best bang for our buck” – that is, we need to invest in projects and places that provide maximum benefits for a wide range of biodiversity assets (e.g. threatened species and ecological communities, species essential for ecosystem function) at least cost. To do this, decision support tools that are consistent, integrated and location-based have been developed to assist with better decision making. These tools will continue to allow us to set goals, targets and priorities. Their use is described in further detail later in this section, under Conservation planning and investment for biodiversity, and Regulatory and legislative framework. Since these tools depend on good information, we will need to invest in acquiring and verifying information that allows us to make ongoing improvement to the tools, and therefore better decisions. An important component of the Government’s information management role is publicly reporting how Victoria’s biodiversity is faring over medium and longer-term timescales, and the effectiveness of management actions. The Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability is embarking on a reform process to improve Victoria’s State of the Environment (SoE) reporting beginning with the release of the Framework for the Victorian 2018 State of the Environment Report: State and Benefit. It aims to establish Victoria as a leader in environmental reporting. It commences a reform journey that will continue past the 2018 SoE reporting cycle to deliver a shift to digital reporting, introduce a set of agreed statewide indicators to help make Victoria’s many environmental reports comparable, and will take into account the socio-economic values of our natural capital. It will report on climate change impact and adaptation indicators and will align with international frameworks - the United Nation’s (UN) System of Environmental-Economic Accounts (SEEA) and the new UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Reporting on management effectiveness enables us to measure our return on investment, and demonstrate accountability for government spending. It can identify projects that are working successfully, which may encourage further investment. Reporting also enables us to conduct adaptive management – that is, to refine and adjust actions according to changing situations and information. DELWP will design programs to enable reporting of management effectiveness and will collate and publicly report the results through progressive program evaluations.

SWIFFT SWIFFT (State Wide Integrated Flora and Fauna Teams) is a virtual nature conservation network supported by the Ballarat Environment Network, Federation University Australia and the Victorian Government. It brings together farmers, land and natural resource managers, universities, NGOs, community groups and individuals to share information and learn about threatened species, conservation and community projects. http://www.swifft.net.au

Leadbeater’s Possum interactive map A new Leadbeater’s Possum Interactive map provides public access to up-to-date spatial information on one of Victoria’s most endangered marsupials. The map includes the location of: • Leadbeater’s Possum colonies, including pre-existing records, new colonies identified through targeted surveys and colonies verified from community reports. • Areas where there is a greater than 65 per cent modelled probability of occupancy by Leadbeater’s Possums. • Areas where DELWP has undertaken targeted surveys to identify up to 200 new colonies (from February 2014). The Leadbeater’s Possum Interactive map can be accessed at: http://lbp.cerdi.edu.au/possum_map.php

CASE STUDY

Spatial decision support tools Spatial (location-based) analyses are essential for understanding and integrating natural resource information, and for producing powerful tools to disseminate these insights to a broad audience. DELWP is developing an approach through NaturePrint to facilitate a multi-species, multi-threat Victoria-wide view of protection and management options. NaturePrint provides the potential for shared, readily available information that can be incorporated early on into decision-making processes. The NaturePrint tools are evidence-based, transparent and repeatable. They can maintain these essential characteristics and yet incorporate new information as it becomes available. The tools help to guide strategic directions and give landscapescale information that can be applied to a range of purposes. One of the tools, Strategic Management Prospects, identifies areas and actions with the highest potential return on investment for biodiversity conservation. Strategic Management Prospects will be a key element in our modernised conservation planning and investment processes.

Another tool, Strategic Biodiversity Value, identifies the relative priority of areas for protection based on the importance of the values found there. Other decision-making tools allow examination of individual values and threats. The information is structured to allow scenario testing as people and groups bring their individual questions and improve their ways of doing conservation. See pull-out brochure for further detail on the types of biodiversity conservation questions these tools can address.

PRIORITY 16, 17 & 18 Ensure that all activities that impact on biodiversity are consistently and transparently reported at statewide level. For those activities that are outside the regulatory system, counterbalance these impacts through investment, management or other means. Significantly increase our collection of targeted data for evidence based and adaptive decision making and information products that underpin reporting. Deliver the most cost-effective biodiversity outcomes by developing world best practice decision support tools to identify areas and activities that will inform state and regional planning and local community decision making.

