State of the Environment

2006

Indicator: NCH-11 Funds provided to heritage and other agencies for Indigenous heritage places

Data

Funding for protected areas including World Heritage properties may be seen as a broad surrogate for funding for Indigenous heritage more broadly. NHT funding for World Heritage Management 1996-97 to 2003-04 was $94.7 million of which more than two thirds went to two properties - Wet Tropics and Tasmanian Wilderness. Funding for the four World Heritage properties managed by Australian Government agencies (Great Barrier Reef, Kakadu National Park, Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park and Heard and McDonald Islands) comprised about 89% of the total Commonwealth budget for World Heritage properties management.

Australian Government funding for National and Marine Parks
managed by the Australian Government and which are on the World Heritage List
1994-95 to 2003-04
(Includes funding from all Commonwealth sources (NHT, Bill 1, Bill 2))
1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-2000 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04
Great Barrier Reef 20855000 26501277 25323102 24117000
Heard and McDonald Islands 1 127000 55000 55000 230000
Kakadu National Park 2 9907260 8204614A 7080080 7229856 13638539B 10595882B 16598000 18947000 20383000 19192000
Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park 3 4855419 4064999A 2119241 1831210 3572810B 3986287B 15109000 17014000 14213000 15195000
All Properties 14762679 12269613 9199321 9061066 17211349 14582169 52689000 62517277 59974102 58734000

1 - The funding figures for Heard and McDonald Islands do not include the costs of expeditions to the area, which are planned to take place at approximately three-yearly intervals.
A - Includes additional capital works for Cultural Centres
B - includes additional capital works on visitor infrastructure because of Sydney Olympic Games
* places listed for both natural and cultural (Indigenous world heritage values)

The funding listed for the four World Heritage properties managed by Australian Government agencies (Great Barrier Reef, Kakadu National Park, Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park and Heard and McDonald Islands) comprises the total management budgets for each of the properties not just the component for World Heritage funding.

* Total figures for Kakadu and Uluru - Kata Tjut a prior to 2000-01 include the administrative costs of Parks Australia North's Darwin Office.
The annual figures for Kakadu from 1996-97 until 1999-00 are inclusive of funding to the Supervising Scientist Division.

Source: Department of the Environment and Heritage, 2005

Australian Government Funding for World Heritage Properties managed by State/Territory Governments
1994-95 to 2004-05
(Includes funding from all Commonwealth sources (NHT, Bill 1, Bill 2))
PROPERTY 1994-95 1995-96 1996-97 1997-98 1998-99 1999-2000 2000-01 2001-02 2002-03 2003-04 2004-05
Australian Fossil Mammal Sites 303189 185000 415000 712000 59300 812913 359000 413500 20000 174000 295600
Central Eastern Rainforest Reserves (Australia) 360000 175000 280000 1319000 1385000 732000 744000 370510 30000 174000 261000
Fraser Island 300700 317150 700000 950000 70000 662500 451000 700000 8000 42500 427000
Greater Blue Mountains 1041275 100000 43000 132194 131872
Lord Howe Island 234114 60000 360000 435925 484500 453400 268000 341000 95880 160997
Macquarie Island 1 30000
Shark Bay 210000 169000 491630 674480 534350 490250 389850 1200796 51500 208200
Tasmanian Wilderness* 5101000 5117000 5260000 7350000 7005000 5770000 5880000 6430000 4300000 3462000 3513500
Wet Tropics 6195000 4060000 4689000 5376000 3446000 3752500 3388325 3740000 2690000 2754500 2913500
Willandra Lakes* 420245 122375 2510000 2497329 848850 340000 261500 245000 19000 218560 271000
Purnululu 80800 228200
All properties 13124248 10205525 14705630 19314734 14367200 13013563 12812950 14140806 7110000 7185934 8410869

* places listed for both natural and cultural (Indigenous world heritage values)

1 - These funds have not been expended and are due to be returned to the Australian Government.

The funding listed for State-managed properties (eleven World Heritage areas) listed here comprises monies from the World Heritage section of the National component of the Natural Heritage Trust as well as that from the Australian Government appropriations.

Source: Department of the Environment and Heritage, 2005

What the data mean

The data is not complete, not all having been collected. It should be noted that level of funding provided does not give any indication of whether the funding is adequate or if it is being spent effectively and efficiently. It gives no indication of the level of funding provided to involve and provide adequate resources for Indigenous groups in the care of their heritage.

Most states / territories have separate agencies to identify and protect Indigenous heritage places, including extensive site inventories of all recorded Indigenous archaeological sites, with some provision to protect places of Indigenous spiritual significance. In some of these states / territories, historic heritage legislation has broadened to include Indigenous heritage places. Not all the data about these different sources of funding for Indigenous heritage places has been collected.

Funding allocated by land management agencies for Indigenous heritage is not included.

Issues for which this is an indicator and why

Governmental responses to conserve identified heritage places and items are a reflection of the relative importance society places in conserving these for the benefit of future generations. Governments respond to conserving heritage places and items are through legislation and funding to implement management regimes. This indicator provides a measure of the extent of response to protecting and maintaining heritage values in a range of Indigenous heritage.

Other indicators for this issue:

Key

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