PARK WATCH Article December 2025 |

Sarah Brugler and Benjamin J Richardson research the protection of grasslands and other threatened habitats on private land

It’s a critical time to get more landowners involved in nature conservation. Threatened habitats like native grasslands are underrepresented in our reserve system and mainly survive on private land. Preventing damaging land uses like habitat destruction and overgrazing on private land is vital to protect habitats and threatened wildlife like Plains Wanderers and Striped Legless Lizards. An in-perpetuity conservation covenant may be the most effective legal tool for safeguarding nature on private land.

In Victoria, 60 per cent of land is owned privately. Protecting grasslands and other threatened habitats therefore relies on private landowners. Nature and planning laws provide some protection to prevent trees from being cut down. However, these laws often fail to prevent habitat destruction or protect threatened wildlife. Notably, harmful land practices – like over-grazing and intensive cropping – are virtually unregulated on private land.

Although nature laws do not require landowners to manage land for the benefit of native wildlife, increasingly, private landowners are understanding the importance of, and are committed to, doing so. Landowners are joining local Landcare programs, replanting shelterbelts and riparian habitat. Farmers are participating in the carbon market to diversify their income and many now engage in natural capital accounting frameworks (which help measure and report on environmental performance). There’s also a new national Nature Repair Market which aims to encourage more landowners to participate in private land conservation.

Conservation covenants

Arguably, the most well established and effective tool for permanently protecting threatened wildlife on private land is the use of conservation covenants. Victoria has the most covenants nationally, covering about 1,800 properties. Across Australia, covenanting bodies struggle to meet the growing demand from landowners wanting a covenant.

A conservation covenant establishes a ‘privately protected area’. In Victoria, a landowner enters a conservation covenant with Trust for Nature (Victoria) and, with the approval of the Minister, the covenant is registered against the title of their land. The terms of each covenant are specific to the property. They can permanently prohibit land clearing, overgrazing, fertiliser use, subdivision, construction and more. And they remain in place even when the property is sold.

Landowners remain responsible for the management of their land, even if it’s covered by a covenant. Trust for Nature develops a customised management plan with the landowner and supports landowners with best practice land management through its stewardship program.

Conservation covenants are becoming more popular among different types of landowners. Partly, it’s because landowners with covenants in Victoria can now get a land tax exemption. Plus, some local councils offer rate rebates, and in some circumstances landowners may receive an incentive payment to enter a covenant.

It’s not yet clear how the national Nature Repair Market will support landowners with covenants, but there are two project methodologies currently in development – ‘Enhancing native vegetation’ and ‘Protect and conserve.’ They could potentially generate financial revenue for landowners with covenants.

We’re working on a project funded by the Australian Research Council to study how conservation covenants can continue to help more landowners protect threatened wildlife and habitats on their land.

Sarah Brugler is an environmental law professional and researcher

Benjamin J Richardson is a Professor of Environmental Law at the University of Tasmania

Learn more about their project at: www.utas.edu.au/research/projects/conservation-covenants-for-ecosystem-restoration-and-climate-adaptation