Delivering an effective legislative and regulatory framework The regulatory framework for biodiversity in Victoria is complex. It comprises laws and regulations designed to deal specifically with the protection of biodiversity, as well as laws that deal primarily with other matters but may include provisions relating to biodiversity. Regulatory obligations and processes are sometimes not clear; nor are they always streamlined and predictable for businesses and the wider community. Improvements are needed to help ensure that protection for areas and assets of highest value for biodiversity is well integrated across the framework, and that biodiversity is given early consideration in decision making. Our land use planning system provides a good opportunity to do this and it will be important to strengthen links between relevant legislation to assist the achievement of this outcome (e.g. the Planning and Environment Act 1987 and Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988). Our experience demonstrates that strategic approaches to infrastructure planning and environmental approvals deliver improved results for the environment and the economy. Early identification of spatial options for investment and development, combined with clear and quantifiable regulatory standards, enables proponents to consider and select investment options that minimise regulatory compliance costs. This applies to biodiversity approvals (see Melbourne Strategic Assessment case study) but also applies to other environmental approvals including those undertaken by the Environment Protection Authority. Furthermore, by grouping together projects or programs, offsets can be delivered in a timely way and at scale that reduces administration and delay costs. The establishment of Infrastructure Victoria represents a significant opportunity to establish a coordinated whole-of-government approach to infrastructure planning and strategic environmental approvals. Inclusion of biodiversity data from a range of sources (e.g. State of the Bays and State of the Environment Reports), will ensure the needs of biodiversity underpin regional planning outcomes. In light of the above issues, the Victorian Government is committed to progressively reviewing the regulatory framework for biodiversity to ensure that it achieves the objectives of Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036 and is consistent with best practice regulatory principles. This process will begin with reviews of the FFG Act and Native Vegetation Clearing Regulations. The Government is also committed to providing opportunities to consider the needs of coastal and marine biodiversity through the creation of a Marine and Coastal Act.

The aim of the progressive review will be to strengthen the framework to: • Integrate legislation and regulations for biodiversity to ensure that obligations and processes are clear, streamlined and predictable, and that unnecessary regulation is reduced; • Provide a strategic and risk-based approach to enable regulatory effort to be focused where it will achieve the greatest benefits for biodiversity and meet overarching objectives; • Enable biodiversity to be considered early in decision-making processes so that adverse impacts are avoided where possible and cumulative effects are taken into account; • Ensure regulatory obligations are applied consistently across land tenures and regulated parties, including public authorities, industry sectors and land owners; • Ensure investment and regulatory activities, and decisions across government, are complementary and consistent with the objectives of this plan; • Enable periodic evaluation of regulatory approaches and impact-mitigation measures (e.g. authorisations, offsets) to ensure that they are achieving their objective; • Improve accountability, transparency and public participation mechanisms to ensure that governments are accountable for their decisions, and that the public has equitable opportunities to get involved in important decisions for biodiversity; and • Provide a risk-based approach to compliance and enforcement, along with measures that create an effective deterrent against ‘non-compliance. In addition, encourage regulated parties to voluntarily improve monitoring, reporting and evaluation processes – including periodic regulatory reviews – to better enable governments and the community to determine progress against objectives and to encourage responses that are well informed and adaptive. The review will provide direction on how to improve protection to the areas of highest value for biodiversity, identified through the statewide standard information base (see the previous section, Information and decision making), and how to provide greater certainty about the level of protection provided.

It is important to ensure that industry and business benefit from greater investment certainty and reduced delay costs, and that industry beneficiaries continue to receive low cost ecosystem services.

CASE STUDY

This could be achieved by establishing clearer thresholds in planning and approval regimes, to provide a consistent and riskbased process. It will be important that the areas of highest value for biodiversity are a focus of government support, particularly where these areas are on private land, while being respectful of landowners’ rights and aspirations for their land. Opportunities will be identified to incorporate the standard statewide information base (see the previous section) into assessment and decision-making processes across the regulatory framework. In implementing the statewide information base, consideration will be given to how information on biodiversity values specific to a site can be used as part of decision-making processes. As part of the review, activities that have a negative impact on biodiversity, but are not subject to regulatory controls, (see section under The right tool for the right job in this chapter) will be reviewed to determine whether the regulatory system has appropriate coverage.

PRIORITY 19 Deliver an effective, best-practice regulatory and legislative framework to protect our habitats for future generations and support the achievement of Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036.

CONSULTATION QUESTION 23 What do you think of the proposed approaches overall to manage Victoria’s biodiversity? Which ones do you like and which do you have problems with? Are there any missing?

