The 'Brigalow Belt South' is a bioregion which takes in parts of the central west slopes and plains, and parts of the north west slopes and plains of NSW. It extends from Dubbo in the south to the Queensland border in the north and includes the towns of Yetman, Warialda, Moree, Narrabri, Pilliga, Gunnedah, Coonabarabran, Willow Tree, Gilgandra, Dubbo and Merriwa.
Over the last 2 years the Brigalow Belt South Bioregion (BBSB) has been the subject of a broad assessment of resource and conservation values known as the Western Regional Assessment, under the auspices of the Resource and Conservation Assessment Council (RACAC). As an outcome of the process, the NSW Government has committed to the establishment of new National Parks from public lands and a sustainable, value-added timber industry in the region by the end of 2002.
This report is an initial proposal by the Western Conservation Alliance in relation to the BBSB outcomes. The report describes the outstanding conservation significance of the Brigalow Belt South Bioregion (BBSB) and proposes a range of conservation and industry outcomes for the region.
The proposal addresses conservation issues and will be followed by a socio-economic report that promotes the diversification of regional economies, new sustainable industries, and job creation in the BBSB. It moves toward a solution that recognises and enhances conservation as a positive contribution to regional communities.
Taken together these reports are a greenprint for the future of the BBSB - a proposal for long-overdue conservation reserves, complementary off-reserve management and a diverse and flourishing regional economy with a value-added timber industry and thriving regional tourism strategy. The proposal looks ahead to a strategic and co-operative approach to conservation management across land tenures.
The proposal recognises the extremely high cultural significance of the region to Aboriginal people and the paramount rights and interests in land of the Aboriginal community in the region. It supports options for increased natural and cultural heritage management by Aboriginal people in the region according to their own aspirations and proposals.
The Western Conservation Alliance has conducted a comprehensive assessment of conservation values of the region using existing literature, field surveys and all available biological data from the Western Regional Assessment process. This included a systematic review of fauna and flora significance and reservation adequacy of woodland ecosystems for all State Forest areas in the region.
This assessment has revealed that large areas of State Forest are required for transfer to National Parks to arrest declining conservation values. Furthermore, it indicates that on-going voluntary conservation mechanisms on high priority private lands and ecosystem restoration are critical to the long-term achievement of conservation goals.
The Western Conservation Alliance reserve proposal will result in a reserve network that includes large State Forest areas as cores for survival of viable populations; aims to maintain connectivity between those large reserves over time; and protects public land remnants of ecosystems that have been heavily cleared throughout their range.
It recognises the exceptional conservation values of Pilliga and Goonoo State Forests as two of the largest remaining woodland patches in Australia. The adequate protection of these areas has national significance for the on-going survival of many bird and animal species currently in decline.
Major Government investment is also proposed to integrate voluntary acquisition of high priority private lands with incentives that support environmentally sensitive management by landholders within a strategic planning framework. It also proposes ecologically sustainable management practices for implementation across land tenures.
The proposal foreshadows options for future industry alternatives in the region, although these will be expanded and described further in the forthcoming socio-economic report. It opposes any further intensification of logging in native woodlands in the bioregion and instead proposes investment to enable industry restructuring and a transition to a plantation based and value-added industry.