Australia’s Plan to Stop Extinction Crisis

October 5, 2022

Australia announced a plan to halt extinction of species.

Key facts

The Australian Government is planning on stopping species from going extinct and ending the country’s status as “the mammal extinction capital of the world”.
The strategy comes after the State of the Environment report found that Australia has the highest instances of extinction in the world.
This is the first time that Australian government has announced a zero extinction target for the country’s flora and fauna.
The 10-year strategy aims to prioritize the conservation of 110 threatened animals and plants, including Koala.
It also seeks to protect a third of Australia’s landmass, which is deteriorating at a rapid pace due to habitat loss, invasive pests and weeds, climate crisis and frequent natural disasters.
The protection of at least 30 per cent of the landmass under the environmental law ensures the safety of vulnerable species and habitats.
20 areas with high densities of threatened species will be specifically targeted, like Kangaroo Island and Blue Mountains.
The strategy also includes improving climate resilience, building “insurance” populations of some key species in predator-free zones and improving surveillance of existing populations.
It will also focus on reducing the impact of feral cats, foxes and a weed called gumba grass.
Under the new plan, the aboriginal people’s expertise will be utilized for the protection of the environment.
The plan is being criticized as it picked “winners” by identifying 110 “priority species”, when around 2,000 species have been listed as threatened under the national laws.
It is unclear how this plan seeks to protect those species have not been recognized as priority.
The goals of the plan are difficult to attain unless the funding is increased to improve the conservation efforts, ensure the recovery of species and prevent habitat loss.
According to experts, around 1.69 billion USD is required to address the problem of extinction in Australia.