Melbourne Strategic Assessment The Melbourne Strategic Assessment (MSA) conducted under the Commonwealth Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) is an example of a strategic approach to regulation. The MSA assessed the impacts of urban development in Melbourne’s growth corridors on biodiversity, including matters of national environmental significance listed under the EPBC Act, and set out a range of conservation measures to mitigate these impacts. These conservation measures included the establishment of a 15,000 hectare grassland reserve and a 1,200 hectare grassy eucalypt woodland reserve outside the urban growth boundary to offset the impacts of urban development on native grasslands and woodlands. Thirty-six new conservation areas were also created within the growth corridors. Conservation measures will be delivered through a $1 billion habitat compensation scheme. The Victorian Government has estimated the MSA will result in $500 million worth of savings in regulatory costs for industry over the life of the program.

Modernising conservation planning and investment for biodiversity Victoria’s conservation planning and investment approach is dated, inconsistent, complex and fragmented. To achieve the biodiversity goals described in Chapter 3, we need to update our approach and ensure that there is integration across public and private land, as well as different environments (terrestrial, marine and freshwater). We also need to be more agile in responding to new issues, and leverage new funding into biodiversity. We need a clear accountability framework that includes targets, and enables adaptive management and timely decision-making. The key to the new approach is building and maintaining partnerships with those involved in implementing action to conserve biodiversity. This section outlines the new approach to conservation planning and investment with a deliberate focus on biodiversity. However, it is imperative that in the implementation of this approach there is integration across all on-ground action (e.g. fuel management).

Key characteristics of the new approach to conservation planning and investment: • A consistent, spatial approach to biodiversity planning. This needs to integrate species, habitat and processes and support effectiveness across the entire sector. • Remain flexible and adaptive to changes in Victoria’s environmental condition and climate. • Integrated consideration of all threatened species to maximise the effectiveness and efficiency of decisions, and to streamline communication of outcomes. • Clearly defined roles and responsibilities that are understood by all partners. • Collaborative governance arrangements at the regional and state level to ensure alignment between biodiversity programs. • A clear record of accountabilities, decisions and actions. • Engages communities, partners and stakeholders in the planning process.

Figure 9: shows the proposed new approach to conservation planning and investment.

ACCOUNTABILITY

LEADERSHIP

ADAPTIVE MANAGEMENT AND DECISION MAKING

USING A CONSISTENT, INTEGRATED SPATIAL APPROACH TO SET BIODIVERSITY PRIORITIES TO ENSURE THAT VICTORIA’S NATURAL ENVIRONMENT IS HEALTHY

Review progress, respond to new information and modify approach to achieve targets (as required)

This information will be used to guide where we invest and where we regulate throughout the landscape.

STATEWIDE TARGETS

VALUE-FOR-MONEY AND PERFORMANCE

All environmental agencies (including regulators and land managers) will need to report on losses and areas of biodiversity gains. This information will be able to roll up to an overall statewide report on progress towards statewide targets.

REGIONAL BIODIVERSITY IMPLEMENTATION Regional biodiversity action will be flexible and delivered by multiple agencies. Action will come from public land managers, local community volunteering, private landowner conservation, government regulation and investment, plus many others.

EVA A N D R L UA EP TI O OR T R

GOAL 2 VICTORIA’S NATURAL ENVIRONMENT IS HEALTHY

NI IO MU LE NAL M AND CO VE L ION PL CO NSERVAT SS ANN ING PROCE

OUTCOMES REPORTING

N NG I

C NN O I

T I ON VA WOR K E R AM E NS G FR N

Establish a project evaluation, monitoring and audit group.

PL A

The biodiversity priorities will be used to set clear and measurable 10 and 50 year statewide targets that will focus efforts on areas that provide the highest potential return on investment for biodiversity conservation e.g. improve or stabilise a defined amount of high priority areas or populations within 50 years.

REGIONAL TARGETS Regional targets will reflect statewide targets and focus regional efforts towards areas that provide the highest potential return on investment for biodiversity conservation. The biodiversity priorities and regional targets will be the basis of the regional conservation planning and investment process.

REGIONAL BIODIVERSITY INVESTMENT PROSPECTUS The regional investment prospectus will identify both committed activities and unfunded priorities that are “open for business” for potential investors. It will be regularly updated with information on new investment, partnership opportunities and annual activity reporting.

