Parks under threat
Victoria's national parks system is extraordinarily diverse. On land it includes fragile alpine heathlands, box-ironbark forests rich in wildlife, threatened woodland ecosystems and rare remnant grasslands. Along our coasts are marine parks and sanctuaries brimming with ocean life, much of it found nowhere else on earth. Parks and wild places are our only remaining source of genetic diversity of native plants and animals. They are also something every Victorian - and international visitors - can enjoy in their natural form. These parks form a unique natural heritage, yet they are under constant threat, and need our protection. We need your support to defend our parks from commercial tourism, cattle grazing and damage from feral animals, as well as under-resourcing of rangers and maintenance staff to manage the parks. |
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Development threatening our parks
A proposal to open up Victoria's national parks to the development of private tourism infrastructure could have terrible long-term consequences for nature conservation and would be very difficult to reverse.
Alpine cattle grazing, it's a park not a paddock!
A decision by the Victorian Government to allow cattle grazing in the Alpine National Park in 2011 inflamed community debate about how we should manage our national parks.
Marine pests
One of the biggest threats to Victoria's coastal waters is the voracious appetite of marine pests, which prey on our native species and cause havoc in underwater ecosystems.
Parks and climate change
Climate change threatens our national parks in many ways. If left unchecked it will lead to more intense and frequent bushfires, dry up rivers and wetlands, and push many species towards extinction.
Fire and our parks
Fire management is a significant public safety issue as well as an issue for our national parks and the many tens of thousands of species that live within them. Under climate change fires are predicted to become more frequent and intense.
Weeds and feral animals
Invasive species such as weeds and feral animals are the number one cause of native animal extinctions in Australia, are the second biggest threat to river and stream systems and are the third biggest threat to endangered ecosystems.
Alpine National Park under threat
Victoria's heritage-listed Alpine National Park is one of the finest national parks in Australia, but it is coming under increasing pressure from invasive pest plants and animals.