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ABSTRACT

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The question of the management of native forests on privately held land is a neglected aspect of offreserve biodiversity conservation. Research was conducted into the administration of environmental laws applying to private native forestry (PNF) in NSW between 1997-2002 to discern the extent of regulated and unregulated activity. Research also aimed to investigate broad patterns of administrative behaviour in implementing relevant legislation. The implementation of the Native Vegetation Conservation Act 1997 and the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 in relation to PNF were examined in particular. Failures of the legislative framework were revealed. The applicable law was found to be complex, and highly fragmented, with responsibility spread across many agencies. Some regulatory failures also stemmed from inadequate implementation of the legislation. It was found that PNF was infrequently regulated under the Native Vegetation Conservation Act 1997, primarily due to a problematic exemption for PNF. It was infrequently regulated by local government under Local Environment Plans. The safety net mechanism of licensing under the Threatened Species Conservation Act 1995 was not often applied. These findings suggest a failure of the law to ensure ecologically sustainable forest management in NSW private forests. While the results suggest regulatory failure, they do not constitute grounds for wholesale replacement of regulation with self-regulation and other instruments.

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