text:
Reimbursing the future: an evaluation of motivational, voluntary, price-based, property-right, and regulatory incentives for the conservation of biodiversity
Biodiversity Series, Paper No. 9
M.D. Young, N. Gunningham, J. Elix, J. Lambert, B. Howard, P. Grabosky and E. McCrone
CSIRO Division of Wildlife and Ecology, the Australian Centre for Environmental Law, and Community Solutions
Biodiversity Unit, Department of the Environment, Sport and Territories, 1996
Chapter 3: What people tell us
While government decision-makers set policy frameworks, it is in local communities and on individual properties that actions will take place to protect biodiversity. The project team recognised from the outset the need to listen to the views of people throughout the community who have direct responsibility for the management of species and ecosystems across the landscape of the continent. This will lead to the development of incentives and mechanisms which are most likely to succeed in promoting the conservation of Australia's rich biological diversity, and in ensuring that its use is ecologically sustainable.
Such local communities involve a wide range of people and organisations, from farmers and graziers owning and managing vast tracts of the country, through resource industries including forestry, fisheries and mining, to people living in small and large regional centres. Local communities themselves interact with all three levels of government. At the same time urban dwellers make lifestyle demands which impact both directly and indirectly on the conservation of biodiversity.
The Project Team, through Community Solutions, consulted with a sample of these interests (see Table 3.1 and Methodology Box 3.1). Three hundred and eight people attended the ten general consultative workshops; 273 (89%) completed a questionnaire. The diversity of interests, the distances involved and the resultant costs, as well as the time available, all set boundaries on the consultation processes. The views canvassed are neither comprehensive nor representative of views across the whole of Australia. Instead, this chapter provides 'snapshots' of views in different sectors of the community, both rural and urban and reflects views from some of the diversity of land managers in Australia.
The impact of Australia's growing tourism industry has attracted considerable attention recently. A separate component of the consultation process involved three forums which focused on the nature based and eco-tourism industries. Fifty seven people attended the three workshops that focused on nature based and ecotourism and 54 (94%) completed a questionnaire. The outcomes of these forums are presented separately below but where appropriate, comparisons have been made between the more general consultation and the nature based and eco-tourism consultation.
|Sector represented
|% General respondents (N=273)
|% Ecotourism respondents (N=54)
|Local government
|Tourism - operator &/or accommodation
|Tourism - other tourist services
|Water resources
|Power and water
|Public land use decision making
|Roads/transport infrastructure
|Catchment management
|Coordinated management
3.1 Methodology
Box 3.1 Methodology
If we are to achieve progress in the use of incentives to promote the conservation of biodiversity and to encourage its use in ways which are sustainable, it is essential that we have a clear perception of people's attitudes and the likelihood that they will respond in the desired manner.
General consultation workshops were held in 10 locations around Australia (Bendigo, Charleville, Coffs Harbour, Darwin, Dubbo, Hobart, Jerramungup, Perth, Rockhampton and Sydney), with a further three workshops (Cairns, Darwin and Kangaroo Island) focusing on the role of ecotourism in conserving biodiversity. The choice of locations for the workshops was based on their proximity to Case Studies undertaken in another part of the project (see Chapter 4), and sought to involve people in metropolitan capital cities, regional centres and smaller rural towns.
A forum involving officers of government departments, industry umbrella bodies and selected conservation representatives was also organised by staff at the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources in Melbourne.
In order to recruit as wide a spectrum of views as possible, relevant Commonwealth Government and State Government departments, local governments, relevant scientists, and community groups including Landcare, Catchment Management, and others were contacted in each area, as were umbrella groups representing local government, various sectors of industry and environmentalists. Efforts were also made to recruit people who are land managers, but are not part of any organised group. Each person on the mailing list received both initial information about the workshop and an invitation to register, with those registered then receiving an information kit. In all more than 600 people and organisations were mailed with information about the various forums.
Over both workshop streams, 90% of workshop participants completed individual questionnaires, which were analysed together with qualitative information recorded during each workshop. Written submissions were encouraged and, as a result, approximately 25 additional submissions were received.
Whilst metropolitan forums generally had a higher attendance by people associated with the environmental sector, those in rural areas varied. In Charleville, Rockhampton, Coffs Harbour and Jerramungup, representation of the agriculture sector was higher, while in Dubbo and Bendigo environmental sector representatives were present in greater numbers.
