The Queensland Government must begin to fund the purchase and management of new nature reserves this year, or it will be unable to deliver on a key pledge to expand Queenslandâs national parks to help save our threatened wildlife, WWF-Australia said today.
Premier Anna Bligh promised on National Parks Day in March 2008 to expand the stateâs national parks to 12.9 million ha and other protected areas to 7.1 million ha – for a total target of 20 million ha
by 2020, a promise warmly welcomed by conservation groups.
But analysis by WWF-Australia shows the government is falling short of its target.
Analysis of government records shows national parks grew from 7.54 million ha to only 8.06 million ha from June 2007 to January 2010 – half a million ha below the trajectory need to reach the Premier’s 2020 target.
The growth of other Nature Conservation Act protected areas in Queensland was even more sluggish, growing from 1.29 million ha to 1.5 million ha over the same period, leaving a gap of 900,000 ha below the promised trajectory.
"At present rates of growth the government won’t be able to reach its 2020 target for new national parks until 2032, 12 years over deadline, and its nature refuge promise wonât be fulfilled till 2063, 43 years late," said WWF-Australia Protected Areas Policy Manager Martin Taylor.
"The existing funding model for new national parks is not delivering on the Premier’s ambitious target and an adequate capital budget must be set aside during the current Budget process to ensure the 2020 target committed to by Premier Bligh is guaranteed.
"The newly-established Ecofund is not capable of financing new parks, and may never be sufficient – capital must be injected via the established budgetary process," Dr Taylor said.
The lack of a parks’ capital budget also meant the state missed out as much as $12 million in Commonwealth’s $2 -for-$1 National Reserve System grants to buy new national parks in 2008/09.
"With the posting of a 48 per cent rise in exports from Queensland in 2008/09, the budget situation has improved and Treasury really should be able to budget the $12 million a year indicated as needed by the Premier in 2008, as well as a matching boost in the parks’ management budget.
"Funding the parks promise will have tremendous benefits not just for saving our wildlife like the highly endangered northern wombat, but also boosting our regional economies.
"Visitors to our national parks pump more than $4 billion in spending into the state economy every year, not to mention the expanding ranger and tourism opportunities for Indigenous communities," Dr Taylor said.