Caring for our Country: questions and answers
1. Why has the Government decided to introduce a new program?
The Government recognises that there is a pressing need to do better in taking action to protect Australia's unique natural environment and to make real and measurable progress towards the sustainable management of our natural resources.
Historically there was a raft of programs for managing natural resources that have overlapping goals, unclear objectives and have been unable to demonstrate value for investment.
- These include the Natural Heritage Trust (NHT), the National Action Plan for Salinity and Water Quality (NAP), Environmental Stewardship Program and the National Landcare Program (NLP).
- These deficiencies have been highlighted by a number of reviews, evaluations and audits, including by the Australian National Audit Office.
Caring for our Country offers significant reforms that remedy the defects in existing approaches, while also retaining their best elements.
Through Caring for our Country, the Government is seeking to bring leadership, accountability and a coherent and coordinated approach to the Australian Government's investment in the protection of our environment and the management of our natural resources.
2. When will Caring for our Country start?
Caring for our Country will be an ongoing program that will commence from 1 July 2008.
3. What will Caring for our Country cover?
Caring for our Country will integrate under one clear overarching goal, the delivery of the NHT, the NLP, the Environmental Stewardship Program, and elements of the Working on Country program.
4. What are the goals and priorities of Caring for our Country?
The goal of Caring for our Country is: "An environment that is healthy, better-protected, well-managed, resilient, and provides essential ecosystem services in a changing climate".
To achieve this objective, Caring for our Country will focus on achieving strategic results in six national priority areas:
- the national reserve system - to accelerate the establishment of a comprehensive, adequate and representative reserve system;
- biodiversity and natural icons - for example, protecting world heritage areas, the Great Barrier Reef rescue, weed and feral animal control and improving outcomes for nationally threatened species and communities;
- coastal environments and critical aquatic habitats - for example protection and rehabilitation of dunes and improving the water quality discharged into coastal environments;
- sustainable farm practices - building on the success of Landcare to change on-farm land management practices to improve the delivery of ecosystem services and production and assist farmers and primary industries to reduce their contributions to greenhouse gas emissions;
- natural resource management in remote and northern Australia - securing environmental and natural resource outcomes in these places, particularly for Indigenous groups; and
- community skills, knowledge and engagement - enhancing the skills and knowledge of Indigenous Australians, volunteers and communities to enable them to form more effective partnerships to deliver landscape-scale change.
5. How will Caring for our Country be delivered?
The program will take a business approach to investment. This means the Australian Government will:
- Be explicit about what we are intending to achieve by releasing a business plan each year;
- Direct our funding to achieve those outcomes and choose the most efficient and effective ways of taking action and the organisations that are best placed to deliver;
- Keep on track by setting short 1-3 year targets;
- Simplify and streamline administration;
- Be accountable to our stakeholders - the Commonwealth Government and the community - for our actions and achievements; and
- focus on achieving results and reducing red tape.
The Commonwealth will establish a single point of entry for Caring for our Country, which will be accessible throughout Australia via a secure internet portal and a toll-free telephone number.
All information, funding, contracting and reporting will be standardised.
6. How will the Caring for our Country business plan work?
In September 2008, the Government will issue the first Caring for our Country business plan that will cover the 2009-10 financial year and will:
- identify outcomes for the first five years of the program against each of the national priority areas for investment;
- outline the first series of short-term (1 to 3 year) targets to achieve these outcomes; and
- invite proposals for activities to deliver investments against these priorities and targets.
Proposals from interested parties should be lodged by January 2009. Regional bodies can also submit proposals as part of revised regional investment strategies. Successful proposals will be announced by the Ministers in April 2009. The assessment cycle in future years will follow a similar timeframe.
7. How will the Government select proposals to deliver its national priorities?
The Commonwealth will select the best arrangements for delivering an integrated package of activities for a particular geographic region or natural asset. This includes the best delivery agents (such as regional natural resource management organisations, local governments, universities, Commonwealth and state agencies, non-government organisations and industry groups) and delivery mechanisms (such as Landcare, small grants, direct purchase, incentives such as stewardship payments, or negotiating planning system reforms).
8. Will long-term funding be available under Caring for our Country?
Yes. Some contracts will run for a year. In other cases, multi-year contracts will be offered to provide security to proponents and ensure that activities are undertaken efficiently.
9. How will achievements be measured?
The Prime Minister will be asked to approve specific outcomes for Caring for our Country within each of the six national priority areas for investment.
