Senator The Hon Murray Watt, Minister for the Environment and Water
The Hon Dr Andrew Leigh MP, Assistant Minister for Competition, Charities and Treasury, Assistant Minister for Employment
The Albanese Government has released the second set of National Ecosystem Accounts, which will help improve our environmental stewardship for the future.
The data tracks the condition of Australia's ecosystems and will help inform future decision-making processes and better measure environmental impact.
The accounts put a dollar value on the carbon storage, fresh water, and wild fish that our environment provides to the national economy, as well as measuring the contribution of some of Australia's land, freshwater and marine ecosystems to the economy, showing:
- Australia had 3 consecutive years of La Nina from 2020 to 2023, which caused carbon-retaining grasslands and forests to grow. In 2021-22, these environments stored 34.6 billion tonnes or $59.5 billion worth of carbon
- in the 2021-22 financial year, the number of mangroves classified as closed forests increased to 48.5 per cent. That same year, the environment also provided storm and tidal surge protection to 104,000 homes and 207,000 residents
- in 2022-23, the environment contributed 10.8 million megalitres of surface water that was provided for household use and use as a material at a value of $864 million.
The accounts also recorded an increase to the number of animal species listed as critically endangered, the number of Weeds of National Significance, as well as sustained rising ocean temperatures.
Improved information will allow the Albanese Government to continue responding to the impacts of marine heatwaves and tackling feral animals and weeds.
These figures also highlight the importance of our reforms to the EPBC Act, which are heralding a new era of environment protection and productivity.
Through streamlined assessments and more efficient decision-making processes the Albanese Government is powering productivity while better protecting the environment.
As part of these reforms, the Head of Environment Information Australia will establish and maintain a core set of national environmental-economic accounts to provide foundational information on ecosystem extent, condition and services.
This type of information helps to clarify decisions about where to site development with a minimum impact on our environment, and can inform economy-wide decision making.
The data will also play a fundamental role in informing the State of Environment report that will be released later this year.
Quotes attributable to Minister for the Environment and Water, Murray Watt:
"It's clear Australia's environment isn't just what we can see - it's a crucial part of our economy, underpinning industries, livelihoods, and entire ecosystems.
"The more data we have, the better we understand how the environment is changing and how to best look after it.
"The Albanese Government is committed to protecting our natural environment and safeguarding the industries that depend on it.
"That's why we're investing more than $700 million to better protect our threatened plants and animals, a record $1.2 billion to safeguard the Great Barrier Reef and protecting an extra 100 million hectares of Australia's land and ocean."
Quotes attributable to the Assistant Minister for Competition, Charities and Treasury, Assistant Minister for Employment, the Hon Dr Andrew Leigh:
"Too often, nature gets treated as the backdrop to the economy, when in truth it is part of the engine room. Healthy ecosystems store carbon, shield communities, support jobs and underpin industries across the country. These accounts give us a clearer picture of the value they create. Even the mangroves can now point to the spreadsheet."
