Leading scientists issue the Woodlands Declaration to WA Premier calling for urgent protection of Great Western Woodlands

The Wilderness Society (WA) Inc
Media Release
20 January 2010

Growing concern about uncontrolled wildfires and poor management of the globally significant Great Western Woodlands in the south west of WA has prompted more than 50 leading Australian and international environmental scientists to issue a public alert to the West Australian Premier Colin Barnett calling for urgent action to ensure long term sustainable use and conservation outcomes.
 
The scientists have sent the Premier, and Minister for the Environment, Donna Faragher, the Woodlands Declaration, which details the importance of protecting the Great Western Woodlands - the largest remaining habitat of its type on Earth.

The Woodlands Declaration was released today by two of the internationally respected scientists, Dr. Denis Saunders, member of the Wentworth Group and President of WWF Australia, and Professor Stephen Hopper, Director, Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, England, the world’s leading botanical garden.

“Protecting the Great Western Woodlands is of international importance,” the Woodlands Declaration states.

“We urge you to act decisively.  Appropriate protective tenures and effective land management are needed to secure the biodiversity, ecological integrity, carbon stocks and the other social and economic values of this extraordinary landscape.”

Covering 16 million hectares, an area three times the size of Tasmania, the Great Western Woodlands are by far the largest remaining temperate woodlands of there type on Earth. 

“As a Western Australian, I don’t think we’ve appreciated yet how extraordinarily rare and important it is to have the Great Western Woodlands still intact,” said Professor Hopper. “In other parts of the world, semi-arid woodlands like these have been largely cleared, degraded or turned to desert.  The Great Western Woodlands are recognised as an area of global mega-diversity and are invaluable as a carbon sink in helping moderate global warming.”

Dr. Denis Saunders said, “Although still in good shape the Great Western Woodlands are now increasingly threatened by uncontrolled wildfires, the spread of invasive feral animals and weeds and the accumulated effects of mining and road construction.”

“Urgent action is needed if we are to effectively protect species such the Regent Parrot, the Crested Bellbird, and many threatened native plant species,” he said.

Read the scientists declaration here

Leading Scientists

Dr Denis A Saunders AM.

President of WWF-Australia, Member of the Wentworth Group of Concerned Scientists. Ecologist and conservation biologist with more than 30 years of experience of the fauna of the south west of Western Australia.

Prof. Stephen D. Hopper

Director, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, England, the world’s leading botanical garden.  Fellow of the Linnean Society.  Former Director of Kings Park and Botanic Garden in Perth.  Botanist and conservation biologist with more than 30 years experience of the flora of the south-west of Western Australia. 

For and on behalf of the biological experts on the attached list who have expertise on the ecology of the temperate woodlands, and who are signatories of the Woodlands Declaration. 

Professor Andrew Bennett, Professor of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University

Professor Hugh A Ford, Professor of Zoology, University of New England, Armidale

Professor Stephen Garnett,  Director, School for Environmental Research, Charles Darwin University

Professor Richard Hobbs, Australian Laureate Fellow, University of Western Australia

Professor Chris Johnson, School of Marine and Tropical Biology, James Cook University

Professor David Lindenmayer, Professor of Ecology and Conservation Science, ANU

Professor Jonathan Majer, Head of Department of Environmental Biology, Curtin University

Professor  Ralph MacNally, Director of Australian Centre for Biodiversity, Monash University

Assistant Professor Pieter Poot, Lecturer in Plant Conservation Biology, School of Plant Biology, University of Western Australia

Professor Hugh Possingham, Director of the Ecology Centre, University of Queensland

Professor Philip Rundel, Distinguished Professor of Biology, University of California United States of America

Professor Michael Soule, Emeritus, University of California, United States of America

Ms. Christine Adams-Hosking, PhD student,  Centre for Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Science, University of Queensland

Ms. Margarita Arianoutsou, Faculty of Biology, Department of Ecology and Systematics, University of Athens, Greece

Dr. Sandra Berry, Vegetation ecologist, Visiting Fellow, The Australian National University

Ms. Alice Blackwood, Research Assistant, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales

Dr. Michiala Bowen, Post-doctoral Research Fellow, The University of Queensland

Mr. Keith Bradby, Director, Gondwana Link Ltd.

Dr. Susan Campbell, Honorary Research Fellow, University of Melbourne

Dr. Viki Cramer, Assistant Research Professor, School of Plant Biology, University of Western Australia

Dr. Paul Caplat, Post-doctoral Research Fellow, The Ecology Centre, The University of Queensland

Ms. Paula Deegan, Senior Research Associate University of Queensland

Ms. Susie Duncan, Ecological Consultant

Dr. Eddie van Etten, Senior Lecturer, Environmental Management, Edith Cowan University
.
Ms. Megan Evans, Research Assistant, The Ecology Centre, The University of Queensland

Dr James Fitzsimons, Conservation Manager (Australia Program), The Nature Conservancy

Dr. David Freudenberger, Director of Science and Major Projects,  Greening Australia

Dr Carl Gosper, Fire Ecology Research Scientist, Western Australia

Ms. Christine Hay, Consulting Botanist

Mr Dean Ingwersen, Woodland Birds for Biodiversity Officer, Birds Australia

Dr. Liana Joseph, Post-doctoral Fellow, University of Queensland

Dr Heather Keith, Ecologist, The Fenner School of Environment and Society, Australian National University

Mrs. Carissa Klein, Ph.D. Student, Conservation Planning, Ecology Centre, University of Queensland

Ms. Anya Lam, Environmental Officer, WA Department of Water

Dr. Robert Lambeck, Landscape Ecologist, University of WA School of Plant Biology

Dr. Ian Lunt, Associate Professor, Institute for Land, Water & Society, Charles Sturt University

Dr. Nicola Markus, Chief Conservation Officer, Bush Heritage Australia

Dr. Martine Maron, Lecturer in Environmental Management, University of Queensland

Mr. Gary McMahon, Principal Consultant, Ecosystem Solutions Pty Ltd.

Dr. Lucy Nairn, Research Fellow, Australian Wetlands & Rivers Centre, University New South Wales

Mr. James O’Connor, Research Manager, Birds Australia

Ms. Allison O'Donnell, PhD student in bushfire ecology, University of Western Australia

Dr. Alex Petrie, Conservation Veterinarian

Dr. Suzanne Prober, Woodland Ecologist, Western Australia

Dr. Jim Radford, Ecologist, Bush Heritage, Australia

Dr. Doug Robinson, Conservation Biologist

Ms. Kate Schindal, Former Special Projects Officer, Gondwana Link

Dr. Rachel Standish, Research Assistant Professor, School of Plant Biology, University of Western Australia

Dr. Judit Szabo, Research Fellow, The Ecology Centre, University of Queensland

Dr. Graham Thompson, Centre for Ecosystem Management, Edith Cowan University

Mr. Charlie Thorn, Director, Australian Sustainable Development Institute

Dr. Barry Traill, Director, Wild Australia Program, Pew Environment Group

Ms. Ayesha Tulloch, Ph.D. Student, The Ecology Centre, University of Queensland
 
Dr. Alexander Watson, Consulting Wildlife Ecologist

Dr. James Watson, Senior Research Fellow, University of Queensland

Senior Lecturer, School of Biological Sciences, University of Queensland