Landscape scale native vegetation management (Stream one) Victorian Environmental Partnerships Program (VEPP) Stream one overview Stream one projects Victoria is a leader in testing market-based approaches to conservation through programs such as BushTender and EcoTender, which use conservation auctions; and BushBroker:-a system of tradeable credits. These programs have had a significant, positive impact on environmental quality on private land. Corangamite CMA ($650,000) The Corangamite Conservation Tender project area includes the Bellarine Peninsula Ramsar site and the Great Otway National Park. The surrounding private land is strategically important with significantly diverse vegetation from wet forests though to heathlands and saltmarsh. The $15.48 million Victorian Environmental Partnerships Program (VEPP) builds on these programs, working with landholders to strategically improve the quality and extent of native vegetation within targeted landscapes. The use of market-based approaches will be linked to new international standards for environmental-economic accounting. This will allow the Victorian Government to account for changes in the condition of environmental assets. For Stream one, $9.6 million has been allocated to Catchment Management Authorities (CMAs) to engage landholders. Management sites and actions that deliver the best environmental value will be determined through CMA led conservation auctions. Conservation auctions require participants to submit a bid price to undertake work. Auctions are considered a cost effective method of achieving large landscape scale improvements and are a positive incentive to help landholders better manage native vegetation on their properties. Contracts have been awarded to landholders across the state. Landholders will undertake work over a five year period as defined through an agreed management plan. Map: Corangamite Conservation Tender project area within the Corangamite CMA region Goulburn Broken, North Central & North East CMAs ($4,590,000) The Northern Eco Connections project area crosses nine river catchments and aims to increase the vegetation connectivity in two key corridor zones. Map: Northern Eco Connections project area within the Goulburn Broken, North East and North Central CMA regions Landscape scale native vegetation management (Stream one) Wimmera CMA & Glenelg Hopkins CMA ($2,500,000) Mallee CMA Northern Habitat Tender ($1,210,000) The Northern Habitat Tender targets regions within the Mallee that include nationally significant landscapes that support populations of rare and threatened species such as the Regent Parrot, White-browed Treecreeper and the Port Lincoln Snake. Culturally, the area is of national and international value with a large number of meeting places, ceremonial places, scarred trees, and artefact sites found throughout the area. The Habitat Tender targets an area of strategic importance and very high natural value. It includes threatened ecological communities such as the Grey Box Grassy Woodlands and Native Grasslands. Threatened species include the Swift Parrot, Growling Grass Frog, Mallee Fowl and Southern Brown Bandicoot. Map: Northern Habitat Tender project area within the Mallee CMA region West Gippsland CMA ($650,000) The Ramsar listed Corner Inlet / Nooramunga Coastal Park, Cape Liptrap Coastal Park and the Bunurong area offer significant environmental, social and agricultural values. The target area includes three iconic areas which host a suite of vegetation communities and rare and threatened species. Map: Habitat Tender project area within the Wimmera and Glenelg Hopkins CMA regions CMAs were awarded funding for conservation auctions through a competitive process that considered the strategic value of the targeted landscapes and the expected return on investment of their programs. Map: Gippsland Coastal Plain Biolink – Strzelecki’s to Bunurong within the West Gippsland CMA region © The State of Victoria Department of Environment and Primary Industries 2014 This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia licence. You are free to re-use the work under that licence, on the condition that you credit the State of Victoria as author. The licence does not apply to any images, photographs or branding, including the Victorian Coat of Arms, the Victorian Government logo and the Department of Environment and Primary Industries logo. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au/deed.en ISBN 978-1-74146-027-8 (pdf) www.depi.vic.gov.au Accessibility If you would like to receive this publication in an alternative format, please telephone the DEPI Customer Service Centre on 136186, email customer.service@depi.vic.gov.au or via the National Relay Service on 133 677 www.relayservice.com.au. 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