National Forum

Overcoming barriers to setting up a revolving fund, A South Australian perspective
Jim McHugh
Community Partnerships National Parks and Wildlife SA
Bushland for Sale
11:15-11:30am, Wednesday, 21 March 2001

Prior to the Commonwealth's call for expressions of interest for organisations to establish and manage a revolving fund with Commonwealth financial support, South Australia's Nature Foundation SA had started to pursue, with the South Australian Department for Environment and Heritage, the possibility of setting up a revolving fund based on the arrangements developed in Victoria by the Trust for Nature.

For almost two decades, South Australia has had in place a legislatively based and Government operated covenanting scheme to protect native vegetation of biodiversity value on private land. Currently, in South Australia, there are 1200 Heritage Agreements covering a total area of 550,000 hectares.

Notwithstanding the respect that the agency had for the Foundation there were, at first, some reservations within Government about the notion of establishing a revolving fund managed by a non-government organization, having the power to apply nature covenants to private land. However, with a change in Minister, came a commitment to establish the fund and to speed up establishment arrangements. The Minister was clearly attracted to the scheme and saw the value that a non-government organization could add, as a complement to the Heritage Agreement scheme, to conservation initiatives on private land.

The Government and the Foundation set about exploring options for both legislative arrangements and financial assistance. The paper describes South Australia's examination of its legislative options and why it chose to stay with the provisions of existing statutes rather than, as was initially proposed, to develop purpose built provisions within the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1972.

Given the Government's significant ongoing commitment to the Heritage Agreement scheme, the Department was initially apprehensive about providing a substantial grant to a revolving fund. The paper also briefly explains some of the difficulties encountered in working through alternative financial options. Consideration is now being given to making an initial grant of some significant size.

In concluding, the paper outlines proposed mechanisms designed to facilitate the complementary operation of the Government and the Foundation schemes and makes some observations about the factors likely to affect the success in South Australia of the revolving fund in adding properties to the protected area system. National Forum - Taking Care of the Bush