Tackling emerging and long-term national environmental priorities
From 2019 to 2023, the Australian Government invested $100 million to help protect our environment for future generations through the Environment Restoration Fund (ERF).
The ERF built on the government’s $1.1 billion, 6-year investment in the National Landcare Program (now the Natural Heritage Trust). These programs aim to protect Australia’s water, soil, plants and animals and support their productive and sustainable use.
The ERF complemented the government’s Communities Environment Program, which focused on small-scale grants for community projects.
The government continues to invest in these priorities through a $1.1 billion commitment to the next phase of the NHT. The next phase will run over the 5 years, until the end of the 2027-28 financial year.
Focusing on Australia’s environmental priorities
The aim of the Environment Restoration Fund was to support a range of activities that are known to improve environmental outcomes. Projects focused on 3 priority areas.
- Protecting threatened and migratory species and their habitat.
- Protecting Australia’s coasts, oceans and waterways by addressing erosion, improving water quality and protecting coastal threatened and migratory species.
- The clean-up, recovery and recycling of waste.
These projects benefited communities as well as regional and local economies. Projects were delivered through a mixture of grants, procurements, and specific purpose payments.
This investment also helped Australia to meet international obligations under the Convention on Biological Diversity and other environmental treaties.
Emergency support for flood-affected wildlife and habitat
In response to severe flooding events in New South Wales and Queensland in early 2022, the Australian Government committed $1.63 million from the ERF to support 6 natural resource management (NRM) groups in flood-affected regions.
This funding supported NRMs in assessing the impacts of the floods on Matters of National Environmental Significance (MNES). The funding also allowed NRMs to undertake targeted recovery action for threatened species and/or threatened ecological communities.
Reporting
Emergency flood recovery for wildlife and habitat: Impact Assessments Emergency Flood Recovery for wildlife and habitat (PDF 6.66 MB)
Emergency flood recovery for wildlife and habitat: Impact Assessments Emergency Flood Recovery for wildlife and habitat (DOCX 5.2 MB)
Reports on the assessment of flood impacts in two Queensland regions (from Burnett Mary Regional Group and Healthy Land and Water Ltd) are available on request. Contact nationallandcare@dcceew.gov.au for further information.
Floods and biodiversity roundtable
Threatened Species Commissioner Dr Fiona Fraser chaired a roundtable of experts and management agencies on 13 May 2022, to better understand flood impacts on native plants, animals and habitats. A summary of the discussions is available now.
Floods and Biodiversity Roundtable 13 May 2022 Communique (PDF 166 KB)
Floods and Biodiversity Roundtable 13 May 2022 Communique (DOCX 81 KB)
Timing
The Environment Restoration Fund is a four-year initiative from 2019-20 to 2022-23.
Program delivery
Projects were being delivered through a mixture of grants, procurements and specific purpose payments to the States.
Details of contracted projects
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Projects funded through grant arrangements
ERF Threatened Species Strategy Action Plan: Priority Species Grants (PDF - 131KB)
ERF Threatened Species Strategy Action Plan: Priority Species Grants (DOCX - 71KB)
| Proponent | Project Title | Amount ($) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| ERF Safe Havens for Threatened Native Species - Open Grant Round | |||
| 1 | Australia's Wildlife Ark Inc | Upper Mongogarie Safe Haven | 1,500,000 |
| 2 | Australian Wildlife Conservancy | Safeguarding the future of the endangered Northern Bettong | 1,500,000 |
| 3 | Territory Natural Resource Management Incorporated | Creating mainland and island safe havens to secure Top End priority mammals | 1,477,148 |
| 4 | Parks Victoria | The Prom Sanctuary - building a safe haven at scale for southern wildlife | 1,012,939 |
| 5 | Arid Recovery Limited | Securing the kowari in the species’ first safe haven | 699,800 |
| 6 | Ecological Horizons Pty Ltd | Secret Rocks Safehaven | 598,113 |
| ERF Other Grants | |||
| 7 | Australia Zoo Wildlife Warriors Worldwide Inc | Protecting Koalas of south-east QLD and northern NSW | 1,000,000 |
| 8 | Australian Council of Recycling Inc | Recycle Mate: A National Roll-out | 2,000,000 |
