Land Clearing

11 August 2006

A new report has been released today by the Environment Centre Northern Territory (ECNT), which examines options for conservation and appropriate development in the Daly River Catchment.

The report argues that to protect the nationally significant environmental and cultural values of the Daly River , the top priorities for the Martin Government should be to declare the catchment as a ‘ Living River ’ and make immediate amendments to the outdated Water Act.

“Both of these identified priorities were major election commitments on the part of the Martin Government”, ECNT’s Freshwater Campaigner Dr Gary Scott said. “Over a year into its second term, however, we have seen too little progress within government in relation to these promises.

“With the current moratoriums on native vegetation clearing and pastoral subdivisions in the Douglas-Daly area possibly ending sometime in 2007, conservation measures must be in place to ensure that the Daly River is not harmed by inappropriate forms of development (such as large-scale clearing and water extraction).

“The new report therefore examines a range of positive economic activities that are compatible with the catchment’s environmental and cultural values and that will at the same time provide sustainable livelihoods for local people.

These forms of appropriate development could include:

• Eco-tourism (including recreational fishing) and cultural tourism;

• Bushfood industries and promotion of native species and organic practices in agricultural production;

• Sustainable wildlife harvesting;

• A Daly Water Trust and/or a Northern Australia Ecotrust to provide funding for ecologically sustainable enterprises and environmental research;

• Better funding for Indigenous Ranger Groups;

• Agroforestry and biofuel industries on already cleared land.

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