Short-term targets (to be achieved between 1 to 3 years) will also be developed. These targets will help ensure the best returns are achieved for the Government's investment, that funds are directed towards achieving national priorities and that the focus is retained on achieving the agreed program outcomes.
Streamlined contracts will clearly identify the outputs and outcomes that the Commonwealth is expecting to be delivered for its investment.
The community will be kept informed of progress through the release of an annual Caring for our Country report card.
There will be a monitoring and evaluating process for the program with clear, uniform requirements detailed in all funding agreements.
10. What level of funding is allocated to Caring for our Country?
Caring for our Country will be an ongoing program. In the first five years (1 July 2008 - 30 June 2013), the Government has committed $2.25 billion to the program. This is almost $450 million per annum.
This is a similar amount to that projected for the combined NHT, ESP, NLP and election commitment offsets from the Working on Country program over the same timeframe.
11. Has Caring for our Country been subject to the Government's efficiency dividend savings process?
No.
12. Which election commitments will be funded from Caring for our Country?
Caring for our Country includes funds to implement the Government's 2007 election commitments to:
- rescue the Great Barrier Reef ($200 million);
- repair our fragile coastal ecosystems ($100 million);
- save the endangered Tasmanian Devil ($10 million);
- improve water quality in the Gippsland Lakes ($5.25 million);
- fight the Cane Toad menace ($2 million);
- employ additional Indigenous Rangers ($90 million);
- expand the Indigenous Protected Area network ($50 million); and
- assist Indigenous Australians enter the carbon trading market ($10 million).
13. Will there be a transition from the existing programs to Caring for our Country?
Yes. The first year, 2008-09 will be a transition year from the existing programs. The following transitional arrangements will minimise disruption during the changeover:
- all NRM regions will be provided with secure baseline funding to assist them in making the transition to new Caring for our Country arrangements;
- additional funding has been set aside to help those regions that may face particular hardship in making the transition;
- we will invest in those activities identified in current regional investment strategies or plans that clearly complement or contribute to the program's six national priority areas for investment (regional plans and investment strategies will not need to be redrafted); and
- new program delivery arrangements will be negotiated with the States/Territories (discussed below) - these may include early agreement to short-term 'transitional' arrangements.
14. Is the Commonwealth still committed to working with the States and Territories and regional natural resource management organisations under Caring for our Country?
Yes. The Commonwealth will seek to enhance its partnership with the States and Territories by renegotiating new bilateral agreements. The Commonwealth intends that these new arrangements will be based on principles of mutual benefit, maintenance of effort, and developing streamlined and more effective arrangements to deliver on natural resource management investments.
15. Will regional groups still be funded? If yes, how much will they receive?
Yes. The highly-valued skills and expertise of regional natural resource management organisations will be very important in achieving the outcomes of Caring for our Country.
The Government will provide regional bodies with a combination of secure base-level funding, specific assistance to help regions adjust to the new program priorities and the opportunity to bid for additional money from within the overall Caring for our Country fund.
$636 million over the life of the program will be provided as a secure base-level of funding to regional bodies to invest in actions that complement and contribute to the Commonwealth's national priorities.
In the transition year (2008-09) each region will receive no less than 60 percent of the average annual allocation that it received from the Commonwealth under the NHT and NAP.
In addition, in 2008-09 the Commonwealth will provide up to a further $31.8m to help those regions that may experience difficulties in making the transition to Caring for our Country. The precise amount available to each region will be determined in consultation with the States and Territories and individual regions.
In the following four years, $127.2 million per annum will be provided as guaranteed base-level funding for regional natural resource management organisations. The amount allocated to each organisation will also be determined in consultation with the States, Territories and regions.
The Commonwealth will provide an additional investment of up to $10.8 million per annum to further assist regional organisations adjust to new arrangements.
16. Will regional bodies be able to access additional funds?
Yes. In addition to the secure base-level funding and assistance for regional bodies outlined in Question 15 above, regional natural resource management organisations will be able to bid for additional money available in the Caring for our Country fund to undertake activities that will help achieve the Commonwealth's desired outcomes and targets.
This will provide regional organisations with potential access to a significantly larger pool of funds than was available under the previous natural resource management programs.
It is likely that regional bodies will be well placed to bid for funds to undertake activities relating to biodiversity protection and natural icons; the national reserve system; Environmental Stewardship; coastal environments and critical aquatic habitats; Landcare; land management change; cane toads; Reef Rescue; Gippsland Lakes; and Indigenous rangers.