FLEXIBLE DELIVERY

REGIONAL BIODIVERSITY AND COMMUNITY LEVEL CONSERVATION PLANNING PROCESS A whole-of-landscape/seascape spatially-based process to ensure alignment of biodiversity activities that focuses on priorities that provide the best return on investment and engages with regional and local communities to ensure delivery preferences, capabilities, partnerships and funding opportunities are maximised. The intention is not to duplicate existing processes (where possible).

Input into other regional plans e.g. Regional Catchment Strategies

The following sections provide additional detail on key components of the proposed planning and investment approach.

Conservation planning framework The state level planning framework will set a consistent, integrated spatial approach for biodiversity planning, and establish statewide and regional targets. The approach will be established through the shared information base and spatial decision-support tools. DELWP’s Strategic Management Prospects tool will be used to kick-start the identification of areas that provide the highest potential return on investment for biodiversity conservation. In the future this information should not only help to guide where we invest, but improve alignment between investment and regulation throughout the landscapes.

Regional and community level conservation planning process The regional and community level conservation planning process consists of three elements: 1. Regional biodiversity conservation planning process 2. Regional biodiversity investment prospectus 3. Regional biodiversity implementation. The regional planning process would involve a collaborative governance model (for example through regional round tables) and would be co-ordinated by a regional government agency (such as the Catchment Management Authority or DELWP). The regional government agency would be accountable in three key areas: 1. As a system steward, it would be provided with the tools to create the right incentives so that the right parties come to the table; 2. Leading community engagement in developing a prospectus to deliver regional targets; and 3. Delivering the government’s financial contribution to the regional targets via a sustainable funding model for Victoria’s biodiversity. The collaborative governance approach will enable improved alignment, co-ordination and integration of actions, decisions and projects across the environmental sector.

All key biodiversity agencies, public land managers and stakeholders – including Trust for Nature, DELWP, Traditional Owner Land Management Boards, CMAs, Parks Victoria, Victorian Coastal Council, Regional Coastal Boards, Landcare and other community groups and local government – would be invited to participate throughout the process. It is essential to recognise the importance of existing plans and commitments. For example, Parks Victoria develops plans for the parks estate through the internationally recognised Conservation Action Planning Process. These plans will nest within the broader regional and community level conservation planning process. The regional round table process will develop a map-based view of current and future options for conserving biodiversity. This will include: a) Alignment between management agencies regarding existing commitments (where appropriate) and identifying potential gaps in existing activity. b) Engagement with the local community to identify where future on-ground activity is planned and to maximise alignment opportunities between the community, government agencies and other stakeholders. As we will be relying on leveraging local community effort, regional targets that promote choices for local action will maximise our chances of success. However the challenge with a collaborative governance model is to ensure that the incentives for the various participants are aligned, that the accountabilities are clear and that a system steward oversees the process and brings the parties together for a common purpose. A key aspect of the regional biodiversity conservation planning process is the inclusion of regional regulators, such as local government. To ensure that we get the best outcomes for biodiversity, the process needs to be aware of the regional regulatory environment and in particular strategic land use planning. This will ensure that the messaging and enforcement of regional investment and regulatory processes are well aligned. As part of the regional conservation planning process, Regional Biodiversity Investment Prospectuses will focus on leveraging new funding. Each prospectus will be used by the regional co-ordinating government agency to communicate investment and partnership opportunities to new investors and community groups. They will also include information on where we have committed to an activity and report on where recent activity has been undertaken. Where possible, the process described above will not duplicate already existing regional processes.

Collaborative governance and clear accountability Collaborative governance recognises the interdependence between institutions and agencies. This is of particular importance in the biodiversity sector where multiple organisations and agencies (government and non-government) are operating to achieve biodiversity outcomes across public and private land, waterways, coasts and marine habitats. Each agency or organisation will come with their own perspective and accountabilities, which will be understood by the group through interaction and negotiation. In collaborative governance it is crucial to establish clear accountability. Each agency will also be accountable for reporting all activity (including actions that have led to biodiversity loss) to the coordinating agency. The coordinating agency will be responsible for collating all information and reporting on the regional targets through an annual regional report.

Our Catchments Our Communities – integrated catchment management in Victoria 2016 - 2019 Our Catchments, Our Communities is a new Victorian Government strategy that is currently under development. It outlines improvements to the current Integrated Catchment Management framework (land, water and biodiversity management) that will support and enhance our environment, community and economy. The strategy outlines the need for and the role of Regional Catchment Strategies (RCS), which will integrate management across land, water and biodiversity There is an opportunity to explore closer alignment between the community-level planning process proposed in Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036 and the RCS process, particularly when RCS’s are reviewed by CMAs.

