Trust for Nature
Welcome to the Queensland Trust for Nature, a not-for-profit Trust established for the protection of the natural environment within the State of Queensland.
Landscape fragmentation is recognised as a threatening process resulting in biodiversity loss. The world is also faced with uncertainty from the effects of climate change. Many ecosystems are vulnerable to climate change with the possible extinction of climate-sensitive animal and plant species as a result. Protecting ecosystems and providing corridors between ecosystems is a priority for the Trust.
The Trust also seeks opportunities to revegetate cleared or degraded properties that offer long term benefits with adjoining lands.
The Queensland Trust for Nature operates a Revolving Fund that is used to buy, covenant and resell areas of Queensland with high conservation values. The Trust also seeks opportunities for developing partnerships with other conservation organisations to identify, acquire, manage and protect these areas.
To-date the Trust has acquired ten properties and sold five of them to new owners. Land that has been protected through the Revolving Fund as Nature Refuges currently totals 27,025 hectares while the Trusts total property portfolio is 101,542hectares.
The Trust negotiates a conservation agreement to establish a nature refuge with the Department of Environment and Resource Management. The conservation agreement is tailored to each property and is designed to help landholders protect significant natural and cultural resources, wildlife values and biodiversity while allowing sustainable land use activities including production to continue where appropriate.
Nature refuges are a class of protected area under the Nature Conservation Act 1992. In addition to knowing that they are making a valuable contribution to protecting Queensland’s biodiversity, landholders who purchase a Trust property can access the benefits of the nature refuge program including conservation and land management advice and financial assistance.
For more information on nature refuges visit:
http://www.epa.qld.gov.au/nature_conservation/nature_refuges/
Criteria have been developed to assess and prioritise properties for acquisition according to conservation values. The criteria are based around:
• Landscape significance (e.g. does the property contribute to a viable track of vegetation or form part of a landscape corridor).
• Vegetation significance (e.g. ecosystems with a status of ‘of concern’ or ‘endangered’ vegetation are given a greater priority. Poorly conserved ecosystems or unique vegetation assemblages are also prioritised).
• Species significance (i.e. focusing on properties with rare and threatened species or species at the limit of their range).
Last updated 12 June, 2009