In 2010, the
International Year of Biodiversity, we call on the Australian
Government to: Substantially increase investment
in biodiversity and ecosystem protection, restoration
and management to at least $9 billion over the three
years to 2012 and establish an independent widely consultative
process into future funding and stewardship of Australia’s
terrestrial, aquatic and marine biodiversity.
Published estimates of the expenditure
needed to protect, restore and manage Australia’s biodiversity
are outdated and partial (see below). They pre-date
widespread recognition of the importance of keeping natural
terrestrial ecosystems intact so their stored carbon stays
out of the atmosphere. They also precede the drought
laying waste to the Murray Darling Basin and its biodiversity,
exacerbating over-allocation of water and the accumulated
impacts of land-clearing.
Investment boost
Current Australian government expenditure
on biodiversity is around $1 billion primarily through
the Department of Environment, Water, Heritage and the
Arts. In the context of climate change, investment
in biodiversity is as critical as in energy infrastructure. It
is core government business. We are calling for a
major national boost in biodiversity investment to $9 billion
over the coming three years. This will fund on-ground
work, stewardship payments, water buy-back, protected area
extension and management, research, education and training.
Increased investment will not only benefit
biodiversity; it will help rejuvenate communities,
economies and employment, mainly outside capital cities,
and especially in remote Australia. Analysis of jobs
in biodiversity and landscape is poor but, extrapolating
from a 2001 study, current employment in the sector may
be around 35,000 [http://www.aph.gov.au/Senate/committee/climate_ctte/submissions/sub356.pdf]
, with a high proportion in rural, regional and remote
Australia.
A wide-ranging national inquiry should
establish the real level of need for biodiversity investment
and the environmental, social and strategic benefits of
meeting it.
Estimated $65 billion over ten years
for work including improving river health, conserving native
vegetation and flora and fauna, improved planning, increased
research, increased landholder involvement and improved
soil health.
Identifies a critical investment deficit
in Indigenous Protected Areas which over the decade from
1996 to 2007 received less than $1 per hectare compared
with nearly $10 per hectare Australian government expenditure
on state/territory reserves.
None of this relates to measures to reduce
emissions from biodiversity and landscape management. Native
forest clearing and logging accounts for about 18% of Australia’s
annual emissions. Pro rata, expenditure on biodiversity
to reduce emissions should be at least an additional $1
billion per annum; increased CO2 removals as native
vegetation regrows to maturity warrant additional expenditure,
as do the benefits of non-forest vegetation and soil management.
2009 Applications for Caring for Our
Country grants exceeded $3.4 billion; available funding
was $450 million.
2009 TEEB (The
Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity) estimates
the annual cost of forest loss at between $2 trillion
and $5 trillion. The TEEB study is evaluating the
costs of the loss of biodiversity and the associated
decline in ecosystem services worldwide, and comparing
them with the costs of effective conservation and sustainable
use. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7662565.stm,
2009 The main components of Australian
Government spending on biodiversity are through the Department
of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts. Outcome
1 (conservation and protection of Australia’s terrestrial
and marine biodiversity and ecosystems) and Outcome 4 (includes
improved health of rivers, waterways and freshwater ecosystems)
detail the main expenditure items (approximately $1b annually). Additional
expenditure is through grants to states and territories,
and scattered across other agencies including the Departments
of Innovation, Customs and Defence