Examples of biodiversity priorities • Locations where actions can provide benefits for multiple species. • Important locations for individual species and communities. • Areas where threat management is likely to provide the best cost-effective outcomes e.g. targeted fox control in areas where species most vulnerable to predators occur. • Locations that are of increasing importance in a changing environment (e.g. refuges).

CONSULTATION QUESTIONS 24 & 25 Where are the best opportunities to integrate biodiversity with other on-ground activities? What is the best way to build participatory community processes to generate ownership of biodiversity outcomes in local areas? What would you like to see in a Regional Biodiversity Investment Prospectus?

Establishing an accountability framework Statewide and regional targets will be critical to establishing accountability in the new conservation planning and investment framework. There are two key elements to accountability at the regional level: • Each regional coordinating agency should be responsible for reporting biodiversity achievements for that region, informed by regional round tables attended by key stakeholders. DELWP will compile an annual statewide public report, based on the regional reports. • Government will need a mechanism to ensure that funds distributed from a sustainable funding model for Victoria’s biodiversity are allocated on a least-cost basis to deliver regional targets, and include audits of delivery performance. To avoid a cycle of “only finding out when it’s too late”, it will be vital to respond outside of these review time frames to immediate risks to biodiversity such as from bushfires, invasive species, floods and climate change. The Regional Biodiversity Investment Prospectus should consider future scenarios, and how the investment profile would change (including one-off requests for emergency intervention) in response to significant unforeseen shocks. During implementation of this Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036, the monitoring and audit process should reveal that biodiversity is doing better or worse than anticipated in a particular region. This would warrant adjustment to the allocation of resources or approaches, or additional data being collected in response to a new issue or area of risk or uncertainty consistent with the approved plan.

Performance measures or thresholds could be established. If they are not met, DELWP would determine what action will be taken in response and make this decision public. This may occur in response to new information, a natural disaster or failure of an agency to deliver. Such thresholds could also be formal triggers for third parties to become involved – for example, to require action to be taken. An expert advisory group should be included in this process to advise on the available course of action. This could include, for example, consideration of the preferred role of the Scientific Advisory Committee established under the FFG Act.

PRIORITY 20 Reform Victoriaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s conservation planning and investment framework to better focus on biodiversity conservation priorities, promote regional partnerships, and report consistently.

CONSULTATION QUESTION 26 What do you think is the best way to manage and respond to shocks or unforeseen events through the conservation planning process?

BIODIVERSITY LEADERSHIP ACROSS GOVERNMENT

A key ingredient of success for this plan is government leadership, demonstrated through consistent decision-making, best-practice biodiversity protection and regular evaluation of the plan to refine and improve its implementation. This section explains how this will be achieved.

RELEVANT GOALS

PRIORITY 21

To encourage more Victorians to value nature.

Apply the principles of Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036, and embed early consideration of biodiversity and climate change impacts, in planning and decisionmaking processes across government.

To ensure that Victoria’s natural environment is healthy. Establishing Victoria as a leader in biodiversity The successful implementation of Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036 will require a whole-ofgovernment approach to achieving our goals. The Victorian Government, as the principal steward of our environmental, social and economic sustainability, will align and co-ordinate decision making and actions across the government sector. Our overriding ambition is no less than to make Victoria a national leader in biodiversity protection. To achieve our aims, including the economic and social goals of the plan, it is essential that early consideration of biodiversity and climate change becomes an integral and routine part of decision-making across government. Key government agencies outside the traditional environment portfolio will have vital roles in delivering and reporting on their biodiversity commitments. To achieve this, the principles of this plan must be applied to all projects across government that may affect the environment or our sustainability.

