Australia Plans To Dedicate 30% Of Its Land To Wildlife Conservation

Australia was hit hard over the past few years in regard to wildlife conversation. Devastating bush fires rampaged the country, killing millions of animals and wiping out natural habitats.

Things have gotten so grim in Australia that it’s now considered the mammal extinction capital of the world. In other words, there are more extinct mammals in Australia than in any other country on earth.

In order to combat further extinctions, the Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek announced on October 4, 2022 the introduction of the 2022-2023 Threatened Species Action Plan, which has the ambitious goal of seeing zero extinctions.

According to Reuters, Plibersek said, “The need for action to protect our plants, animals, and ecosystems from extinction has never been greater.”

Australia is the mammal extinction capital of the world. We have to turn that around. pic.twitter.com/JudydHa88P

— Tanya Plibersek (@tanya_plibersek) October 5, 2022

The Threatened Species Action Plan will focus on protecting 110 species that are in danger of extinction, as well as focusing on 20 regions across the country.

The initiative will expand areas managed for conservation by 50 million hectares (193,000 square-miles). When all is said and done, the initiative has a commitment to “protect and conserve more than 30% of Australia’s land mass.”

While the move is a massive step in the right direction, some claim that it’s not enough.

Speaking with Reuters Rachel Lowry with WWF-Australia said, “Australia has more than 1,900 listed threatened species. This plan picks 110 winners. It’s unclear how it will help our other ‘non priority’ threatened species.”

While there may be a need for more work to be done, the Threatened Species Action Plan is a crucial move to preserve Australia’s wildlife. Hopefully, more countries follow suit!