Logo of State of the Environment 2011; Photo by Andrew Griffiths, Lensaloft

State of the Environment 2011 (SoE 2011)

State of the Environment 2011 Committee. Australia state of the environment 2011.
Independent report to the Australian Government Minister for Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities.
Canberra: DSEWPaC, 2011.

8 Biodiversity

3.2 Availability of information

SoE reports from all jurisdictions report that the pressures on biodiversity identified above are ongoing and significant. The strength of different pressures differs from place to place and through time, as well as within and between jurisdictions. The evidence that these pressures are having effects comes mainly from research on particular species and groups of species in particular situations (e.g. effects of diseases on particular native plant or animal species or effects of habitat fragmentation on forest or woodland animals). Information on which to base assessments of trends in the strength or consequences of these pressures regionally or nationally is, however, very limited (Table 8.18).

Table 8.18 Availability of information for reporting on pressures on biodiversity nationally
Pressures Current report capacity rating
Trends in habitat fragmentation and decline in ecosystem function Poor nationally
Moderate at case-study level
The range and relative importance of threats to biodiversity over time Poor nationally
Moderate for listed species and communities
Trends in the impacts of climate change on biodiversity Poor nationally
Poor at case-study level
Trends in the impacts of land-use change on biodiversity Poor nationally
Good for clearing rates in Queensland
Moderate at case-study level
Trends in the impacts of invasive species and pathogens on biodiversity Poor nationally
Good at case-study level
Trends in the impacts of grazing pressure on biodiversity Poor nationally
Moderate at case-study level
Trends in the impacts of altered fire regimes on biodiversity Poor nationally
Good at case-study level

Source: Australian Government Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts15

Parry Lagoons Nature Reserve, the Kimberley, Western Australia. Photo by Steve Parish