17^th November, 2006

Biodiversity short-changed in Conservation Plan

Public exhibition closes today for the Lower Hunter Regional Conservation Plan, amid concern that the region has not been given the promised 20,000 hectares of new National Parks from public land.

Legislation enabling new National Parks to be declared over certain Crown lands and State Forests in the region passed through NSW Parliament this week, but Paul Winn of the Hunter Community Environment Centre said that only four fifths of the promised 20,000 hectares of “new” National Parks are actually new.

Mr. Winn said, “Our calculations show that 16,000 ha of State Forests and Crown lands will be transferred into the National Parks estate, but 4,000 hectares of the so-called “new” parks, are already managed by the National Parks and Wildlife Service, mainly as Nature Reserves.”

Mr. Winn said that while promises have been made to secure long-standing community reserve proposals, there are serious omissions in the Conservation Plan, that will leave the region’s biodiversity still at risk.

“Important threatened Owl and Glider habitat on public land at Awaba was left out of the reserve dedication, much to the disappointment of the local community. We suspect that the area was ignored for dedication as a State Conservation Area following objections from the Department of Mineral Resources.

“Underground mining is allowed in State Conservation Areas, so the only reason for the omission of the Awaba Crown Lands is to leave it available for open cut mining. As the Government has promised that 20,000 hectares of Lower Hunter public land would be protected in new conservation reserves, the Awaba Crown Lands must be transferred into the National Park estate to make up the shortfall.”

“The growing disquiet in the Lower Hunter over this Government’s disregard for the community and the environment is likely to be felt by Labor at the March election. Urban and coastal landclearing for houses and mines has been allowed to continue unchecked for long enough: We must not lose this opportunity to establish a secure and adequate conservation reserve at Awaba ” said Mr Winn.