Evaluating the plan Evaluation involves an ongoing cycle of learning and questioning what has been done. It tests the appropriateness, effectiveness and efficiency of key directions, and thereby contributes to continual improvement. It is a critical part of ensuring appropriate expenditure of public funds, and accountability for what is delivered. The Victorian Government has a key role in evaluating the success of Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036. The plan will be reviewed every five years to help us answer questions such as: • Have we achieved what we set out to do? • Could we be doing things better? Is there a more efficient way of doing things? • Should we continue to do this or do something else? The answers to these questions will enable us to refine and improve our approach, to ensure that the most efficient and effective methods are being applied to meet our social, economic and environmental goals. The Government will publicly report the findings of this review. The evaluation of the plan will primarily be driven by the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning. However, as this is a whole-of-government plan, key government agencies outside the traditional environment portfolio will have roles reporting on commitments relevant to their portfolios. The Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability is well placed to report on progress of the plan towards its goals and targets, in conjunction with five yearly State of the Environment (SoE) reporting. DELWP will collaborate with the Commissioner on this task and will evaluate effectiveness of approaches and review targets in a similar timeframe.

A flexible approach will enable Victoria to respond to new ideas and directions flagged through the formal review process, but will also ensure we can respond to new information or risks. This is particularly important in the face of climate change, and as we extend our information base, such as through the use of citizen science. If new risks or information arise that require new or changed directions or actions, these will be adopted prior to the five-yearly review.

PRIORITY 22 Embed Protecting Victoria’s Environment – Biodiversity 2036 into legislation, regularly review the effectiveness of the plan, and report on progress towards targets and goals in collaboration with the Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability every five years.

PHOTO CREDITS

PAGE NO.

DESCRIPTION

PHOTOGRAPHER / CREDIT

Cover

Couple at Reed Lookout

Rob Blackburn / Tourism Victoria

Large tree fern from Victoria’s Central Highlands

Stephen Colquitt

2-3

Eucalyptus blossoms – Royal Botanic Gardens, Cranbourne

Salahuddin Ahmad

New Holland Honeyeater (Phylidonyris novaehollandiae) – Royal Botanic Gardens, Cranbourne

Salahuddin Ahmad

6 banner

Family at Frankston Pier, Port Phillip Bay

Parks Victoria

6 inset

Pacific Black Duck (Anas superciliosa) at Western Treatment Plant

David Paul / Museum Victoria

People walking along Elliott Ridge

Mark Watson / Tourism Victoria

9 banner

Grampians National Park Panorama

Parks Victoria

9 inset

Errinundra National Park

Stephen Colquitt

Mountain biking at You Yangs Regional Park

Parks Victoria

Port Campbell beach

Kah-May Foong

Koala (Phascolarctos cinereus)

Marcia Riederer

Native grasslands – Wickliffe-Willaura Road, Victorian Volcanic Plains

Vanessa Craigie

Western Swamp Crayfish (Gramastacus insolitus)

David Paul / Museum Victoria

Emu (Dromaius novaehollandiae)

Kah-May Foong

Sun setting at the grassfire in Donybrook area

Keith Pakenham – CFA Communities & Communication

Kneed Swainson-pea (Swainsona reticulata)

Marcia Riederer

20 left

People at Dandenong Ranges National Park

Parks Victoria

20 right

Blue Grass-lily (Caesia calliantha)

Vanessa Craigie

21 banner

People at the Grampians National Park

Parks Victoria

21 inset

Maribyrnong Valley Parklands

Parks Victoria

Fishing at Wilsons Promontory National Park

Parks Victoria

People at Albert Park Lake

Parks Victoria

PAGE NO.

DESCRIPTION

PHOTOGRAPHER / CREDIT

Snorkelling in Port Phillip Heads Marine National Park

Parks Victoria

29 banner

Newport Lakes

David Paul / Museum Victoria

29 inset

Ground Shield Bug (Choerocoris paganus)

David Edwards

Thick-tailed Gecko (Underwoodisaurus milii)

Marcia Riederer

Steavenson Falls – Marysville

Tourism Victoria

Couple kayaking the Gippsland lakes

Gary Moore / Tourism Victoria

University Square, Carlton

Metropolitan Planning Authority

Camping in the Grampians National Park

Parks Victoria

Junior Ranger at Yarra Bend Park

Parks Victoria

Student in an urban park

Parks Victoria

Golden Wattle (Acacia pycnantha) – Royal Botanic Gardens, Cranbourne

Salahuddin Ahmad

Friends of Fabbro Fields

Shae Allen

Botanical Gardens, Melbourne

DELWP

Melbourne

Stephen Colquitt

Kinglake National Park

Parks Victoria

Releasing fish

DEWLP

Dolphins in Port Phillip Bay

Tourism Victoria

Golden-headed Cisticola (Cisticola exilis) – Western Treatment Plant

David Paul / Museum Victoria

49 left

Mitchell River

Stephen Colquitt

49 right

Landcare volunteers

Landcare Australia

Hay roll – Werribee River

Salahuddin Ahmad

Green roof

Broderick Street

52 banner

Walking in Toolern Creek Park

Parks Victoria

52 inset

Almond farm

Marcia Riederer

Maribyrnong Valley Parklands

Parks Victoria

People on the Great Ocean Walk

Parks Victoria

Smoky mouse (Pseudomys fumeus)