While arrangements for allocating these funds in the transitional year (2008-09) are still under consideration, it is intended that regional bodies and other organisations will be able to access funds in 2008-09.
17. Will the New South Wales Land and Water Management Plans be funded in the future?
There is no specific commitment in Caring for our Country for funding these plans.
NSW Land and Water Management Plans could potentially receive funding if they are put forward as a priority by a region and can demonstrate they will contribute to national Caring for our Country priorities and outcomes.
18. What funds will be allocated to the National Reserve System under Caring for our Country?
Many reports and reviews, including a recent audit by the Australian National Audit Office and a review by WWF, have highlighted the NRS as being an effective and important conservation program, but the capacity to achieve the program's desired outcomes has been limited by available funding.
An enhanced National Reserve System is one of the six Caring for our Country national priority areas for investment and the Government will substantially increase investment in this area.
19. Will there still be a facilitator network?
Yes. The Facilitator Network will be refocused to reflect the Government's new emphasis on national priorities and to ensure roles are more clearly defined than under the NHT and NLP. This responds to concerns about the lack of clarity and duplication that exists within these facilitator arrangements.
Australian Government Facilitators will continue to be based in each State and Territory to assist in the implementation of national priorities, providing an integrated approach to the delivery of the program, including Landcare. Indigenous Land Management Facilitator positions will also continue to be funded and will work more closely with state-based teams.
Details on specific positions and numbers in each state and territory are currently under consideration and priority is being given to finalising the structure as quickly as possible.
From 30 June 2008, the Government will not be renewing contracts for facilitators and coordinators hosted in regional bodies and Local Government agencies (affecting Community Landcare Coordinators, Strategic Regional Facilitators and Local Government Facilitators). The Government considers these activities are better managed through local agency ownership and reporting arrangements.
20. Will the Envirofund continue?
No. However, Caring for our Country will continue to use small grants to deliver on its priorities.
21. How do local groups access small grants like the Envirofund?
The Envirofund will be replaced with a range of more targeted small grants activities under the integrated Caring for our Country. These include Community Coastcare grants, Landcare grants and Reef Water Quality grants.
It is expected that funding under all of these small grants components will be made available in the 2008-09 financial year, with calls for proposals for Community Coastcare and Reef Water Quality potentially being issued by May 2008.
The existing Envirofund commitments will be finalised during the remainder of the 2007-08 financial year but further rounds will not be undertaken.
Throughout the life of the program, there is likely to be additional small grants funding available, which will be related to the delivery of the Commonwealth's national priorities.
22. How will the northern and remote Australia component of the program operate?
During the transition year, discussions will be held with relevant State governments and the Northern Territory Government about the options for more effectively delivering Commonwealth investment for environment protection and natural resource management in northern and remote regions of Australia.
These negotiations will take account of the unique biophysical and socio-economic characteristics of these regions and will also reflect other Government priorities and activities in the region.
23. How does Caring for our Country link with the National Landcare Program?
Landcare will be a critical element in delivering funding as part of an integrated Caring for our Country. This will continue the Commonwealth's partnership with farmers and local landcare communities. The Landcare program will continue its important role in improving the management of Australia's natural resources and the resilience of its agricultural sector, with a greater strategic focus on achieving the Commonwealth's national priorities.
24. How much funding is available for Landcare?
Over the first five years of Caring for our Country, $189.2 million will be available to deliver Landcare.
25. What is the status of the Landcare applications received by the 25 February 2008 closing date?
The applications will be assessed with a decision made on funding in time for money to be available early in the new 2008-09 financial year. All contracts, reporting and monitoring requirements will be consistent with new Caring for our Country arrangements.
26. How does Caring for our Country link with the Environmental Stewardship Program?
The Environmental Stewardship Program will be maintained (with slightly reduced funding) but delivered under the integrated arrangements for Caring for our Country. The program will continue to work to build enduring partnerships with farmers and other land managers to manage Australia's environmental and other natural resources for current and future generations.
27. Will the current priority of Grassy box woodland under the Environmental Stewardship Program continue?
This critical priority will continue. Further priorities will be identified within the six national priority areas for investment under Caring for our Country.
28. How does Caring for our Country link with the Australian Government's $12.9 billion Water for the Future Plan?
Caring for our Country will not invest in activities that are more appropriately the focus of the Water for the Future Plan, including projects designed to deliver water efficiencies and savings. The program will, however, continue to invest in actions to improve water quality.
29. How do I find out more about the Caring for our Country?
Additional information is available by phoning the Caring for our Country information line on 1800 552 008.
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