Environment and Heritage

ENVIRONMENT AND HERITAGE

Australian Water Fund

The Australian Government will provide $2 billion over six years to assist with the funding of practical, on‑the‑ground water solutions. The Australian Government Water Fund (AWF) represents a major investment by the Australian Government in water infrastructure, improved knowledge and water management, and better practices in the stewardship of Australia’s scarce water resources. The fund will benefit all Australians, including those in rural and regional areas. Investment under the fund will be made on the basis that it is consistent with, and helps to achieve, the objectives, outcomes and actions of the National Water Initiative.

There are three programmes under the Australian Water Fund:

Water Smart Australia.
Raising National Water Standards.
Community Water Grants.

Water Smart Australia

A total of $1.6 billion will be provided to implement the Water Smart Australia programme. The programme will invest to accelerate the development and uptake of smart technologies and practices in water use across Australia. To gain greatest effect from these investments, competitive bidding will be the primary mechanism for allocating grants. Examples of the type of projects that could be eligible are outlined in the policy statement; Securing Australia’s Water Future, which was released by the Prime Minister in 2004. They include:

Improving river flows.
On-farm water use efficiency improvements.
Desalination of water for use in cities and towns.
Recycling and reuse of stormwater and ‘grey’ water.
More efficient storage facilities.
Alternatives to ocean outfalls and better management of sewage.
Improvements in irrigation infrastructure.
Developing water efficient housing design.

This component of the AWF is administered by the National Water Commission.

Raising National Water Standards

The Raising National Water Standards programme will invest $200 million over six years in Australia’s national capacity to measure, monitor and manage its water resources. These investments will be designed to help achieve National Water Initiative outcomes. Projects that could be eligible are outlined in the policy statement; Securing Australia’s Water Future. They include the following areas:

Facilitating a nationally consistent system for collecting and processing water data.
Strategic assessment of groundwater resources.
Working with local communities to improve the conservation of water systems with high environmental values through measures such as planning, voluntary conservation agreements and improved knowledge.
Establishing and promoting the Water Efficiency Labelling Scheme for household appliances, and implementation of the Smart Water Mark regime for household gardens.

This component of the AWF is administered by the National Water Commission.

Community Water Grants

The Australian Water Fund (AWF) also provides Community Water Grants to promote the wise use of water. A total of $200 million will be available over the next five years commencing in 2004-05 for grants of up to $50,000 each to save and protect water resources. In some instances the grants can be combined to provide grants of a larger scale to community-based non-government organisations. Funded projects will be community oriented, have public benefits, and involve practical on-ground works to save or protect water resources. This component of the AWF is administered by the Department of Environment and Heritage and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.

Water Efficiency Labelling Standards Scheme

Through the 2005-06 Budget the Australian Government has implemented a cost recovery arrangement for the Water Efficiency Labelling Standards (WELS) Scheme. A five-yearly registration fee will be collected to provide a viable long-term funding platform for the regulatory oversight and administration of the WELS Scheme.

Consumers are expected to reap cost savings of approximately $600 million by 2021 due to the energy and water savings delivered through the WELS Scheme. Water consumption could be reduced by around 87 million litres (ML) per annum by 2021, with water savings over the interim period totalling about 610,000 ML, greater than the volume of Sydney Harbour.

Natural Heritage Trust and National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality

The Australian Government’s $3 billion Natural Heritage Trust, in parallel with the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality (a joint commitment of $1.4 billion with the states and territories), provides a long-term, coordinated approach to tackling the major environmental challenges facing our nation. This year the Australian Government will finish accrediting integrated natural resource management plans under the Trust and National Action Plan, and increase its focus on implementing regional investment plans.

Commonwealth Environment Research Facilities (CERF)

The 2005-06 Budget provides $100 million from 2005-06 to 2009-10 inclusive to improve Australia’s capacity to understand and respond to priority environment concerns. The CERF programme will support environmental research that demonstrates public good outcomes in a range of critical areas, and draw on multiple disciplines, professional partnerships and existing research efforts.

Under this programme, $40 million will be dedicated to specific regional support in North Queensland for a Marine and Tropical Sciences Research Facility for research relating to the Great Barrier Reef, tropical rainforests and coastal issues. A total of $60 million will be allocated through national funding rounds from July 2006.

Improving Launceston’s air quality

As indicated in its election statement: Strengthening Tasmania’s Economy and Building a Better Community, the Australian Government will provide $1 million over three years from 2005-06 to improve air quality in Launceston. Air quality in the Tamar Valley region of Tasmania continues to fail the national air quality standard for particles by a substantial margin, and there is strong epidemiological evidence that links exposure to wood–smoke particles with serious health effects, including increased mortality and respiratory illnesses.

The measure will aim for industry agreement to invest in cleaner technologies, maintaining the momentum of the highly successful Launceston Wood-Heater Replacement programme.

National recycling hotline

In its 2004 election statement: A Sustainable Australia — Recycling Rewards, the Australian Government committed to fund the development of a national recycling telephone hotline to enable the public to find information on the types of waste that can be recycled in their local areas. In the 2005-06 Budget the Australian Government will provide $300,000 over three years commencing in 2005-06 to deliver this commitment by working with Planet Ark (building on their Recycling Near You web based service), local government and recyclers. The hotline will complement a range of national programmes concerning the recovery and recycling of consumer goods and packaging, such as the National Packaging Covenant and proposed schemes to recycle tyres and televisions.

Regional marine planning

Australia's marine jurisdiction has been estimated to contribute more than $70 billion per year to the economy and support more than 900,000 direct and indirect jobs. The development of regional marine plans helps improve our understanding of the biodiversity of the marine environment and the economic potential of Australia’s oceans. Marine planning has already made great contributions to science and vastly increased our knowledge of the marine environment.

In 2005-06, the Australian Government will provide annual funding of $9.4 million for the implementation of regional marine planning, with the extension of the programme to be considered in the 2006-07 Budget. This will enable the Department of the Environment and Heritage to progress regional marine plans for Northern, North-Western and South-Western Australia and to continue the implementation of the South-East regional marine plan.

Great Barrier Reef structural adjustment package

On 1 July 2004, rezoning in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park increased the area of ‘no take’ zones in the Park from 4.5 per cent to 33.3 per cent, creating the largest network of protected marine areas in the world. In 2005-06, the Australian Government will provide further funding towards the structural adjustment package available to affected commercial fishers. This package will assist fishers, related businesses and communities adversely affected by the implementation of the new zoning.

Kakadu National Park

Following the abolition of entry fees to Kakadu National Park, the Australian Government has committed additional funding of $16.4 million towards the management of Kakadu to provide traditional owners with foregone income resulting from the abolition of the fees. The management of the Park will incorporate outcomes arising from a new tourism strategy for Kakadu.

In February 2005, the Kakadu Board of Management supported by the Australian and Northern Territory governments launched a strategic vision for tourism in Kakadu National Park. A shared vision for tourism in Kakadu National Park has been developed in cooperation with the Aboriginal traditional owners, to build a sustainable tourism industry and enhance economic opportunities for the parks traditional owners.

Wind forecasting

The wind is a greenhouse-friendly, alternative energy source. The Australian Government has provided $14 million over five years from 2004-05 to support the development of a wind forecasting system for Australian conditions. This funding will be used to develop and install systems to provide accurate long‑range forecasts for wind output, facilitating greater penetration of wind in energy markets and allowing for more strategic planning of new wind farms across Australia.