As part of this legislative review, the review panel found that the present Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 is not meeting its primary purpose of maintaining a healthy, productive and resilient environment, and is never likely to do so.

Biodiversity across NSW is at risk from a range of environmental disturbances, including:

• Clearing of native vegetation, intensifying land use, a growing population and associated infrastructure development has led to the destruction, alteration and fragmentation of habitat across the state.
• Weeds are out-competing native plants and taking over large swathes of habitat, disrupting the natural balance of ecosystems and reducing species diversity.
• Feral animals are competing with native wildlife for resources, overgrazing native plants, and preying on native animals.
• The state’s major inland river systems continue to be affected by water extraction, altered river flows, loss of connectivity and catchment changes such as altered land use and vegetation clearing. These affect water availability, river health and ecosystem integrity.

The review panel notes that since the Act was legislated, global ambition has moved beyond biodiversity conservation to a ‘nature positive’ framing that emphasises the need to repair past damage and to take urgent action to halt and reverse biodiversity loss, putting nature on a path to recovery, so that thriving ecosystems can support future generations.

The panel also recognises that achieving nature positive outcomes will pose significant challenges for government in balancing various priorities, for example, housing and associated infrastructure requirements to support a growing population. A nature positive framing of the Act requires a substantial change in mindset, policy and program design, and dedicated resourcing. However, the review panel considers that nature positive is not only an environmental necessity, but crucial for underpinning future economic growth and wellbeing.