ABC Sydney interview with the Minister for the Environment and Water Tanya Plibersek

ALICE MATTHEWS, HOST: A few centuries ago, Australia's deserts were teeming with a furry burrowing creature with kind of rabbit like ears and a long, pointed muzzle. And these marsupials lived together in, you know relative harmony because apart from the dingo, they had few predators. But with the introduction of cats and foxes to Australia, the bilby began to live in constant danger. And once upon a time, it inhabited two thirds of our country. But bilby populations are now reduced to only 15 per cent of our land. So, from two thirds to 15 percent. But there is hope on the horizon, with a new plan being announced today to help guide the protection and recovery of this iconic species. The Minister for Environment and Water, the Honourable Tanya Plibersek joins me now. Minister, thank you so much for joining us this Easter Sunday.

TANYA PLIBERSEK: Well, I hope the Easter bilby has brought you some chocolate, Alice.

MATTHEWS: I actually did give a bilby to my producer to mark this occasion.

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Excellent.

MATTHEWS: Minister, why is the bilby so important, though?

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well, bilbies are just gorgeous creatures themselves. You were describing them a moment ago. They've got soft grey fur, they've got tiny, cute little feet that they use their front claws for digging. They've got big pink ears. They are really, in and of themselves, really attractive marsupials. But they also - we know that if the bilbies are doing well in an environment, that means that that environment is doing well, that habitat is doing well. And so, where we see areas that have been fenced off that are kept predator free, kept free from cats and foxes in particular, we see bilby numbers really recovering well. So, when we look after the bilbies, we're looking after their habitat and the other creatures that rely on that habitat.

MATTHEWS: And they also sort of prime habitat for plant germination with the way that they dig and burrow.

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: They do, they're terrific because they're burrowing, they're turning the soil over. And that's really important, as you say, for aerating the soil and providing a good bed for those plants to grow in. 

MATTHEWS: So, they're not just cute - 

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: The other thing that they do with their burrows, this is really interesting. They're an animal that doesn't mind sharing their burrows with other animals that need to take - I know, it's interesting, isn't it? They dig their burrows and lizards smaller, smaller marsupials, other types of creatures can get into those burrows and shelter from the heat in the desert. And quite often bilbies will travel kilometres in a night. They'll have several active burrows and when they're sharing those burrows with other animals, they're actually providing shelter for those animals too.

MATTHEWS: That's so sweet. The hosts with the most. They don't mind sharing. That's so lovely. How many of them are left in the wild, Minister?

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Just thousands, really. We're not exactly sure. There's an estimate of around 10,000. And of course, there would have been millions before we saw the introduction of these feral animals, that they compete with rabbits. So, the rabbits are eating their food and taking up their habitat. But the real killers are the cats and the foxes, very bad for bilbies.

MATTHEWS: Can't be sharing the boroughs with them. Where are the majority of the bilbies found? Are they concentrated?

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well, they are mostly in desert areas now, but once upon a time they ranged much broader than that, into grassland, scrubby forest and so on as well. Once upon a time they were across, as you said in your introduction, most of Australia. So, they're in all different types of habitats. They're mostly in desert areas now because that's where there's the least competition, that's where they're least likely to have their land bulldozed over, or where they're least likely to be competing with cats and foxes and other introduced species.

MATTHEWS: You're listening to ABC Radio Canberra and Sydney, broadcasting across the ACT and New South Wales this Easter Sunday. Alice Matthews with you. And right now, you're hearing from the Minister for the Environment and Water, Tanya Plibersek. Minister, what are the details of this plan to protect and recover these populations? We've gone, as you said, from millions to thousands.

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well, we've just released a recovery plan, so all of the states and the Northern Territory, the mainland states where the bilby exists, have signed on to this National Recovery Plan. And it includes all of the science that we know about bilbies, but it also includes what we know about what we have to do to give them the best chance of repopulating. So, it includes examples of activities like these massive fenced off, predator free zones so that we can re-establish populations in areas that are free from cats and foxes. And we know that this is successful. For example, the Australian Wildlife Conservancy recently released their annual bilby census, which looked at the number of bilbies in the sanctuaries that they manage. They've seen almost a doubling of their bilby numbers just over the last year. So, in 2023, the estimated bilby population in the Australian Wildlife Conservancy sanctuaries is almost three and a half thousand. That's more than double the number from the previous year. So, it shows that if we have sanctuaries and we can release marsupials like bilbies into them, they can bounce back really well. We've got other activities like working with First Nations landholders, like indigenous rangers, to do controlled burning, because the massive, very hot uncontrolled wildfires are a much greater risk for bilbies than the cool burning that's done as part of cultural fire management by First Nations indigenous landholders. We're developing insurance populations of bilbies, so making sure that where we've got bilby populations in zoos and other places like that, we're keeping track of them, so we know the sort of genetic makeup of the different bilby populations. We're obviously supporting scientists who are specialising in bilbies and protecting them. There's a lot of work that goes into developing a recovery plan like this and it's what gives the bilbies the best chance of really seeing their numbers return to what they should be.

