Principles

The natural world has a right to exist and thrive.
Australian biodiversity is unique and we have a responsibility to protect it and ensure it survives and thrives.
Land and sea must be set aside, protected, restored and replenished so the animals, plants, ecosystems and landscapes that make up Australia's natural biodiversity can survive and thrive.
Australia is in the midst of an extinction crisis and the extinction of any native species will permanently diminish the richness of life on Earth.
Human economies must reduce their ecological footprint and maximise the area within which nature can survive and thrive.
Where land and marine resources are used, nature-positive outcomes must be factored into business models and operations.
Biodiversity conservation and regeneration must include the mitigation of threats such as habitat loss and fragmentation, invasive species and climate change.
Offsetting cannot substitute for the loss of threatened species or areas of high conservation values.
First Nations custodianship must be respected and their traditional ecological knowledge used to inform our scientific understanding of native ecosystems.
Policy and programs for the conservation of biodiversity must be guided by the best available science.

Aims

The protection, restoration, regeneration and conservation of our natural ecosystems, our native animals and plants, and their genetic diversity.
Ending extinctions caused by humans.
Creating a new generation of environment laws that establish rights of nature to better protect endangered species, populations, ecological communities and habitats.
Implementing recovery targets for endangered native species.
Ensuring planning laws are consistent with the conservation and regeneration of biodiversity and ecologically sustainable development principles.
A strong regulatory regime and sufficient investment to mitigate and control activities that threaten or deplete biodiversity.
Increasing regulation and control of mining to ensure that all mineral exploration is subject to rigorous, publicly accessible and independent environmental assessment, including impacts on biodiversity and the rehabilitation of affected land, waterway and marine ecosystems.
Nature positive biodiversity outcomes being central to emission reduction targets and plans.
State government support for an independent national authority to enforce federal environment laws and produce national environmental accounts and audits.
Increased funding and support for scientific research into ways of conserving and regenerating biodiversity.

Ensuring a comprehensive, adequate and representative system of linked protected areas through all land tenures.
Fully protecting at least 30% of NSW's terrestrial ecosystems and 30% of NSW's marine ecosystems by 2030.
Ongoing protection of all existing land in the National Parks estate and ensuring the National Parks and Wildlife Service is well staffed and resourced for this purpose.
Ending logging in public native forests and transferring the land to the National Parks’ estate.
A prohibition on clearing core koala habitat across all land tenures.
Preventing market-based processes and trading mechanisms such as biodiversity banking and offsets being used to trade off high conservation areas for development.
Banning the use of offsets to justify clearing of vegetation that is threatened, near-threatened or high value regrowth.
Replacing the biodiversity offsets regime for developments with a nature positive scheme that improves biodiversity outcomes.
Opposing the clearing of native vegetation (including regrowth) for the establishment of timber plantations.
Ending peat extraction.
Improving the regulation of firewood collection and supply to ensure it is sustainably sourced.

A robust and adequately funded biosecurity regime to prevent the threat of invasive species.
Greater research into the development and application of the most humane, effective control, removal or eradication programs for invasive species that threaten Australia's biodiversity.
Increasing funding for the National Parks and Wildlife Service to enable it to more effectively control, remove or eradicate invasive species within the National Parks estate.
Ensuring that culling in National Parks and state forests is carried out by trained employees or contractors of the National Parks and Wildlife Service.
Empowering and resourcing all levels of government to work towards controlling and removing invasive species within their jurisdictions.
Restricting the spread of exotic grasses/legumes by encouraging the reintroduction of native grasses for livestock grazing in areas where exotic grasses/legumes are currently used and imposing an outright ban on the introduction/sowing of grasses/legumes recognised as priority threats to biodiversity (e.g. Buffel Grass).

Ensuring the Environment Protection Authority is independent and well-resourced.
Establishing third party appeal rights in all environmental legislation.
Enabling and resourcing First Nations peoples to lead in the development and implementation of public policies, programs and services to enhance biodiversity and maintain their cultural and spiritual connection to their traditional lands, waters and sky.
Providing funding for community education programs on the significance of the state’s biological diversity and the threats to it.
Supporting a diverse range of community-based biodiversity protection and restoration groups.
Sufficient public funding for the Environmental Defenders Office to provide free advice on environmental law and law reform policy, and how to take legal action to protect the environment and enforce environmental law.

Last updated October 2024