The Wilderness Society's vision for Cape York

• Why Cape York Peninsula is special • What the experts say about Cape York • Cape York Peninsula Heritage Act 2007 • World Heritage and Cape York • The Wilderness Society’s campaign successes • The Wilderness Society’s vision for Cape York Peninsula

A comprehensive, region-wide conservation plan: Protection for nature, a future for its people

A range of policies and approaches are being implemented on Cape York, which lay the foundations for a comprehensive, region-wide conservation plan. They aim to preserve conservation values across the region, respect Aboriginal rights and interests and support the development of conservation based local economies.

This new and expanded vision has been contentious at times. Policies to protect off-reserve conservation values have drawn criticism from some pro-development Aboriginal leaders, because they restrict intensive, large scale development, such as irrigated agriculture. The Queensland Government enacted the Cape York Peninsula Heritage Act 2007 in an attempt to resolve these tensions and enshrine a multi-pronged approach to delivering conservation, economic and social outcomes, as well as provide pathways for delivery.

The McIllwraith Range is Australia's largest old-growth rainforest. It was declared a National Park in August 2008. Photo: Kerry Trapnell

Expanded Protected Area Network

A large and well managed protected area network is the core of the conservation vision for Cape York.

Since 1994 the Queensland Government has purchased 1.3 million hectares of land on Cape York for the creation of National Parks and Aboriginal freehold. A further 680,000 hectares of state owned land has been allocated for this purpose. To date 533,000 hectares of land been made Aboriginal owned National Park and 580,000 hectares has been handed back as Aboriginal freehold. 107,000 hectares of the Aboriginal freehold is subject to conservation agreements.

The Queensland Government, working with indigenous and conservation representatives, has slowly been resolving the complex tenure arrangements for lands purchased over fifteen years for conservation and Aboriginal hand-back. Significantly, the Cape York Peninsula Heritage Act resolved the issue of joint management, creating a new form of Aboriginal owned National Park on Cape York. All existing and new National Parks will sit under this new tenure.

In March 2008, Federal Environment Minister Garrett announced a $180 million injection into the National Reserve System which specifically identified the tropical savannah of Cape York as a priority for funding. We are looking forward to this commitment being realised.

Private land conservation is also an important and expanding part of the Cape York story. In 2007, the Howard Government bought a large property on the north of the Cape, Bertiehaugh to be managed for conservation by the Irwin family. Australian Wildlife Conservancy has purchased the 170,000 hectare Piccininny Plains property.

Indigenous Protected Areas

In June 2008 the first Indigenous Protected Area (IPA) was proclaimed on Cape York. The Kaanju Ngaachi Wenlock and Pascoe Rivers IPA is nearly 200,000 hectares and is an inspiring example of indigenous conservation. Led by traditional owner David Claudie, the Kaanju people are protecting the natural and cultural values of their remarkable wet forest, savannah and sand ridge country, while building sustainable livelihoods on country. It is expected this IPA will expand to over half a million hectares.

The Wilderness Society is working in a cooperative agreement with David Claudie to build models for indigenous conservation in northern Australia. The key principles are promotion of traditional owner occupancy of homelands, active management of high conservation landscapes and the development of a conservation economy. 

Off reserve protection

A scientific report written in 2001 fundamentally expanded the conservation vision for Cape York Peninsula. The report, written by Mackey, Nix and Hitchcock, veered away from any hotspot or representative approach, concluding that it is the “integrity of natural systems and processes over such a vast area across entire watersheds, that gives Cape York Peninsula its unique character and global environmental significance.”

It made clear that protected area and land management models developed for the fragmented landscapes of southern Australia were inadequate for dealing with the vast and largely intact landscapes of northern Australia.
Instead of a focus on high level protection for the ‘best of the best', The Wilderness Society now recognised that the protection of ecological processes across Cape York was required.  Our land clearing and wild rivers campaigns aimed to deliver this by keeping the rivers running free and the trees upright across the landscape.

In 2004, the Beattie Government brought in historic laws to ban broadscale clearing of remnant vegetation in Queensland. These laws have been hailed as the most significant environmental outcome in Queensland's history. Last year, conservationists supported the Cape York Peninsula Heritage Act 2007 allowing small scale clearing of Aboriginal land for community development.

The Queensland Government also passed the Wild Rivers Act 2005, the first laws in Australia to protect rivers that remain in a largely natural state, by regulating development activities within declared management zones. Thirteen of Cape York's rivers have been proposed by the government for Wild River protection.

These off-reserve initiatives ensure that ecological processes will continue across the entire Cape York landscape. In respect to management, it is imagined that in some areas economic activity, such as ecologically sustainable grazing, may be compatible with high level conservation management and recognition, including World Heritage listing.

Conservation Economy

Cape York Peninsula is economically disadvantaged. It is vital that any region-wide conservation approach be accompanied by appropriate development and economic opportunities. The creation of land management jobs and development of the tourism industry are key aspects of this.

There are great examples of local, indigenous tourism ventures on the Cape, and The Wilderness Society is working to promote the region and its eco-tourism operators. It has, in conjunction with Queensland Tourism and Lonely Planet, produced a hugely popular tourism map of Cape York highlighting eco-tourism companies and their work.

Land management is slowly becoming a source of jobs, income and investment. At the 2006 Queensland state election, The Wilderness Society secured a commitment of up to 100 indigenous wild river ranger jobs. The Kaanju IPA will employ twenty indigenous rangers over the next five years with a combination of state and Federal funding. These job figures are not insignificant in an economy like Cape York, and are competitive with indigenous mining employment on the Cape. 

Furthermore, we must ensure that the emerging carbon economy rewards communities for land management and carbon minimizing burning regimes.

World Heritage

World Heritage has been an aspiration of the conservation movement since the mid nineties. In 1982 the International Union for the Conservation of Nature identified Cape York as one of thirteen Australian sites worthy of natural World Heritage listing, all but three of which have now been listed.

Over the last two years, both Queensland and Federal Governments have committed to pursuing World Heritage listing on cultural and natural grounds for Cape York. Governments and conservation groups are dedicated to ensuring traditional owner consent for any future listing. The Cape York Peninsula Heritage Act set out a path for identifying boundaries and consent mechanisms for World Heritage and work is under way.

The Wilderness Society believes a large World Heritage listing can provide the framework to hold the region wide conservation plan together: an umbrella under which the Federal and state Governments can coordinate management, planning and funding. It can also be a source of pride and economic opportunities for local communities.  Importantly the World Heritage process must be owned, directed and celebrated by traditional owners and others who live on the Cape. Finally it must also be celebrated by all Australians who are custodians of this world-class treasure.