It is estimated that over 300,000 ha has been cleared in NSW since the introduction of the Act. This estimate is based on:

Official clearing figures: The most recent official figures show that 77,800 ha was cleared in NSW in 2000 (DLWC 2001). From the commencment of the Act up to August 2000, over 200,000 ha was approved (Woodford 2000). This does not include illegal and exempt clearing. NSW currently has no reliable data with which to verify these official figures. Current satellite survey data does not accurately capture clearing of some of our most threatened ecosystems: open woodland; small patches and isolated trees; and grasslands.

• There are over 30 exemptions specified under the Act which allow land to be cleared without development consent. For example, a landholder may clear 2 ha per year, and 7 trees per ha per year for on-farm use. The implications for properties with limited or scattered remnant native vegetation are severe.

• There is no mechanism under the Act requiring landholders to inform DLWC when they intend to rely on an exemption. Therefore, it is impossible to know exactly how much land is being cleared, or whether the exemptions are being correctly applied.

• The exemptions are broadly worded, open to misinterpretation and abuse, and difficult to enforce. Many lack scientific basis and are inconsistent with the objects of the NVC Act. As a result, significant and inappropriate clearing is taking place without assessment (DLWC 2000).

Illegal clearing: Since the commencement of the Act, 380 alleged breaches have been reported to DLWC, covering an area of at least 95,000 ha (DLWC 2000). Despite this, there have been no successful prosecutions under the Act. This is partly the result of broadly worded exemptions (DLWC 2000), but is also attributable to a lack of political will to pursue prosecutions.

In the same year that the NVC Act was introduced, the NSW Government signed an agreement with the Federal Government, under the Natural Heritage Trust, committing NSW to no net loss of native vegetation by June 2001. "No net loss" is defined as a reversal in the long-term decline of the quality and extent of native vegetation.

This goal will not be achieved while clearing rates remain so high. Revegetation remains insignificant in comparison to clearing: it is estimated that the ratio of clearing to revegetation is at least 30:1 (CSIRO 1999).

Another worrying trend that relates to this objective is the recent discussion of clearing offsets in NSW. In July 2000, the NSW Premier announced a review to explore the use of offsets to provide opportunities for farmers to be able to clear isolated patches of vegetation in exchange for replanting elsewhere.

The destruction of intact, functioning native vegetation cannot be adequately compensated by revegetation. Offsets should only be considered where the result is a substantial increase in the habitat value and ecosystem function of existing vegetation. There are no recorded examples of where this has been achieved.

The most effective way to achieve this objective is to retain existing vegetation, and improve the condition of degraded vegetation. Tree planting is more expensive than conserving existing vegetation, and it has a significantly lower value in terms of providing habitat and maintaining ecosystem function.

Regional vegetation management plans are the cornerstone of the Act. Plans are prepared by
committees, which involve all stakeholder groups. The commitment to community-based planning on a regional scale is a worthy component of the Act. Yet if the legislative objective is to be achieved, this commitment must be substantially strengthened.

• There are still no plans in place, and regional committees still do not cover the whole of NSW.

• Committees are not being provided with adequate direction and guidance, and are spending considerable time reaching compromises, which, in many cases, may be below acceptable environmental limits.

Much of NSW’s remaining native vegetation is in poor condition (NSW EPA 2000).

• Central and eastern NSW have experienced the highest rates of land clearing, retaining an average vegetation cover of only 44% (NSW EPA 2000). In some parts of the central woodland belt up to 90% of the original vegetation cover has been cleared. Remnants are largely small, isolated and in poor condition. They are under continuing threat from timber extraction and grazing.

• Far western NSW has not been substantially cleared. However, much of the vegetation has been modified and degraded due to intensive grazing by stock and feral animals (NSW EPA 2000).

Property agreements for conservation management: In October 2000, there were 556 property agreements under the NVC Act, covering an area of 59,000 ha. No information is currently available as to which vegetation communities are protected under these agreements. They are also of varying security. It is therefore difficult to assess their contribution to achieving this objective of the legislation.

Regional vegetation management plans: Many committees are discussing target areas for each vegetation community to be actively managed for conservation. Achieving these targets, however, is largely contingent on public investment to recognise the contribution made by landholders to conserving native vegetation.

The fact that land clearing continues in NSW – despite well-recognised implications for land degradation and biodiversity loss – demonstrates that many decisions made under the NVC Act are not in the long-term social, economic and environmental interests of the State.

The achievement of this objective should be measured by the success of the NSW Government in stopping land clearing and retaining existing native vegetation for its significant role in conserving biodiversity, preventing land degradation, and preserving productive agricultural systems. The above discussion shows that the NSW Government is failing to promote the significance of native vegetation in NSW.

Anita Sundstrom  
is the NPA/WWF Western Project Officer 
and is also working on the NCC Native Vegetation Project.

References

CSIRO Resource and Policy Management (26 November 1999) Mid Term Review of the Natural Heritage Trust – Bushcare Program

DLWC (2000) Review of the Native Vegetation Conservation Act 1997 Exemptions Internal Report by the Soil and Vegetation Access Branch, Department of Land and Water Conservation

DLWC (2001) Clearing Approved under the NVC Act 1997, available at www.dlwc.nsw.gov.au/care/veg/clearing.html

NSW Environment Protection Authority (2000) State of the Environment Report 2000

Woodford, James (2000) "Greens angered by approvals to clear vast tracts of woodland" Sydney Morning Herald, 3.8.2000, p 3