Ryan Duffy / Parks Victoria

56 left

Summerland Peninsula in the 1980s

Phillip Island Nature Parks

56 right

Summerland Peninsula in 2015

Phillip Island Nature Parks

Penguin Parade at Phillip Island

Phillip Island Nature Parks

Coastal view of Aireys Inlet

Salahuddin Ahmad

Leadbeater’s Possum (Gymnobelideus leadbeateri)

Zoos Victoria

PAGE NO.

DESCRIPTION

PHOTOGRAPHER / CREDIT

60 banner

Hiking enthusiast at Wilsons Promontory

Bjorn Boysen

60 inset

Weedy Sea Dragon (Phyllopteryx taeniolatus) – Flinders, Mornington Peninsula

Stephen Colquitt

Chinaman's Hut in Port Phillip Bay

Anna Cuttriss

Sunrise over the Grampians during bushfire

Stephen Colquitt

Dockers Plains

Trust for Nature

Group of people at Dockers Plains

Border Mail newspaper

Native Grassland – Glenelg Highway, Victorian Volcanic Plains

Vanessa Craigie

Ada Tree near Powelltown

Stephen Colquitt

Red Velvet Mite (Trombidiidae spp.)

David Paul / Museum Victoria

70 banner

Eastern Grey Kangaroos (Macropus giganteus) in the Mallee

DELWP

70 inset

Bushfire

Keith Pakenham – CFA Strategic Communications

72 banner

Sheep grazing – Wartook, Victoria

Salahuddin Ahmad

72 inset

Eastern Grey Kangaroo (Macropus giganteus)

David Paul / Museum Victoria

Mosses and lichens – Lake Gorrie

Melissa Doherty

Spear-grass and Grey Box – Avoca Plains

Vanessa Craigie

77 banner

Coburg Lake

Stephanie Zilles

77 inset

Native Grassland

DELWP

People at Maribyrnong Valley Parklands

Parks Victoria

Leadbeater's Possum (Gymnobelideus leadbeateri)

Jean-Paul Ferrero

Bushland Knob Reserve looking NW, Stratford

Yvette Baker

81 banner

Rainbow Lorikeet (Trichoglossus haematodus)

David Paul / Museum Victoria

81 inset

Spot-tailed Quoll (Dasyurus maculatus)

Andrew Murray

Ornate cowfish (Aracana ornata) – Westernport Bay

Stephen Colquitt

Golden Sun Moth (Synemon plana)

Elaine Bayes

Revegetation site

Misheye - Christian Pearson

Couple watching Gelantipy at sunset – Gippsland

Gary Moore / Tourism Victoria

Waratah anemone (Actinia tenebrosa), Mornington Peninsula

Marcia Riederer

88 banner

Female Golden Stag Beetle (Lamprima aurata)

David Paul / Museum Victoria

88 inset

Red Wattlebird (Anthochaera carunculata)

David Paul / Museum Victoria

Basalt Sun-orchid (Thelymitra gregaria)

Vanessa Craigie

Revegetation site

DEPI

Coburg Lake fish ladder

Stephanie Zilles

ÂŠ The State of Victoria Department of Environment, Land, Water & Planning 2016 This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence. You are free to re-use the work under that licence, on the condition that you credit the State of Victoria as author. The licence does not apply to any images, photographs or branding, including the Victorian Coat of Arms, the Victorian Government logo and the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP) logo. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ ISBN 978-1-74146-956-1 (pdf) Disclaimer This publication may be of assistance to you but the State of Victoria and its employees do not guarantee that the publication is without flaw of any kind or is wholly appropriate for your particular purposes and therefore disclaims all liability for any error, loss or other consequence which may arise from you relying on any information in this publication. Accessibility If you would like to receive this publication in an alternative format, please telephone the DELWP Customer Service Centre on 136186, email customer.service@delwp.vic.gov.au or via the National Relay Service on 133 677 www.relayservice.com.au. This document is also available on the internet at www.delwp.vic.gov.au