TNC Photo - Mark Godfrey

STATE OF THE ENVIRONMENT

The independent 2011 State of the Environment Committee reported to the Australian Parliament that while much of Australia’s environment and heritage is in good shape, or improving, other parts are in poor condition or deteriorating. Some of the pressures on our environment arise from past decisions and practices that have left an ongoing legacy of impact.

Dr Tom Hatton, chair of the committee, wrote: “The Australian environment is precious. Our ecosystems, biodiversity and heritage are vulnerable to the choices we make. At the same time we depend on them for our survival and wellbeing.

“Our ecosystems, and the biodiversity they support, provide services that are fundamental to human life, such as regulation of the atmosphere, maintenance of soil fertility, food production, filtration of water and pest control.

“The major future drivers of change – climate change, population growth, economic development and associated consumption of natural resources, as well as the pressures that these drivers place on the environment – will need to be managed carefully if our society is to achieve a sustainable relationship with the Australian environment.”