More than 40 per of Australia or three million square kilometres, has been designated unspoilt wilderness in a new national study headed by scientist and Hinterland resident, Dr Barry Trail.
The study confirms the country’s status as among the five most significant wild areas on earth with wilderness areas in size and quality equivalent to the Amazon Forest, the Antarctic and the Sahara Desert.
Dr Trail’s co-authored the study with a group of scientists for the international conservation organisations, the Pew Environment Group and The Nature Conservancy. It identified 12 major regions of Australia that remain almost completely undamaged by humans.
“As the world’s last great wilderness areas disappear under pressure from human impact, to have a continent with this much remaining wilderness intact is unusual and globally significant,” said DrTraill.
Covering more than 40 percent of Australia, the study examined some of Australia’s most iconic landscapes, from the stark treeless plains of the Nullabor to the savannas of Northern Australia and lush rainforests of Cape York Peninsula.
However, the study also found that the wilderness regions of Australia face serious threats, including from feral animals such as pigs and foxes, invasive weeds and wildfires. These threats are degrading the environmental quality of the country and are causing well-documented losses of habitat and wildlife.
The goal of this project is to conserve and successfully manage large natural areas in Australia, both on land and sea. The Wild Australia Program will work with landowners, conservation organisations and community groups in many of the identified wilderness areas to achieve their conservation goals.
“This study shines a spotlight onthe best wilderness areas to protect. Our Wild Australia program will focus on these areas and will work with local organisations and landowners to give them the support they need to address the threats to these amazing areas. By marrying overseas resources with local expertise,we aim to make a big difference in looking after our outback,” Dr Traill said.
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