3.2 Overview of general community consultations
Some key directions for action emerged from the general community forums. Although there were both regional and sectoral differences in priorities, these were not as large as might have been predicted based on common perceptions of urban/rural and conservation/resource use divisions. The key directions for action fell into four broad categories as follows:
- Enhancement of community understanding and appreciation of biodiversity by increasing levels of research, survey and information flow regarding biodiversity, and increasing the perceived value of biodiversity;
- Identification of who needs to take action and how by recognising the particular role that local communities play in biodiversity conservation, developing mechanisms for encouraging biodiversity conservation to be undertaken by individuals, and improving government responses, including inter-governmental and inter-agency coordination for biodiversity conservation;
- Increasing funding for biodiversity conservation and clearly identifying who should pay for biodiversity conservation, and how this payment should be made; and
- Allocating responsibility to identified stakeholders in biodiversity conservation and providing appropriate support.
(No. received)
|Sector Representation (&)
|Coffs Harbour
|Cairns (eco)
|Darwin (eco)
|Kangaroo Island (eco)
3.2.1 Enhancement of community understanding and appreciation of biodiversity
Increasing levels of research, survey and information
A lack of information about biodiversity and the processes required to protect it was repeatedly identified as a major constraint. Landholders said "tell us what to do in a meaningful way and we'll do it if we can afford to." Deficiencies in information on biodiversity were perceived to occur at a variety of levels. This was summarised in the Perth forum as "needing to know what we've got, what we need, and the options for alternative actions, taking account of the precautionary principle."
Scientists, both in community consultation for this project and elsewhere, agree that knowledge of Australia's biodiversity is far from complete. Not only is the baseline data inadequate, but people in the various communities consulted highlighted inadequacies in the way in which both scientists and government agencies make information available to them. It was a recurring observation by forum participants that scientific experimentation should be locally focused – projects being developed with local community input so that the information generated has local relevance. Charleville participants expressed the view that "research and information which are locally relevant are important. The quality of the information is critical – it must be scientifically based, with local involvement in its collection." Participants in the Bendigo forum expressed a need for integration of various aspects of biodiversity conservation including "research and monitoring at the local level," and in Dubbo the view was put that "comprehensive biodiversity inventories reaching across all agencies and organisations are needed, with the information available at the local and regional level."
Concerns were also raised, at least in both Perth and Charleville, that much of the current research which provides information on biodiversity is production oriented and lacks an independent biodiversity focus. Participation in programs directed to biodiversity conservation are also important in changing social perspectives and values. In both the Hobart and Sydney workshops, education and information which seek to change community attitudes and values were seen as an important factor in achieving biodiversity conservation. In both cases attitudes to clearing of native vegetation was cited as an example in this area.
Education and provision of information were seen as the major mechanisms in achieving biodiversity conservation across all community forums. Both generalised community education and methods targeted to the needs of various sectors of the community were widely seen to have a role to play in community education. Eighty one percent of questionnaire respondents felt that Landcare, Coastcare and similar programs provide valuable information, while only 59% of respondents felt that community networks provided such information. In discussing how to make information locally relevant, most forums expressed a need for action learning. The use of written information was seen as less valuable than learning by extension, 'best practice' demonstration and participation in biodiversity conservation programs. Local governments were identified as appropriate providers of information on biodiversity and its conservation, and the employment of biodiversity officers within local governments was seen as an option. However, participants in the Melbourne forum indicated that this may not be sustainable in the current climate in which local governments are focused on 'core business.'
Increasing the perceived value of biodiversity
In all of the general community forums, participants emphasised the need to increase community understanding of the values of biodiversity, including the contribution that biodiversity conservation makes to both economic profitability and aesthetic 'quality of life.' This increase in community valuing of biodiversity was seen to be particularly important when decisions need to be made between land uses or between mechanisms for conserving biodiversity.
Participants in several of the workshops identified a need to link biodiversity conservation more closely with economic viability, especially on rural properties. Questionnaire respondents commented that "giving economic value to diverse environments, plants and animals" and finding "a commercial value for protection of our biological assets" were important strategies for increasing biodiversity's value in the minds of landholders and managers, and their responses are discussed in more detail later in this chapter.
Whether biodiversity's economic value should relate to the costs of protecting it, to the longer term costs of not protecting it, or to some other value was considered without resolution in various forums. While participants in several of the forums discussed the need for environmental, social and economic values to be attached to biodiversity, there were differing views as to the ability of economic systems to adequately cope with biodiversity valuation. Participants in the forum in Melbourne stressed the need to integrate economic, social and environmental considerations, but also acknowledged that the relative importance of these various values will be influenced by who is responsible for valuing them.
