South Coast - Natural Resource Management region
Regional summary
The South Coast covers more than 5.4 million hectares on land and stretches three nautical miles from the coast. This area includes all southerly-flowing rivers from Walpole in the west to beyond Cape Arid in the east. Some internally drained areas north east of Albany and north of Esperance are included in this area. The region is home for just over 57000 people, with about 20 percent of its workforce directly employed in agriculture, forestry or fisheries. The coastal towns' populations are thriving while inland towns are declining in numbers.
The coastline is one of the region's most important natural features. The coastal settlements are experiencing rapid change with the increase in local and international tourist number. The coastal and marine environments contain much of the region's ecologically intact ecosystems, with more than 70 percent of the coastal land corridor under some form of conservation management. The inlets on the shoreline are highly valued for both residential settlement and recreational use.
Several industries contribute to the economy, such as fishing, mining and agriculture and related services. The fishing industry is extensive with the catch including a wide variety of species. Mining is a small but important part of the economy. With more than 70 percent of the region made up of agriculture landscapes, the economy relies strongly on agricultural production and other related service industries.
Priority issues
Key natural resource management issues in the region include:
- altered hydrology
- degradation of soils
- loss of habitat and ecological communities
- plant diseases
- weeds and feral animals
- altered fire regimes
- degradation of waterways and wetlands
- climate change
Regional plan
The South Coast Regional Initiative Planning Team was responsible for developing the South Coast regional strategy, in consultation with the local community. This strategy was based on a whole-of-region approach and addresses significant NRM issues incorporating social, environmental and economic aspects.
Once the regional strategy was accredited, the South Coast Regional Initiative Planning Team was responsible for developing the regional investment plan. This is essentially the business plan that attracts investment from the Australian and state governments and details the specific actions, costs and timeframes required to implement the regional strategy.
The South Coast region has a history of strong community groups involved and committed to NRM. Many of these organisations expressed support to move into an integrated approach. Initial community activity has focused on recognising the role of the Noongar people in sustainable land management, developing farming systems that sustainably manage natural resources and restoring functional landscapes.
The regional community is seeking to develop its capacity to plan and manage the region's natural resources, conserve its biological diversity and use sustainable approaches in natural resource dependent activities.
- South Coast plan - accredited April 2005
Current activities
| NRM priority | Activities addressing the priority |
|---|---|
| Soil and land management |
|
| Water management |
|
| Biodiversity |
|
| Coastal and marine management |
|
Contacts
Further information can be obtained by contacting the Regional Facilitators for Western Australia.
Region summaries
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You can also use your town name to find your NRM Region.
Key
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