NEWS 14 December 2017 |
Victoria is the most cleared state in Australia, and we are still losing significant amounts of native bush and wildlife habitat to urban development, agricultural intensification and infrastructure development.
Final revised native vegetation rules have now been made law (gazetted), after a three-year review process which VNPA participated in.
The new regulations include improvements, such as returning some elements to avoid clearing in the first place.
However, the system depends on offsets – allowing clearing if vegetation is improved someplace else, at the cost of the clearer. There are significant questions about the effectiveness of offsets, both in stopping clearing and in providing a real gain for our habitats and wildlife.