Increasing the community perception of the value of biodiversity (including, as one Darwin participant commented, 'unrealised values') was seen to be a major communication and education exercise. How such an exercise should be undertaken was debated vigorously in all forums. Using mainstream media, one-to-one education programs, educating school children, existing extension and Landcare programs were also seen to be useful approaches. One questionnaire respondent from Rockhampton commented that "people must be educated to realise that they are part of biodiversity."
3.2.2 Identification of who needs to take action and how
The role of local communities
A recurring theme throughout the forums was the need for the whole process of biodiversity conservation to be driven by local/regional community groups having a common local interest. The forums provided a strong directive that communities must be involved, and must have a level of control over any initiatives designed to protect biodiversity. In a number of workshops, particularly Charleville and Rockhampton, participants expressed resentment at the perception that they, and the agricultural sector generally, were being blamed for biodiversity threats, and were not given credit for the protective work they were undertaking.
Graziers at Charleville stated that "landholders have to be seen as part of the solution, not part of the problem." Jerramungup workshop participants identified "a need to get local people involved and for them to make plans which extend their thinking, then to move up so that people 'at the top' join in. This involves people in the community in government processes."
The need for community involvement and 'ownership' of biodiversity conservation had several facets. There was an overall agreement among questionnaire respondents that lack of knowledge and understanding of biodiversity was the main problem leading to failures of voluntary efforts. Participants in several workshops identified a need for research and survey work to be planned locally in order both that it might have local relevance, and that such work might take advantage of local knowledge. Other participants stressed the need to bring differing interests in the community together to achieve the common goal of conserving biodiversity.
Views on the mechanisms for ensuring community involvement varied. Participants in several of the forums expressed the view that community committees, which encouraged broad community input and were flexible in their approaches to community involvement, should have primary responsibility for planning across local regions. For instance, the Bendigo forum expressed a need for "democratically elected stakeholder Boards to coordinate across each catchment, using a 'bottom up' approach and accepting that community groups have an important role to play."
In many cases catchments were identified as the most appropriate delineating features identifying the region. Landcare and Total or Integrated Catchment Management programs met with mixed appraisal in different forums. However, there was widespread agreement that existing structures should be used where possible and adapted to include greater emphasis on biodiversity conservation, rather than creating new structures on top of those which already exist. The need to involve local governments to a greater extent and to include biodiversity requirements in local government planning was supported in various workshops. In some workshops, especially those in rural New South Wales, participants saw the community groups as providing a 'watchdog' role, collecting information about the biodiversity present in the local area and monitoring the extent of its protection.
Encouraging individuals
In considering the mechanisms for encouraging the conservation of biodiversity, workshop participants placed greater emphasis on education and information provision than on economic instruments. In questionnaire responses, there was far greater agreement on the importance of education as part of the suite of social/community mechanisms that could work to protect biodiversity, than there was on the directions that should be taken as part of a financial framework.
There was a general recognition among workshop participants that voluntary mechanisms had not, to date, adequately protected biodiversity. In questionnaire responses, there was a divergence of views among sectors as to why. Those respondents from rural centres where the workshops had a high representation from the agricultural sector (Charleville, Rockhampton, Coffs Harbour, Jerramungup) were more likely to see financial constraints as being a cause than respondents from metropolitan areas or rural centres, where the conservation sector representation was higher. Interestingly, respondents from these rural centres with higher conservation representation (Dubbo, Bendigo) were more likely to see local attitudes and values as being a problem than either metropolitan respondents or smaller rural centres.85 Overall, however, lack of information about the value of biodiversity was seen to be the most significant problem (chosen by 39% of questionnaire respondents).
Prizes and awards are frequently promoted as a way of encouraging participation in conservation activities and 'leading by example.' In questionnaire responses, prizes and awards were consistently given a very low level of support as a social/community mechanism for encouraging biodiversity protection (1-3% of overall respondents saw them as the key mechanism). In discussion, such mechanisms were seen to have limited use as an adjunct to other mechanisms.
In general, financial incentives were seen as useful, not so much to bring about action as to enable actions already contemplated to take place. When presented with questionnaire options for financial incentives to prevent habitat loss and habitat decline, tax deductions and tax credits received the highest support (approximately 35% of respondents) from agriculture representatives. In discussion, landholders and land managers generally placed less emphasis on the provision of tax concessions, particularly since many in the rural community have little, if any, taxable income. Of far greater significance to those rural landholders was the need to remove perceived anomalies in Taxation Act provisions, such as the tax paid by rural landholders but not by governments on farm vehicles such as utilities. While some workshop participants identified tax credits transferable over time as an option to assist in maintaining biodiversity, many had doubts about the complexity of such a scheme.
