conservation – National Parks Association of NSW

Re-Wilding in Review

Posted by NPA NSWon May 31, 2021in Nature NSW, Winter 2021Leave a comment

Gary Dunnett, Executive Officer, NPA NSW

Re-wilding emerged on the Australian conservation scene atop John Wamsley’s feral-cat skinned hat. Despite all the attention on killing cats and foxes, the core concept of rewilding is gentle simplicity itself – remove the competitors to native species, stop them from coming back, then give nature the chance to take care of itself.

Why then, more than fifty years later, are we still grappling with whether re-wilding has a place in the NSW Protected Area Network? I suspect the answer lies in our continuing unease about whether the environmental impacts of introducing hard barriers into ‘natural’ landscapes outweigh the environmental benefits of controlling feral species and re-introducing locally extinct wildlife.

Mutawintji reservation delivers on multiple fronts

Posted by NPA NSWon September 5, 2019September 5, 2019in Media ReleasesLeave a comment

The National Parks Association of NSW (NPA) has warmly welcomed a 57,000 hectare addition to NSW’s reserve network. The new park, purchased by the Mutawintji Board of Management, joins Mutawintji Nature Reserve, National Park and Historic Site to create a complex of conservation lands of over 132,000 hectares.

Biodiversity is threatened in New South Wales

Posted by NPA NSWon December 1, 2017November 27, 2017in Nature NSW, Summer 2017Leave a comment

^{Dr John Benson}

This article was published online on 19 September 2017 in the blog Pearls and Irritations

The New South Wales National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) was the first of its type in Australia. Established by a Liberal government, its lyrebird emblem became world-renowned. But the Service is not valued by the present Government and now faces grave uncertainty.

Environmental Performance Report Card

Posted by NPA NSWon May 29, 2017May 29, 2017in Nature NSW, Winter 2017Leave a comment

The Environmental Liaison Office (ELO) provides a link to NSW Parliament for hundreds of community groups across NSW. It aims to ensure that the shared concerns and priorities of environment groups are communicated consistently to Government, and provides a mechanism for the views of Government to be communicated to and considered by NSW environment groups.

Message from the CEO

Posted by NPA NSWon May 29, 2017May 29, 2017in Nature NSW, Winter 2017Leave a comment

^{Kevin Evans, Chief Executive Officer, National Parks Association of NSW}

This will be my final edition of Nature NSW as I have decided to step down after 7 years as CEO. My partner and I recently purchased a rural property at Gleniffer in the idyllic Bellinger Valley and we are looking forward to spending more time there to restore the conservation values of our land and work with the progressive community there.

Hunting for Hawkweed in Kosciuszko National Park

Posted by NPA NSWon May 26, 2017May 29, 2017in Nature NSW, Winter 2017Leave a comment

Cynthia Burton, Conservation Volunteer, Canberra Bushwalking Club

Three Canberra Bushwalking Club (CBC) volunteers were part of a 35 strong, multi-agency, helicopter-assisted, survey team that recently discovered a second significant infestation of the aggressive alpine invader, Mouse-ear Hawkweed (MEHW) (Hieracium pilosella or Pilosella officinarum), on the Main Range of Kosciuszko National Park (KNP). The infestation area was found on a ridge roughly in between the turn-off points to go to Mt Twynam or Watson’s Crags, adjacent to the old 4WD track. The site has been cordoned off and treated, with further monitoring and survey work in adjacent areas to take place in future.