Biodiversity offsets fund $20 million in critical conservation projects

The project addresses a key threat to the species by securing and delivering an immediate and long-term improvement to PHS habitat by improving:  

• Knowledge of the most efficacious artificial habitat type for PHS application in offsetting and restoration programs elsewhere
• Knowledge of the species’ distribution and habitat associations
• Engagement with landholders to ensure PHS are conserved cross-tenure through habitat restoration and rehabilitation. 

This large-scale project will undertake actions to work towards four overarching goals to secure ILGW in the Illawarra/Shoalhaven landscape for the next 100 years:

• Healthy Country, healthy people
• Biodiverse ILGW sites are managed by competent stewards
• Measurable biodiversity improvement for ILGW remnants and restoration sites
• Connected Country 

This project seeks to address long term threats to the species’ including small population size, habitat loss and uncertain future land management practices by:

• Increasing knowledge of species ecology / biology and spatial extent
• Increasing the likelihood of securing the species’ long-term viability by identifying new population(s) using innovative techniques and citizen science; and
• Enhancing the resilience of existing populations on private property via augmentation.

This project seeks to address the long-term threat of ongoing loss and degradation of breeding and foraging habitat by:

• Creating, rehabilitating and improving the management of remnant woodland habitat used for breeding and foraging;
• Raising awareness and educating the community on the species’ habitat, and appropriate protection and management actions; and
• Establishing baseline data as part of a long-term population monitoring program.

Southern Highlands Shale Woodlands in the Sydney Basin Bioregion

This endangered ecological community (EEC) is confined to a small area within Wingecarribee Local Government Area with funds allocated to:

• Restore and rehabilitate critical remnants located on council-managed land; and  
• Increase awareness, education and capacity in landholders, community and council staff to identify, protect and manage the EEC.

Masked owl (Tyto novaehollandiae)

Powerful owl (Ninox strenua)

Sooty owl (Tyto tenebricosa)

This landscape scale project seeks to address habitat quality and loss which are major long-term threats to the three owl species by:

• Identifying 100 owl meta-population hotspots across NSW;
• Testing and installing artificial hollows, and augment and enhance habitat; and
• Improve key prey habitat to increase availability of food.

This landscape scale project seeks to address major threats including loss of breeding and foraging resources and loss of hollow bearing trees essential to breeding success through the following outcomes:

• Supporting Aboriginal custodian delivery of long-term conservation actions on Country;  
• Protecting eight high priority nest sites;
• Protecting and restoring 10 ha of she-oak trees and stands;  
• Undertaking fire hazard mapping and fire management activities; and  
• Engaging landholders to improve threat mitigation and restoration efforts.

The project aims to use current understanding of the species’ habitat requirements to model predicted occurrence and climatic drivers of emergence and flowering, to in turn make possible the following outcomes:

• Make improvement to the species’ SOS conservation strategy and site selection;
• Provide better survey timing guidelines to proponents and conservation agreements;
• Target on-ground conservation management with engaged landholders; and
• Increase the number of P. cobarensis species credits available for the offset market.

This project seeks to address two key threats to the species of heat stress in camps and conflict with humans by:

• Trialling sprinkler systems for mitigating mortalities during extreme heat events and;  
• Delivering an interactive virtual public education experience to improve public perceptions and encourage support of conservation initiatives.

The project focuses on addressing primary threats including increased woodiness and loss of structure and diversity, weed encroachment, inappropriate stock grazing and fragmentation, by improving:

• Condition and extent of habitat, leading to increased function, resilience, quality and capacity to persist; and
• Land manager understanding of the ecosystem and reconnecting traditional Aboriginal custodians to management of remnants.  

A multi-entity project that seeks to address the key threats of weed invasion and habitat degradation at priority sites within an endangered ecological community through:

• Habitat restoration and targeted weed control to improve site condition and resilience; and
• Stabilising degraded areas of littoral rainforest through erosion control, fencing, and restoration planting (800 native species).

Both species are impacted by an exotic fungal disease called myrtle rust, resulting in severe declines in their distribution. Funding will contribute to long-term recovery of both species by:  

• Managing and monitoring dispersed meta-populations of Rhodomyrtus psidioides for signs of infection and fungicide treatment;  
• Working with Minyumai Indigenous Protected Area rangers to manage and monitor field trials for weed control, replacement planting and infection of Rhodamnia rubescens; and
• Build capacity of the indigenous ranger team to apply effective management in the future.

A multi-entity project for three often co-occurring species implemented on public and private land, that seeks to address the common threats of habitat modification / degradation, weed competition and small population size. Key project outcomes include:

• Identification of new populations;
• Creation of seed stores and propagation trials for each species;
• Greater protection for all three species through fencing to manage herbivore access and site signage; and
• Habitat restoration and management of on-site threats to identified populations.

This project invests in landscape scale habitat restoration and management and includes population monitoring and community engagement. Major projected outcomes include:

• A net increase in extent and condition of at least 500 hectares of grassy woodland foraging habitat within 5 years, and breeding habitat in the long-term (>100 years); and
• A net increase of fenced and secured remnant woodland and mature trees that will be afforded better threat management.

Bargo Persoonia has a highly restricted geographic range and is threatened by high frequency fire and habitat disturbance caused by grazing and urbanisation. Across five sites, this project seeks to:

• Identify, survey and map sites with greater than 20 individuals to understand population size and demographics and establish monitoring plots targeting private land holders;
• Community awareness and engagement, and targeting private landholders with suitable habitat for potential survey;  
• Assess site specific threats and define suitable management actions for implementation at each site;  
• Undertake targeted habitat restoration actions to reduce site threats and encourage seedling regeneration; and
• In conjunction with local indigenous communities, define and apply a suitable Cultural burning regime and post-fire monitoring.

This project aims to address major threats such as habitat damage / loss from pests and domestic stock, frequent fires and further habitat fragmentation. It seeks to implement a broad conservation program by:

• Understanding weed cover and population status across all SOS sites, with comparisons made against pre-drought (2017-2019) and pre-La-Nina years (2021-2023) to identify trends and support best practice management to secure remnant areas;
• Reducing feral deer and weed cover in the landscape to encourage recruitment of new plants; and  
• Educating landholders who have the species on their land on appropriate conservation actions and opportunities for biodiversity conservation agreements.