Grant to help boost wildlife on Macquarie Island

Tanya Plibersek, Minister for the Environment and Water, has announced more than $380,000 will continue to help restore Macquarie Island which is listed on the National and World Heritage Lists.

The funding is for a project to assess the wildlife population on Macquarie Island—including royal and rockhopper penguins, subantarctic fur seals, southern elephant seals, black-browed and grey-headed albatrosses and grey petrel—and report on the population status.

The Tasmanian Department of Natural Resources and Environment, along with the University of Tasmania and the Queensland University of Technology, will study the wildlife on the island including population trends and threats.

This work will involve developing an assessment framework and monitoring strategy and collecting data on priority species including the millions of seabirds and thousands of seals and penguins that breed on the island.

It will also raise public awareness of the Island’s wildlife, ecosystem changes and heritage values.

The Macquarie Island Nature Reserve and surrounding waters to the Territorial Sea Limit were inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1997 based on its outstanding natural values.

This funding is part of the $5.57 million Round 5 of the Australian Heritage Grants program to protect, restore and manage Australia’s amazing National Heritage listed places.

In total, the Australian Government is investing more than $25 million through the Australian Heritage Grants program. These grants will help to ensure our precious heritage-listed places will be protected for the future.

Further information about the Australian Heritage Grants program can be found here: www.dcceew.gov.au/parks-heritage/heritage/grants-and-funding/australian-heritage-grants

Quotes attributable to the Minister for the Environment and Water the Hon Tanya Plibersek:

“Our heritage is what makes Australia unique. We’re so lucky to live in a country that is home to some of the world’s most significant natural, Indigenous and historical heritage places.

“This $380,000 grant closely follows my announcement that we intend to triple to size of the Macquarie Island Marine Park – creating a high protection zone larger than the size of Germany.

“This exciting project will assess the wildlife population on Macquarie Island so we get an accurate population snapshot and can monitor trends over time. This data will allow us to better protect this amazing place into the future.

“We’re investing more than $25 million through our Australian Heritage Grants program to protect our Heritage sites for our children and grandchildren.”