Simplicity and ease of administration of funding were seen as important both by rural landholders and by government officials who might administer relevant programs. In forum discussion, direct grant funding for biodiversity conservation was therefore favoured over mechanisms associated with taxation provisions, although participants in several of the workshops recognised a need for ongoing monitoring of funded projects to ensure accountability for the funds invested.
In discussion, views on the extent to which grants should be conditional upon other activities such as participation in whole farm, regional or catchment planning varied widely. Tied grants to prevent decline in vegetation habitat were considered an important mechanism by only a small proportion (16%) of questionnaire respondents, although this strategy was more attractive to conservation respondents than agricultural respondents.
The questionnaire asked participants about financial incentives which would lead to reduced loss of genetic diversity. The most popular strategy among respondents representing the agricultural sector was the development of commercial markets (40%). Conservation sector participants tended to view the development of such markets as leading to even greater threats to biodiversity, and the highest proportion of this sector favoured the use of direct grants to reduce loss (44%).
Questionnaire respondents were asked whether the development of ecotourism industries dependent on native species and/or habitats would alleviate biodiversity threats resulting from economic pressures. Seventy three percent of questionnaire respondents saw this as being likely. The questionnaire also asked whether the commercial use of plants or wildlife would lead to the lifting of economic pressures on biodiversity. Overall 60% of respondents saw this to be a viable option, but the responses varied significantly between conservation representatives (56%), and agricultural representatives (70%).
Views on the extent to which compensation should be paid for loss of productive capacity as a result of activities to conserve biodiversity also varied. In several of the workshops, the need to build biodiversity conservation into the land valuation system was considered, and in several cases it was suggested that the Commonwealth Government should subsidise local governments to recoup the revenue lost through rate rebates for such conservation measures. In responses to the questionnaire, local rate reduction was the preferred mechanism in preventing loss of vegetation/habitat for less than 20% of respondents.
Rural landholders across many of the forums stressed the need for landholders to maintain a viable income in order to have the capacity to take actions to conserve biodiversity. Participants in the Charleville forum summed this up by saying that "debt restructuring must happen first if landholders are to be able to protect biodiversity. It's hard to be green when you are in the red." The pressures generated by bank and other financial institutions were identified by some as a significant factor in this, with some workshop participants identifying a need to include such institutions in the processes of biodiversity conservation.
Improving government responses
The question of government regulation for biodiversity protection was debated in all of the forums. Participants tended to see regulation as a fall back – to be resorted to only if other mechanisms failed. Those representatives who were actually engaged in land management activities generally saw regulation as only useful to stop the few recalcitrant practitioners who were deliberately engaging in activities which would threaten biodiversity. Many forum participants pointed to the wide suite of legislative protection mechanisms currently available to governments for land protection, and saw government unwillingness and lack of resources to enforce these mechanisms as an indication of the intrinsic weakness of such mechanisms.
In responding to the questionnaire responses from the general forum participants, there was quite a divergence of views about regulatory mechanisms between representatives from the agricultural sector, and those from environment organisations. (see Table 3.3 below). Respondents were asked which regulatory mechanisms would be effective if economic and voluntary social measures have failed. Ninety percent of environmental representatives considered legislation to be able to provide added protection to vegetation/habitat, compared with 62% of agricultural representatives. Eighty seven percent of environmental respondents considered zoning laws to control use to be useful, compared with 61% of agricultural representatives. Environmental representatives were also more likely to consider fines and loss of land/water rights as effective options that agricultural sector respondents. The most acceptable option to the agricultural sector respondents was contractual management agreements (80%) and this was also seen to be effective by 77% of environmental respondents.
The questionnaire also asked respondents to chose one regulatory option for a range of biodiversity threats. Legislative protection was the clear preference for preventing loss of vegetation/habitat over licence conditions and fines. Contractual management agreements and easements and/or covenants were also preferred for preventing vegetation/habitat decline. Laws for control of 'ferals' and weeds were marginally favoured in the overall responses over contractual management agreements for reducing direct attacks on species. Permits to harvest pests were favoured over bans on harvesting native species in reducing the loss of genetic diversity, although there was a significant difference in the proportions of agricultural (52%) and environmental (33%) respondents favouring this approach, and the proportion of environmental respondents who favoured bans was higher (26% compared to 17%).
Most of the workshops also raised concerns about a perceived lack of coordinated activity both across levels of government and between agencies within one level of government, which has led to the inhibition of biodiversity conservation. The Coffs Harbour forum highlighted the fact that the charters of various government agencies place differing demands on them. This means that they provide both differing information and differing expectations of action to conserve biodiversity. Conflicts between National Parks and State Forests, and the management requirements of each, were cited as an example.
