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Issue: Species, habitats and ecological communities - Government action on species and ecological communities

This is an issue under the Biodiversity theme of the Data Reporting System.

Why we need to know about this issue

The complexity and uncertainty of protecting biodiversity in Australia requires government level leadership through policy design and delivery, financial assistance and by providing access to expert scientific and technical advice. Various levels of governments are involved in the identification and listing of threatened species and ecological communities, development of recovery plans and threat abatement plans and in some cases actively manage the species and ecological communities.

Government support also enables the community to take action on environmental issues.

It is critical that government action be targeted to maximise effectiveness in achieving environmental outcomes, and evaluated in terms of those outcomes.

Indicators

• BD-02 Conservation status of nationally significant species and ecological communities, compared with previous years 
  The Australian government Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 provides for identification and listing of threatened species and threatened ecological communities. By tracking the overall status of species and ecological communities over time this provides an indication of how successful the range of management and conservation measures in place to conserve biodiversity have been.
• BD-03 Summary of measures being implemented to respond to threats to biodiversity from invasive species 
  Although there are little data to show the extent to which species invasiveness is impacting on the Australian environment, invasive species are perceived to be a significant threat to some native species. Monitoring government action to address the perceived threat is important if the effectiveness of the action in reducing the threat is to be assessed.
• BD-04 Listed threatened species or ecological communities for which recovery action is showing stable or increasing populations 
  Recovery plans set out the research and management actions necessary to stop the decline of, and support the recovery of, threatened species or threatened ecological communities. The aim of a recovery plan is to maximise the long term survival in the wild. Recovery plans state what must be done to protect and restore important populations of threatened species and habitat, as well as how to manage and reduce threatening processes. They achieve this aim by providing a planned and logical framework for key interest groups and responsible government agencies to coordinate their work to improve the plight of threatened species and/or ecological communities.
  Measuring changes in the condition of species subject to recovery plans will give some indication of the effectiveness of government action in relation to biodiversity conservation.
• BD-05 Alignment of State/Territory and Australian Government listing processes 
  The indicator will show government action aimed to achieve this alignment of processes.
• BD-24 Government investments to protect biodiversity for public good purposes 
  An inventory of government funded incentives schemes provides contextual data for later evaluation of the effectiveness of government interventions.
• CO-02 Number of marine species that are endangered or threatened and changes in population/ distribution of selected threatened species 
  Listing of species as threatened is itself a government action intended to protect biodiversity and is indicative of the societal response to the threat.
• CO-33 Number of species legislatively protected, number with management plans or where management actions have been taken 
  Changes in number of species under government protection is an indicator for government action on this issue.
• CO-34 Number and extent of Marine Protected Areas 
  Changes in area under protection is a surrogate indicator for government action on species and communities.
• IW-37 Examples of carp pressures and measures for removal and/or commercial catch 
  Varying treatment of carp by different jurisdictions, along with examples of pressures from carp, and either positive or negative changes in these pressures where control or harvesting measures are taken, may provide insights into the effectiveness of responses.