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Department of Climate Change, Energy, Enviroment and Water

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  1. Home
  2. Environment
  3. Land
  4. National Reserve System
  5. Science, maps and data
  6. Scientific framework

Sidebar first - EN - Land

  • Science, maps and data
    • Australia's bioregions IBRA
      • Australia's bioregion framework
      • Australia's bioregions - maps
      • Australia's ecoregions
    • CAPAD
    • Maps and data
    • Protected area locations
    • Scientific framework

Scientific framework

Mornington Sanctuary, Western Australia | Nick Rains

The National Reserve System is underpinned by a scientific framework to ensure that Australia progressively extends protection to examples of all our ecosystems.

The scientific framework has a clear objective: to develop a 'comprehensive, adequate and representative' system of protected areas - commonly referred to as the 'CAR' reserve system.

Specifically CAR means:

  1. Comprehensive: the inclusion in the National Reserve System of examples of regional-scale ecosystems in each bioregion
  2. Adequate: the inclusion of sufficient levels of each ecosystem within the protected area network to provide ecological viability and to maintain the integrity of populations, species and communities
  3. Representative: the inclusion of areas at a finer scale, to encompass the variability of habitat within ecosystems

The goal of a CAR system of reserves for Australia was endorsed by all Australian governments as signatories to the National Strategy for Conservation of Australia's Biological Diversity (2010), and the National Forest Policy statement (1992).

Scientific priorities for biodiversity conservation

Scientific data is used to develop priorities for biodiversity conservation for the National Reserve System:

  • Bioregions and subregions where there is very little legal protection for plants and animals native to that area and where they are under a real threat
  • Native habitats under-protected within the existing National Reserve System
  • Rare or threatened species and habitats
  • Places that offer refuge, centres of native species richness, or areas of national importance such as wetlands
  • Special species, groups or circumstances - for example, very special habitat requirements, species with an exceptionally large range, migratory species, species vulnerable to climate change or other threatening process

Scientific data also underlies the establishment of priorities for selecting and managing protected areas:

  • Properties in high priority bioregions, with intact and viable samples of native ecosystems and habitats
  • Properties that are managed as part of a larger network of protected areas, in bioregions where large areas of intact native ecosystems no longer exist but where the long-term viability of plants and animals native to that bioregion need wider protection.
  • Properties with ecosystems and habitats of national or state importance, with poor levels of protection in other bioregions.

Australia's bioregional framework

The systematic development of a comprehensive, adequate and representative 'CAR' reserve system rests on a bioregional framework.

Bioregions are large, geographically distinct areas of land with common characteristics such as climate, ecological features and plant and animal communities.

The Australian land mass is divided into 89 bioregions and 419 subregions. This includes, for the first time, four island bioregions and their associated subregions.

National Reserve System protected areas are smaller than bioregions and sit within and across their boundaries.

Find out more about Australia's Bioregions (IBRA)

More information

  • National Strategy for Conservation of Australia's Biological Diversity
  • National Forest Policy statement
  • Australian Guidelines for Establishing the National Reserves System
  • Strategy for the National Reserve System
  • Threatened species
  • Cravens Peak case study
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Last updated: 10 October 2021

© Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water

We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of country throughout Australia and recognise their continuing connection to land, waters and culture. We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.