This lack of coordination has other implications for landholders and land managers, Some feel that they receive too much confusing information. Integrated programs built around the national biodiversity strategy were seen as important, with some suggesting that all government programs should contain a biodiversity element.
Just as government information provision was seen to require greater coordination, so too were government programs providing funding which might assist in biodiversity conservation. Participants in several of the workshops suggested that government programs not specifically directed to biodiversity conservation should nevertheless contain a biodiversity aspect. For instance, participants in Perth suggested that "Landcare and other similar funding should be subject to cross-compliance which requires biodiversity conservation." By cross-compliance, they meant the restriction of Landcare program funds to those groups or individuals who conserve biodiversity.
The role of local government and its relationship with the local community were stressed repeatedly. The Integrated Local Area Planning process developed by the Commonwealth Government was identified by the workshop in Melbourne as providing a useful model through which better coordination at the local level might occur. In discussing how improved coordination might best occur, participants in various locations expressed a need for a central department or agency within each level of government having responsibility for biodiversity conservation.
|Yes responses by sector (%)
|Legislation to protect habitat
|Zoning laws to control use
|Contractual management agreements
|Fines for failure to protect biodiversity
|Loss of existing land/water use rights
3.2.3 Increasing funding for biodiversity conservation
Increasing the level of funding available to protect biodiversity was put forward as an urgent need in each forum. When asked how this should happen, participants most often identified a need for a redistribution of consolidated revenue. For instance, participants in the Sydney forum proposed that a mix of funding mechanisms is necessary, including:
- a reallocation of funds from other areas of consolidated revenue;
- increasing payments by the industry users of various products dependent on Australia's biodiversity (eg. through forestry and other royalties which reflect real costs); and
- payment of the real costs for products derived from the nation's biodiversity.
Although real costs pricing for products deriving from or impacting on natural species and ecosystems is not easily defined, some effort in this direction was indicated as a need from some of the participants. Participants in Jerramungup expressed a view that "the Commonwealth Government should provide funds commensurate with the size of the biodiversity problem," while those in Sydney suggested that "the Commonwealth Government must demonstrate its commitment to the national biodiversity strategy through its own actions and should also assist other levels of government in achieving biodiversity conservation." Who Should Pay and How?
There was a widely held view that since the whole community benefits from biodiversity conservation, everybody should pay for its conservation. Seventy eight percent of questionnaire respondents believed that "the Australian community as a whole" should pay for conservation of biodiversity; only 12% saw this as the responsibility of those who most directly cause the threats to biodiversity.
There was a difference in responses to the concept of environmental levies by forum participants. Only 26% percent of questionnaire respondents overall considered it as a useful mechanism for preventing loss of vegetation/habitat. However, representatives of conservation interests perceived it to be the most effective of the mechanisms canvassed to achieve this objective (32% favoured such levies) while only 12% of representatives of agricultural interests were of the same view. In discussion, many participants held doubts as to the extent to which an environmental levy would be used by governments directly to fund biodiversity conservation, rather than for other more general purposes. Others, especially in the rural community, felt that they are already paying the costs and should not be required to provide additional financial input to a whole of community responsibility.
Participants in several of the forums proposed that funding for biodiversity conservation should flow directly into local communities. Participants in the Jerramungup forum stated that "The Commonwealth Government should feed directly into local communities, giving them both recognition of work done and funding incentives." Participants in Rockhampton indicated that a mix of funding should be made available "for individuals and for community groups in an area of common interest. This should not be politically allocated, but rather should be available to all catchments.
3.3 Overview of ecotourism consultations
In addition to the ten general consultation forums held to discuss biodiversity conservation, three additional consultations focused on nature-based and ecotourism. Fifty seven people attended these forums which were held in Cairns, Darwin, and Kangaroo Island. Fifty four questionnaires were completed for forum participants, representing a variety of sectoral interests, as shown in tables 3.1 and 3.2.
3.3.1 Outcomes of the ecotourism community consultations
Many of the issues raised in these three workshops were common to both sets of consultations. There were, however, some differences in the responses to questions about mechanisms to protect biodiversity. In particular, the responses of ecotourism consultation participants to the question about the effectiveness of regulatory mechanisms showed some differences from the responses in the general consultations.
There seemed to be a tendency for the respondents from the ecotourism consultations to favour regulatory measures more than those from the general consultations. Comparing the responses to specific mechanisms to address biodiversity threats, there are very few differences between the overall responses of the ecotourism forum participants and those in the general forums. The only difference of any significance is that a higher proportion of ecotourism respondents favoured the introduction of "permits to harvest species" (59%) than from the general forums (44%).
