1. Reservation of important wetlands James Fitzsimons 1,2 & Hugh Robertson 1,3 1 School of Life & Environmental Sciences, Deakin University 2 The Nature Conservancy 3 NZ Department of Conservation Recent experiences in conservation planning and practical implementation in Victoria

2. Overview Process for assessing conservation status, reserve design and level of protection of wetlands Process for assessing conservation status, reserve design and level of protection of wetlands Changes in wetland reservation in northern Victoria Changes in wetland reservation in northern Victoria Challenges to establishing freshwater protected areas Challenges to establishing freshwater protected areas Policy dilemmas, decisions and debates Policy dilemmas, decisions and debates

3. Freshwater Reserves National and State commitments to the ‘Establishment of a Comprehensive, Adequate & Representative (CAR) reserve system’ Recent reviews suggest Australia lacks an representative freshwater reserve system Little quantitative analysis on the reservation of freshwater ecosystems

4. Objectives Investigate whether there are biases in the reservation of different types of wetlands Investigate whether there are biases in the types of reserves applied to wetlands Evaluate the influence of wetland reserve design on the conservation of freshwater ecosystems Compare these reservation variables, before and after a strategic public land use assessment

5. VEAC River Red Gum study area

7. River Red Gum Forests Investigation Area of River Red Gum Forests investigation = 1,220,000 ha Wetland area prior to European settlement = 145,000 ha Extant wetland area = 99,700 ha Current wetland area in Reserves = 27,300 ha Recommended area in Reserves = 47,000 ha

8. Depletion and reservation of different wetland types in northern Victoria

11. Reservation of Important Wetlands- Ramsar and Directory DIWA and Ramsar

12. Protected areaOther reserve Area of wetlands occurring in various reserve categories in northern Victoria

13. Protected areaOther reserve Area of wetlands occurring in various reserve categories in northern Victoria

17. Wetland reserve design in northern Victoria

18. Achieving a balance between conservation, recreation and resource use Anticipating impacts of climate change Anticipating future water availability and infrastructure to deliver environmental water to wetlands Recommendations for public land only Considered Victoria only Only recommendations! - VEAC has had a high success rate in the past (~95% recommendations accepted) but nothing guaranteed Government response may offer clues on current thinking – publicly available soon Challenges for freshwater reservation in northern Victoria

19. Policy debates required What activities or levels of consumptive use are acceptable in freshwater protected areas? Duck hunting? Fishing? Water extraction? Or are these debates irrelevant without water?