Healthy Land and Water wishes to provide an update on its participation in the South East Queensland Land for Wildlife program.

Land for Wildlife, Australia’s most extensive private conservation program, encourages and helps landholders manage wildlife habitat on their properties. Since 2004, Healthy Land and Water has co-ordinated the Land for Wildlife program in SEQ on behalf of local councils and the Land for Wildlife Steering Committee. Healthy Land and Water holds exclusive rights to use the Land for Wildlife brand in SEQ through an agreement with the Victorian Government.

Over the past 14 years, Healthy Land and Water has supported the program to become the fastest growing network of landholders involved in private land conservation in Australia. There are now more than 4400 registered Land for Wildlife properties in SEQ, equating to over 7000 individual members.

Previously, funding for Healthy Land and Water’s support of the program was provided through the Australian Government’s National Landcare Program (NLP). Healthy Land and Water used this funding to provide expertise and cover the operational expenses of the program in SEQ.

Under the new five-year NLP program which commenced in July 2018, funding was no longer available for Land for Wildlife. From July 2018, Healthy Land and Water self-funded the program and was examining other funding models to ensure Land for Wildlife could continue to function and grow in SEQ.

In the meantime, the Land for Wildlife Steering Committee independently sourced funding for the program and subsequently chose to terminate the Memorandums of Understanding with Healthy Land and Water, which had been in place for 14 years.

While Healthy Land and Water is disappointed in the Steering Committee’s decision, we are highly respectful of the Land for Wildlife program and its members and landholders. As a result, Healthy Land and Water has chosen to support the Land for Wildlife Steering Committee in its decision to take ownership of the Land for Wildlife program in SEQ going forward.

Healthy Land and Water highly regards Land for Wildlife and the vital role it plays in protecting SEQ’s unique flora and fauna. We are deeply proud of having been a crucial part of Land for Wildlife for many years and remain committed to supporting the program and indeed all private land conservation efforts in the years ahead.

Finally, Healthy Land and Water would like to acknowledge the support of the councils, members, landholders, stakeholders and staff who contributed to Land for Wildlife’s ongoing success in SEQ. We wish everybody involved in Land for Wildlife all the best in the future.