There was some difference in the questionnaire responses of participants in the ecotourism forums from the general forums over the question of who should pay for biodiversity conservation. Only 61% of ecotourism forum respondents considered that the Australian community as a whole should pay (compared with 78% in the general forums.) The ecotourism forum respondents were twice as likely as the general respondents to consider that those who most directly cause the threats to biodiversity should pay for it (24% compared with 12%).
Some additional key directions for action arose from the ecotourism consultations as follows:
- Identification of ecotourism as an 'ethic' rather than a sector of the industry;
- Introduction and enhancement of appropriate tourism promotion strategies which work to protect Australia's biodiversity;
- Integration of biodiversity protection into tourism and development planning; and
- Enhancement of the understanding and appreciation of biodiversity by both tour operators and visitors.
|Overall "yes" responses
|Ecotourism consultations
|General consultations
|Legislation to protect habitat
|Zoning laws to control use
|Contractual management agreements
|Fines for failure to protect biodiversity
|Loss of existing land/water use rights
3.3.2 Ecotourism as an 'ethic' rather than a sector of the industry
Across each of the ecotourism forums, participants stressed the need to consider 'ecotourism' as an ethic extending beyond the small, nature-based operators to all those in the tourism industry who use the natural environment. Those in the Darwin forum stressed that the ecotourism sector is small and unable to bring about change to protect biodiversity while acting alone, and that it is the larger mainstream tourism operations which generally impact more heavily on biodiversity. This view was reinforced on Kangaroo Island, where local community representatives have major concerns about the likely biodiversity impacts of recent major expansions in the transport facilities to the island.
In both Cairns and Kangaroo Island, forum participants stressed the need for tourism industry Codes of Practice to include a significant biodiversity protection component. On Kangaroo Island it was stressed that "Best Practice requires that the tourism resort or operation should be changed to suit the environment, rather than the environment being changed to suit the resort," while in Cairns participants stressed that "management priorities should be defined to assist biodiversity."
3.3.3 Introduction and enhancement of appropriate tourism promotion strategies
Throughout the ecotourism forums, participants discussed the way that tourism promotion benefits from Australia's rich diversity of natural environments and species, and the fact that promotion strategies should work towards protection of those values. Those in Cairns suggested that "the industry should ensure that there is truth in advertising and promotion of the environment, so that false expectations are removed and that visitors have appropriate expectations." Participants in Darwin identified a need to "change the focus of promotion from game fishing and other similar activities to ecology."
Forty six percent of questionnaire respondents considered that increased community awareness was the major contribution that ecotourism can make to biodiversity conservation, with provision of lower impact sources of income (26%) and raising revenue for conservation of biodiversity (19%) being less important. The length of stay, type of tour offered and the size of visiting groups were all seen as important in ensuring that tourism does not impact adversely on the natural environment upon which it depends.
Eighty five percent of respondents believed that increased visitor numbers leading to degradation was a major risk for biodiversity. Seventy four percent saw overdevelopment of natural areas to be a major risk, but only 52% percent considered changed animal behaviour to be in the same category. Regulation to control pets, accreditation and the use of approved logos on promotional material, and improved networking to promote Best Practice operators were identified as mechanisms to improve promotion practices for biodiversity protection.
3.3.4 Integration of biodiversity protection into tourism and development planning
The need for integrated planning, based on defined visitor carrying capacity for an area, and linked with zoning to enable a range of tourism experiences was an underpinning focus of the ecotourism forums.
In the Cairns forum, participants stressed the need for "regional surveys to gather information about biodiversity and a cataloguing of that biodiversity as the basis for determining carrying capacity of the various regions." The draft Far North Queensland 2010 report released recently was seen as a starting point for such work. Kangaroo Island participants suggested that the island might provide an ideal location for a Commonwealth-funded pilot study involving the local community and outside experts in determining the carrying capacity of the island as a basis for future planning. In Darwin it was suggested that governments should "incorporate biodiversity needs directly into the planning processes, and link these with regulation of development." Darwin participants stated that "there is a need to adopt appropriate management, developed and implemented through planning processes, which must avoid insidious creep of development."
Issues as diverse as the maintenance of remnant vegetation, retention of native vegetation and control of weeds and feral animals, as well as fire management regimes based on the best available scientific knowledge were seen as part of the planning process.
In both Cairns and Kangaroo Island, proposals for Commonwealth-funded pilot programs driven by the local community and involving local tourism operators were promoted as important 'on ground' demonstrations of how carrying capacities might be defined for various regions then used in planning for tourism which provides a range of visitor experiences compatible with local community expectations.
