NatureAssist information sheet

Would you like assistance with the on-ground management of the conservation values on your property?

As a landholder you can play a vital role in conserving the bush and protecting Queensland's biodiversity by establishing a nature refuge on your property. NatureAssist can help you do this.

What is NatureAssist?

NatureAssist is a financial incentives scheme that is giving Queensland landholders financial assistance to protect and manage the conservation values on their land. NatureAssist is an innovative competitive tender process under which you, the landholder, are invited to tender to undertake on-ground management activities.

Tenders are assessed using an expert panel and analysis of key indicators of your property's values and your proposed management. Successful tenders are those that offer the best conservation outcome for the least overall cost. Funding is provided upon signing a nature refuge agreement over part or all of your property.

Are you eligible?

If you are willing to extend an existing nature refuge or willing to establish a nature refuge over all or a portion of your property, you are eligible to apply for NatureAssist.

NatureAssist is available to:

freehold land owners;
lessees of land owned by the State;
government corporations that are separate legal entities from the State Government (e.g. Forestry Plantations Queensland);
local governments;
private companies; or
nature conservancies (but not where a nature refuge is a requirement of a government funded acquisition).

What on-ground works can be funded?

Activities must have significant on-ground conservation benefit. The types of activities that have been funded include:

control of stock access to creeks, wetlands, springs or other environmentally sensitive areas;
establishment of alternative off-stream watering points for stock;
fencing to protect environmentally sensitive areas from stock, pest animals or unauthorised access;
identifying, protecting and managing cultural heritage values;
revegetation and/or regeneration techniques to enhance values, stabilise soils and improve water quality;
one-off flora and fauna surveys for the purposes of guiding conservation management activities;
control of weeds and pest animals; and
development and implementation of plans for sustainable management.

What are the benefits to you?

Protecting the conservation values of your property, with the help of NatureAssist, has many benefits to you and the wider community. These may include:

free information on the conservation values on your property;
one-on-one specialist advice on how to best manage the values on your property;
access to a range of specialist groups and programs that can provide training and support;
financial assistance to support your property management goals;
protection of the conservation values on your property, and your good management, for future generations; and
the opportunity to prepare for and adapt to our rapidly changing climate.

Where does the money come from?

NatureAssist is resourced by the Department of Environment & Resource Management implemented in partnership with AgForce and regional Natural Resource Management (NRM) groups throughout Queensland.

How does it work?

NatureAssist is a competitive tender process used to identify which tenders offer the best value for money in protecting and managing conservation values. We have made the process simple and easy, and when a round is launched it starts with a simple phone call and a one-page expression of interest form.

Step 1:

Contact the department Customer Referral Centre to find out more about NatureAssist. If you are keen to proceed, you will need to fill out a one-page expression of interest form. When the next round of NatureAssist is open, you can obtain an expression of interest form by:

downloading a form or completing an online form; or
calling and asking for one to be sent to you.

Step 2:

We will arrange for a visit to your property, at a convenient time for you, to identify its values and discuss whether it is suitable for a nature refuge. This is also a great opportunity to discuss your ideas for on-ground conservation works and your eligibility for NatureAssist funding. This obligation - free site assessment is free of charge and fully confidential.

Once the site assessment has been done, a panel of experts will determine whether your property is of suitable conservation quality to be a nature refuge.

Step 3:

Once your property is approved as a potential nature refuge, you will be invited a submit a tender. Nature Refuge Officers are available to help you develop your tender. Although they are not permitted to provide advice on the financial component of your tender, they can provide specialist advice on management activities best suited to protecting the conservation values of your property.

Step 4:

Each tender submitted is assessed against all other tenders in that round. An expert panel uses a decision-support tool (environmental benefits index) to assess each tender. This assessment takes into account:

the conservation values of your property (biodiversity, cultural, and environmental features);
the threats to those values;
the quality of the management proposed;
the area of the proposed nature refuge; and
the cost of each tender.

Successful tenders are those that offer the best conservation outcome for the least overall cost, and for which funding can be sourced.

What happens next?

Everybody who submitted a tender will be advised of the outcome. If your tender is successful, your Nature Refuge Officer will work with you to negotiate a new or upgraded nature refuge agreement (if you are extending an existing nature refuge). Once it is signed by you and the Minister for Environment, you will be able to access the funds.

If you were not successful you can re-apply in future rounds.

Want to find out more?

Email us at natureassist@derm.qld.gov.au.

Phone us

NatureAssist is a state-wide program coordinated by the Department of Environment and Resource Management and brings together contributions from the following organisations: