Bush Heritage reserve selection criteria

Joss Bentley heads the Reserve Management Unit and is involved in the selection of Bush Heritage land purchases.

Native grassland is highly threatened. PHOTO: DAVID BAKER-GABB

The criteria that Bush Heritage uses for assessing and prioritising land for purchase are enshrined in Bush Heritage’s Land Acquisition Policy. In summary, this policy states that Bush Heritage will seek to purchase land that:

• contributes to the survival of a high diversity of species or communities, or of rare and threatened species and communities, or the natural processes that maintain them
• is threatened, and will not otherwise be protected
• will result in a reserve that is viable and robust, ensuring that the values for which the land was purchased can be protected in the long term
• has acceptable management costs which Bush Heritage can meet
• complements other conservation initiatives; such as enhancing the survival of a species or community which is poorly reserved or where the land may contribute to the long term viability of another protected area.

There is a high degree of agreement between Bush Heritage’s Land Acquisition Policy and the principles suggested by Rod Fensham (see Our future reserves). Aesthetics are not used as an assessment criterion, while the degree of threat, as well as biodiversity values and reservation status, are considered. Not all properties that Bush Heritage buys will have the outstanding aesthetic qualities of properties such as Carnarvon Station, but they will be vitally important for the protection of Australia’s biodiversity.