3.3.5 Enhancement of the understanding and appreciation of biodiversity by tour operators and visitors
Like the respondents from the general consultations, the largest percentage (37%) of respondents in the ecotourism forums saw "lack of knowledge/ understanding of biodiversity" as being the reason that voluntary approaches to biodiversity have not functioned adequately. In each of the ecotourism forums, participants cited 'uneducated tourists and tour operators' to be threats to biodiversity. Methods for overcoming this problem were discussed at length. In both Cairns and Darwin, opportunities were identified to use existing environmental management activities for educational purposes. The examples cited were the use of a sewerage treatment works for bird watching and the use of road kill animals to inform visitors of some aspects of biodiversity and ecological management. The need for 'sacrificial populations' of fish and other species to bring tourists into closer contact with native species as educational tools was also recognised.
Questionnaire respondents were asked about strategies for encouraging tourist operators to become more involved in taking action to conserve biodiversity. The highest percentage (83%) agreed that "provision of taxation advantages for tourist operators who introduce environmentally sensitive practices." Other responses are presented in Table 3.5 below and Appendix 3.1.
Mechanisms discussed within the workshops for ensuring that tour operators assume a greater responsibility for visitor management and the protection of biodiversity were seen to include licensing provisions, provision of 'honorary ranger' status to suitably qualified tour operators, and the use of permit systems to enable graded levels of access based on responsibility to the environment.
Kangaroo Island participants indicated that "industry bodies should be used to educate tour operators, who should then familiarise visitors with the environment before they arrive." In Darwin, the need to "reverse the cycle in which travel agents visit ecotour operators free of charge and without financial commitment to sell small 'ecotours' was identified as a priority. Participants expressed a view that travel agents, rather than the small nature-based and ecotour operators, should bear the cost of such promotions. Participants in Cairns suggested that "customer expectations should be used to raise operator standards, which will then flow on to local landholders."
In cases where lack of information/education contributes to loss of biodiversity, a high proportion of respondents (74%) saw the work done by community networks such as the National Threatened Species Network and the Marine and Coastal Community Network as being valuable, whereas a much lower proportion considered information from tourist associations valuable. This is rather different from the responses of participants in the general consultations who were less likely to see community network information as being valuable.
|Incentive instrument
|% "yes" responses
|Provision of taxation advantages for tourist operators who introduce environmentally sensitive practices
|Provision of information about biodiversity conservation
|Education about ecotourism opportunities
|More opportunities for cooperative or coordinated marketing
|Government assistance with marketing ecotourism
3.4 Allocating responsibility and supporting stakeholders
Throughout the various community forums, emphasis was placed on the extent to which each sector of the community should have primary responsibility for various aspects of biodiversity conservation. 3.4.1 Local Communities
Almost without exception, forum participants identified a need for local communities to have greater involvement in defining and implementing the mechanisms for conserving biodiversity. Opportunities for the local community to be involved and to make input were seen as a minimum requirement. Several forums proposed that the setting of local biodiversity objectives, research and monitoring, planning and implementation all be initiated by the local community.
The building of links between rural and urban communities so that each better understands the role of the other in conserving biodiversity was promoted in various forums.
Across all of the ecotourism forums there was a strong view that governments should facilitate the determination of biodiversity values, both scientific and economic, in each region, then work with local communities to ensure that planning both for tourism and for development more generally is based on the maintenance of biodiversity values. Outside expertise was seen as important in guiding research and monitoring work and in structuring it in ways which are readily adopted by local communities.
It was also proposed that outside expertise might be introduced to provide independent avenues for dispute resolution. It was suggested in Melbourne that such conflict resolution might best be done through an independent professional mediator, and in Rockhampton a neutral outsider such as an environmental ombudsman was proposed.
3.4.2 Local governments
Local government is the level of government most directly involved with local community, and has the greatest influence over land-use planning. Local governments were seen by most workshop participants to have a central role to play in implementing mechanisms for the conservation of biodiversity. The Dubbo forum participants indicated that in providing a public focus within a defined region "local governments must be involved, since they are the ones who provide planning approvals." Similarly, in discussing the role of all levels of government to ensure biodiversity is conserved, participants in the forum at Coffs Harbour indicated that "local government planning processes need a biodiversity component."
3.4.3 State governments
State Governments were seen by some as having a responsibility for greater coordination with both the Commonwealth Government and local governments in ensuring that programs and strategies for the conservation of biodiversity are integrated with other land use activities. Government agencies were also seen to have responsibilities to ensure greater coordination of the activities of their various departments and agencies and to ensure that the charter of various agencies includes biodiversity considerations.