| 9 | Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation Ltd | A National Approach to Consumer Education for Sustainable Packaging | 1,100,000 |
| 10 | Australian Trust For Conservation Volunteers | Clear Waters, Clean Future | 5,000,000 |
| 11 | Australian Trust For Conservation Volunteers | Understanding and Protecting Western Pygmy-possums on Fleurieu Peninsula | 20,000 |
| 12 | Bass Coast Shire Council | Bass Coast coastal erosion | 1,500,000 |
| 13 | Bayside City Council | Foreshore restoration at Black Rock and Sandringham | 100,000 |
| 14 | Central Coast Council | Avoca Lagoon Green and Golden Bell Frog Assessment and Habitat Improvement | 300,000 |
| 15 | Central Coast Council | Clean4Shore | 300,000 |
| 16 | Central Coast Council | Tuggerah Lakes estuary and catchment ecological health project | 4,700,000 |
| 17 | Clean Up Australia Ltd | Clean Up Australia Day | 300,000 |
| 18 | Cumberland Land Conservancy Inc | Cumberland Conservation Corridor - Habitat Restoration Works | 400,000 |
| 19 | Friends of Dudley Peninsula Parks and Wildlife | Kangaroo Island weed control, revegetation and heritage conservation | 20,000 |
| 20 | Georges River Combined Councils' Committee Incorporated | Improving the Health of the Georges River: Zero Litter in Georges River | 700,000 |
| 21 | Goolwa to Wellington Local Action Planning Association Inc | Conserving Biodiversity at Priority Sites on the Fleurieu Peninsula | 245,000 |
| 22 | Hawkesbury River County Council | Hawkesbury-Nepean River Aquatic Weed Management | 111,000 |
| 23 | Hindmarsh Island Landcare Group | Lawari Conservation Park revegetation and weed control | 160,000 |
| 24 | Indigenous Desert Alliance Limited | Right-Way Desert Fire Project | 3,000,000 |
| 25 | Keep Australia Beautiful National Association Ltd | Eco-Schools Australia - less litter, more recycling | 300,000 |
| 26 | Mornington Peninsula and Western Port Biosphere Reserve Foundation Ltd | Protecting the Western Port Biosphere | 300,000 |
| 27 | Muru Mittigar Limited | Keeping the Hawkesbury and Nepean Rivers healthy | 250,000 |
| 28 | OzHarvest Limited | OzHarvest’s Fight Food Waste Campaign | 500,000 |
| 29 | Penrith City Council | Keeping the Hawkesbury and Nepean Rivers healthy - River Road Reserve | 150,000 |
| 30 | Planet Ark Environment Foundation | Australian Circular Economy Hub | 1,600,000 |
| 31 | Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (Queensland) Limited | Koala Rescue and Rehabilitation Program | 1,000,000 |
| 32 | Sturt Upper Reaches Landcare Group Inc | Bandicoot Super Highway Project | 250,000 |
| 33 | The Trustee for Currumbin Wildlife Hospital Foundation | Koala Treatment, Rehabilitation and Research | 1,000,000 |
| 34 | Thylation Limited | Felixer Grooming Trap Commercialisation | 1,200,000 |
| 35 | Trees for Life Inc | Creekline Restoration in the Adelaide Hills | 85,000 |
| 36 | Treidlia Biovet Pty Ltd | Curiosity Bait Commercialisation | 800,000 |
| 37 | Willunga Environment Centre Inc | Wakondilla/Wangkondilla -cultural connection to the Aldinga Washpool | 40,000 |
| 38 | Yarra Riverkeeper Association Inc | Yarra Riverbank Project - Improving the health of the Yarra River | 500,000 |
| Grants contracted sub-total | 35,719,000 | ||
Projects directly procured from Regional Land Partnership service providers
| Proponent | Project Title | Amount ($) |
|---|---|---|
| Corangamite Catchment Management Authority | Bellarine Dunecare - Protecting Sand Dunes on Victoria's Great Ocean Road and the Bellarine Peninsula | 1,500,000 |
| Corangamite Catchment Management Authority | Wild Otways Initiative - Feral pig and deer eradication to protect native species in the Otway Ranges, Bells Beach (Ironbark Basin) and Great Ocean Road Hinterland | 1,216,000 |
| Corangamite Catchment Management Authority | Wild Otways Initiative - Fox and feral cat control in planned-burn landscapes to protect threatened species in the Otway Ranges | 1,116,000 |
| Corangamite Catchment Management Authority | Wild Otways Initiative - Protecting plant and animal biodiversity in the Otway Ranges, Bells Beach (Ironbark Basin) and Great Ocean Road Hinterland from cinnamon fungus (Phytophthora cinnamomi) dieback | 616,000 |
| Corangamite Catchment Management Authority | Wild Otways Initiative - Conserving threatened small mammals in the Otway Ranges, Bells Beach (Ironbark Basin) and Great Ocean Road Hinterland | 516,000 |
| Corangamite Catchment Management Authority | Wild Otways Initiative - Rewilding threatened species in the Otway Ranges | 816,000 |