MATTHEWS: So, is it fair to say, then, that those sort of fenced off enclosures and sanctuaries are the main part of the plan to manage such a vast array of predators?

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Yeah, look, the secure fenced areas are so important that - they're important for bilbies. Any sort of marsupial, obviously, ground nesting birds, lizards, any sort of Australian animal that is at threat from feral animals benefits from these sanctuaries. And there's so many great organisations doing great work to provide these sort of safe spaces like the Australian Wildlife Conservancy. We've also, as a government, set a target of protecting 30 per cent of our land and 30 per cent of our waters by 2030. And part of that will be working with feral free areas like this. Part of it will be working, for example, with indigenous rangers on indigenous protected areas, because we know that there's some great land management skills being applied there to allow native animals to recover and repopulate. We're looking across the country at how we provide areas that are free from ferals or where we control ferals. Sometimes the areas where we can't get rid of every last cat and fox, but we can get rid of most of them. That really gives our native creatures an opportunity to recover.

MATTHEWS: In relation to this plan for the bilby, how much money is going towards the protection and recovery and how long is it funded for?

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Yeah, this is a $5 million plan, and of course, this is for the next few years. There'll be continuing efforts beyond that and there's also fantastic work being done by other conservation organisations. Some of it will be supported with this $5 million by the government. But there's terrific fundraising going on right now over Easter. In particular, you can buy your Easter bilbies and support organisations that are contributing to bilby protection. So, it's a $5 million investment from government, but I really want to pay tribute to the conservation organisations that are putting their own hard work and fundraising effort into conserving bilbies as well.

MATTHEWS: Okay, so 5 million is a one off. That's not likely to be renewed, is it?

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Oh, yeah. I mean, this is $5 million over coming years. And of course, we'll continue we're not going to leave the bilbies on their own after that. This is an important contribution for the next few years and then we'll reassess where we are. We're going to continue to put effort into protecting and conserving bilbies. As I said at the beginning, because they themselves are important creatures, but because they're also a sort of sentinel for what else is going on in their habitat.

MATTHEWS: Minister, you have a target of zero new extinctions. How is that plan going so far?

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Well, it's going really well. It's one of the reasons that we're focussing on bilbies, because we know that if we focus on these sorts of target species, we provide a good habitat for the other types of species that inhabit that same area. It is really important that we continue government effort in this area. That's why we've got this new plan for the bilby and we're working on other plans for other types of plants and animals as well, and other habitats. But I think there's some really exciting things going on that go beyond government effort as well. So, government needs to contribute and we're setting up our nature repair market that will give businesses and philanthropists the opportunity to invest in nature repair. We've set our target, as I said, of 30 per cent of land and 30 per cent of our oceans protected by 2030. That's going really well. For example, we've just announced our intention to triple the size of the Macquarie Island Marine National Park, and we'll be doing more work in our oceans as well as on land. We've got a substantial government investment through the National Heritage Trust. We're working on the Murray-Darling Basin Plan. Actually delivering that. And, of course, we know so many of our plants and animals rely on that Murray-Darling Basin System. There's a lot going on.

MATTHEWS: There is. Just quickly back to the target of zero new extinctions. Does that plan need more government investment, more money, considering the extreme weather we've been experiencing?

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Look, extreme weather does make a big difference. Climate change, so, habitat destruction, climate change, introduced predators. They're the three really big things that we need to address to better protect our plants and animals and the habitats that they rely on. I don't think there's any Environment Minister anywhere in the country that's ever had the job that wouldn't welcome extra funding. But we've got, for example, $1.1 billion in the National Heritage Trust. That's a very substantial investment. We just contributed in the last October budget, $1.2 billion for the Great Barrier Reef, and we've got really substantial government investment. What we'd like to see in addition to that, on top of that, is greater philanthropic and business investment in conserving nature, protecting what we've got, repairing nature so improving where we've previously destroyed habitats, bringing them back up to scratch and managing nature better for the future. So, we've got big areas of our country that are national parks or indigenous protected areas. We need to make sure that we are keeping those free of feral species, free of weeds. We're applying proper fire management techniques and so on. It's working together, government, scientific community, landholders, including First Nations landholders. It's funding from government, from the private sector, from philanthropic efforts. All of these need to work together. We are so lucky in Australia. We're one of the most mega diverse countries in the world. We've got about 1 per cent of the world's population, 8 per cent of the plants and animals. We need to protect that for future generations.

MATTHEWS: Hear, hear. Minister Plibersek, happy Easter to you and thank you very much for joining us on your Sunday.

MINISTER PLIBERSEK: Thank you. What a pleasure. See you, bye bye.

MATTHEWS: Bye bye. Minister for Environment and Water Tanya Plibersek on announcing funding to protect and recover bilby populations here in Australia.