Joined-up thinking

Abstract

Australia is embarking on an ambitious scheme described as a terrestrial version of the Great Barrier Reef, to establish a wildlife corridor along its 2,800-kilometre east coast to help protect the country's remarkable wildlife from potential climate change.The project aims to re-establish a network of habitats from the Australian Alps in the southern state of Victoria to the Atherton tablelands in northern Queensland.The concept is based on a proposal to link existing reserves and to protect and restore ecological links that will allow species to move freely and find new areas of sanctuary as any effects of climate change become apparent. There are no plans for compulsory acquisition and initiatives will be purely voluntary. Landowners who wish to participate would sign a voluntary conservation agreement that would travel with the land title so that the land is protected even if sold.The plans have been met with particular enthusiasm by Queensland's conservationists, as the state is home to Australia's riches and most extensive rainforest habitat. The Wildlife Protection Service of Queensland has advocated the use of continent-scale models that integrate conservation on protected areas with compatible land use across millions of hectares.Spanning such a distance, the planned protected area could provide an essential lifeline for many species including the rock wallaby, mountain pygmy possum and many species of alpine plants.The proposed corridor was announced by the environment minister for New South Wales, Bob Delus, with a pledge of A$7 million over the next three years — probably in the form of financial incentives to get private landowners involved.Linked: Under new plans, rainforest wildlife reserves in Queensland may eventually be linked directly to sites hundreds of kilometres away in Victoria. (Photograph: © Suzanne Long/Alamy.)View Large Image | View Hi-Res Image | Download PowerPoint SlidePaul Adam, a conservation biologist at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, commended the value of the scale of the project, but cautioned that there are ‘lots of unknowns’, such as how plants might migrate along it. “We are going to be looking at this for a long time,” he said.The first landowner to buy into the scheme is the Australian Bush Heritage Fund, a non-profit organisation that buys land for conservation with both government funding and private donations. It has acquired a 13 square kilometre property, south of Canberra, as a key part of the new corridor. This Scottsdale reserve lies in the Murrumbidgee valley and comprises eucalyptus woods and grassy plateaus and will help protect a range of endangered plants and animals including grasses, fish, platypus and quolls.The eventual corridor will approach the length of the Yellowstone to Yukon corridor in North America, which runs for 3,200 km.A major problem facing Australian conservationists is the widespread invasion of many foreign species, which threaten the continent's unique species. One of the first tasks at Scottsdale will be the control of weed species such as the African lovegrass and serrated tussock, which have invaded native woodland and threaten key native grass species.“If we can get these native grasses to return we'll see birds and insects coming in, and seeds being moved around, and the habitat will begin to recover,” says Owen Whitaker of Bush Heritage. “What we are essentially trying to do is go backwards. We are taking good, fertile farming land and turning it back into a functioning ecosystem.”“Not all farmers can do this, of course, because they have to make money, but all properties can be improved and reduce the impact that they have on species at risk.” Bush Heritage chief executive officer, Doug Humann said: “With less rainfall and more frequent intense fires predicted for the south of Australia, and an increased risk of cyclones and extreme rainfall over the north, extinction rates are set to soar unless action is taken.”