| Corangamite Catchment Management Authority | Wild Otways Initiative - Community grants program to protect and restore native plants, wildlife and coastal environments | 1,720,000 |
| Cradle Coast Authority | Removing Rice Grass from Rubicon Estuary | 260,000 |
| Fitzroy Basin Association Inc | Clarke-Connors Range Koala Climate Change Refugia Project | 1,000,000 |
| Glenelg Hopkins Catchment Management Authority | Protection for Hooded Plover Chicks | 100,000 |
| Healthy Land and Water Ltd | Implementing Priority Actions to Reduce Threats to Migratory Shorebirds in Moreton Bay Ramsar Site | 1,200,000 |
| Healthy Land and Water Ltd | Protecting Koalas of South East Queensland and Northern New South Wales | 1,000,000 |
| Healthy Land and Water Ltd | Living Waterways: Lower Brisbane River | 1,150,000 |
| Kangaroo Island Landscapes Board | Supporting the recovery of the Kangaroo Island dunnart through conservation and management actions | 1,500,000 |
| Limestone Coast Landscape Board | Addressing threats to Malleefowl in the Limestone Coast | 344,804 |
| Local Land Services - North Coast | Protecting Koalas of SEQ and Northern NSW - North Coast | 2,000,000 |
| Local Land Services - North Coast | Protecting Koalas of Coffs Harbour-to-North Bellingen, Port Macquarie and North Macleay-to-Nambucca Areas of Regional Koala Significance (ARKS) | 2,000,000 |
| Local Land Services - North West | Habitat Refugia for Kamilaroi Guda Koalas | 1,000,000 |
| Local Land Services - South East | Safe haven for threatened species - Wandiyali-Environa Wildlife Sanctuary | 1,200,000 |
| Mallee Catchment Management Authority | Identifying important populations and improving fire management for threatened Mallee birds | 500,000 |
| Northern Agricultural Catchments Council | Protecting WA Black Cockatoos - Northern Agricultural Region | 647,000 |
| NQ Dry Tropics Ltd | Ramsar Wetlands of Bowling Green Bay Catchment | 2,000,000 |
| NRM South | Protecting Forty-spotted Pardalote | 235,000 |
| Peel-Harvey Catchment Council Inc | Protecting WA Black Cockatoos - Peel-Harvey | 389,500 |
| Perth NRM | Improving the health of the Swan and Canning Rivers | 2,000,000 |
| Port Phillip and Westernport Catchment Management Authority | ERF French Island Feral Cat Eradication | 335,000 |
| Rangelands NRM Co-ordinating Group Inc | Stop the flow of cane toads in the Kimberley | 200,000 |
| South Coast Natural Resource Management Inc | Protecting WA Black Cockatoos - South Coast | 647,000 |
| South West Catchments Council | Protecting WA Black Cockatoos - South West | 409,500 |
| Southern Regional Natural Resource Management Association | Priority actions for eastern quolls on north Bruny Island | 1,500,000 |
| Territory Natural Resource Management Incorporated | Community cat management in remote Indigenous communities | 250,000 |
| Wheatbelt Natural Resource Management Incorporated | Protecting WA Black Cockatoos - Wheatbelt | 907,000 |
| Emergency Support for flood-affected wildlife and habitat | ||
| Burnett Mary Regional Group for Natural Resource Management Ltd | Emergency flood recovery for wildlife and habitat – Stage 1 | 250,000 |
| Local Land Services - North Coast | Emergency flood recovery for wildlife and habitat – Stage 1 Regional Impact Assessments North Coast, Hunter, Greater Sydney and South East Management Units. | 630,000 |
| Healthy Land and Water Ltd | Emergency flood recovery for wildlife and habitat – Stage 1 | 250,000 |
| Local Land Services - Greater Sydney | Emergency flood recovery for wildlife and habitat – Greater Sydney | 50,000 |
| Local Land Services - North Coast | Emergency flood recovery for wildlife and habitat – North Coast (Stage 2) | 350,000 |
| Local Land Services - South East | Emergency flood recovery for wildlife and habitat – South East NSW | 100,000 |
| Direct procurement contracted sub-total | 31,904,804 | |
Projects funded through Commonwealth to States funding arrangements
| Proponent | Project Title | Amount ($) | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | NSW State Government | Improving the health of the Georges River (Yeramba Lagoon) | 300,000 |
| 2 | SA State Government | Flinders Island Safe Haven Project | 1,677,000 |
| 3 | SA State Government | Glenthorne National Park Initiative | 1,700,000 |
| 4 | SA State Government | Improving the health of the River Torrens | 2,000,000 |
| 5 | SA State Government | The Second Creek Outfall Project | 450,000 |
| 6 | VIC State Government | Improving the health of the Yarra River through litter reduction | 1,500,000 |
| 7 | VIC State Government | Restoring Mount Martha North Beach | 1,500,000 |
| Commonwealth to States agreements sub-total | 9,127,000 |