Vegetation management
The Queensland Government has in place legislation that prohibits the broadscale clearing of remnant vegetation. This legislation protects Queensland's rich biodiversity and address economic and environmental problems like salinity, soil degradation, erosion and declining water quality.
Landholders are able to apply for permits to clear vegetation for ongoing management activities such as weed control, thinning and fodder harvesting; or for clearing necessary for public safety, roads, fences and other necessary infrastructure.
Applications to clear are assessed against codes which ensure that clearing is undertaken in a way that protects 'endangered' and 'of concern' ecosystems, prevents land degradation and loss of biodiversity, manages the environmental effects of clearing and reduces greenhouse gas emissions.
The Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and the Bureau of Rural Science estimate that the legislation will have achieved an annual reduction in carbon dioxide emissions of 20 megatonnes a year by 2008-2012.
See the Department of Natural Resources and Water web site for more information about vegetation management.
Last updated 12 December 2008