Australian capital territory
Nature conservation act 1980

Nature Conservation (threatened ecological communities and species) Action Plan 2004 (No 1)

DI 2004-52

explanatory statement

The Nature Conservation Act 1980 (the Act) is the primary ACT legislation for the protection of native plants and animals.  A 1994 amendment to the Act established the Flora and Fauna Committee as an expert advisory body to the Minister.  The Flora and Fauna Committee advises the Minister of ACT species and ecological communities that are threatened with extinction and recommend that they be declared accordingly.

Section 23 of the Act provides for the Conservator of Flora and Fauna to prepare an Action Plan for each species or community that has been the subject of a declaration.  An Action Plan is a management response to a recognised ecological threat.  It is required to include proposals for the identification, protection and survival of the species or community concerned.  A process of public consultation is provided for.  

Action Plan No.27 - The ACT Lowland Woodland Conservation Strategy, supersedes nine separate Action Plans previously published, namely the Action Plans for:

•	Yellow Box – Red Gum Grassy Woodland
•	A Leek Orchid (Prasophyllum petilum)
•	Small Purple Pea (Swainsona recta)
•	Hooded Robin (Melanodryas cucullata)
•	Swift Parrot (Lathamus discolor)
•	Superb Parrot (Polytelis swainsonii)
•	Brown Treecreeper (Climacteris picumnus)
•	Painted Honeyeater (Grantiella picta)
•	Regent Honeyeater (Xanthomyza phrygia)

In addition, this strategy serves as the Action Plan for two other bird species which were declared as vulnerable in December 2003:

•	Varied Sitella (Daphoenositta chrysoptera)
•	White-winged Triller (Lalage sueurii)

The focus of the Strategy is low elevation grassy woodland across the ACT, regardless of tenure and land use.  In this way, it differs from a management plan applied to a particular area or areas.  A central purpose of the Strategy is to inform decision-making with regard to land use planning, and the development and management of land in the ACT.

Specifically, the Strategy:

•	Identifies the remaining areas of lowland woodland in the ACT including the endangered Yellow Box – Red Gum Grassy Woodland;
•	Outlines their values focusing on the conservation value of the ecological communities and component flora and fauna (recognising that areas may also have social and cultural values e.g. recreational, aesthetic, Aboriginal and European heritage);
•	Outlines conservation goals, objectives and actions for lowland woodland and woodland dependent species, including those declared as threatened under the ACT Nature Conservation Act 1980;
•	Outlines principles on which to base conservation actions;
•	Identifies areas or types of woodland remnants where regeneration and/or restoration effort would be best directed so as to improve the viability of lowland woodlands and their component species;
•	Incorporates the Action Plans for listed species and communities which are required by the ACT Nature Conservation Act 1980;
•	Provides a basis for planning and land management decisions with regard to areas containing lowland woodland;
•	Encourages community participation in the conservation of lowland woodland and component species;
•	Satisfies the requirement under section 23(2) of the Nature Conservation Act 1980, that an Action Plan includes proposals for the identification, protection and survival of a threatened species or ecological community, or, in the case of a threatening process, proposals to minimise its effect.

While the legal authority of this Strategy is confined to the Australian Capital Territory, management considerations are addressed in a regional context.

This Instrument revokes previous instruments for Action Plans (DI1997-262, DI1998-191 and DI1999-244).  An Action Plan is a disallowable instrument and must be notified, under the Legislation Act 2001, and presented to the Legislative Assembly.