Participants in the Hobart forum suggested that State Governments should "oversee and provide the tools and resources" with which local communities implement activities designed to conserve biodiversity. State Governments were also identified as the level at which broad regulatory mechanisms such as Environmental Planning Programs should be introduced. For instance, participants in Dubbo suggested that a State Environmental Planning Program (SEPP) should be introduced to maintain remnant native vegetation, while others suggested that strict clearing controls, and the policing of quotas and other regulatory mechanisms are most appropriately done at the state level. In a more general sense, Bendigo workshop participants expressed a view that the State Government has a key role to play in providing a legislative framework in which to work.
The primary responsibilities of State Governments were seen to be adequately resourcing and staffing of National Parks and other areas providing a focus for nature-based tourism, and providing biodiversity information at a scale appropriate to local and regional planning. Whilst Commonwealth Government was identified as having primary responsibility for the funding of incentives and mechanisms to conserve biodiversity, State Governments were seen to have a responsibility to fund National Parks to a level at which they are properly managed for the conservation of biodiversity and to ensure that weeds, feral animals and other impacts of reserve management do not impact adversely on adjoining properties.
3.4.4 Commonwealth Government
Throughout the various forums, the Commonwealth Government was identified as having primary responsibility to provide resources for the conservation of biodiversity, to define national priorities and to lead by example.
While local governments have primary responsibility for planning and the provision of 'on ground' support for local community planning groups, the Commonwealth Government was seen as having a role to play in encouraging States to participate in biodiversity conservation. Both user-generated funds established through targeted levies and Commonwealth Government funding were seen as necessary to the maintenance of biodiversity. However, in both Cairns and Kangaroo Island some participants expressed a strong view that such funds should go directly to local communities "rather than filtering down through the various levels of government and thus being absorbed."
In several other forums, participants indicated that Commonwealth funding should be channelled directly to local communities, and possibly also to individual landholders to develop and implement regional and local planning which takes account of biodiversity conservation needs.
Governments, at both State and Commonwealth level, were seen to have responsibilities both to adequately resource community members to participate in biodiversity conservation activities, and to recognise and acknowledge the considerable effort which many in the community are already putting into such activities.
Commonwealth Government was also seen to have a role to play in shifting the emphasis in tourism away from mass visitor promotions to more ecologically-based experiences consistent with the protection of Australia's natural environment. Included in this process were the provision of tax and fee concessions and grants to assist small operators, and the removal of tax disincentives such as those that apply to smaller transport vehicles as compared with the vehicles used by larger operators. A change in the targeting of the government's own tourism promotions was also seen as necessary, as was the linking of 'ecotourism' opportunities with other Commonwealth Government programs such as Landcare and DEET on-farm employment programs.
The relationships between the three levels of government in conserving biodiversity were summed up in the Perth forum which proposed that the Commonwealth should develop a national vision, based on grassroots input, with the states providing strategies and resources to local governments, who would then work with local communities to develop implementation mechanisms to be carried out in the local community. Throughout the process, there should be two-way information flow.
3.4.5 Corporate sector
Throughout the various workshops little attention was focused on the corporate sector, except as it was represented through the various resource use industries present in the community consultation process. The financial sector was seen to have a responsibility to increase awareness among its employees of the pressures which rural debt places on biodiversity conservation. Limited mention was also made of the ways in which the corporate sector might contribute to prizes and awards for biodiversity conservation, although the latter were generally perceived to be of limited value, except to the extent that media coverage of them promotes 'best practice' examples of conservation initiatives.
3.4.6 Participant feedback
The participants in the general consultations were not directly asked to give feedback on the consultation forums. A number, however, did make comments. These ranged from concerns over the questionnaire, which some participants felt to be confusing, leading, or providing no reflection of the complexities of the issues under consideration, to many concerns about the shortness of the workshop – "This subject requires more than a four hour workshop."
The participants in the ecotourism consultations were invited to provide feedback. A considerable number considered there to be "satisfactory outcomes" and "well conducted." Others felt that the emphasis on ecotourism was unwarranted, and that "mass tourism [is] inherently destructive" and should have been more of a focus. Some participants were disappointed that few large scale tourist operators were present, and a few participants felt the meeting was too structured. A significant number of participants expressed a hope that outcomes would be forthcoming based on their input.
3.5 The Aboriginal perspective
Throughout the community consultations relating to incentives and mechanisms for the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity, the project team sought to involve Aboriginal people in the various forums. It was, however, recognised from the outset that the format and location of the consultations were not that necessarily consistent with the needs of many indigenous Australians, particularly those living traditional lifestyles. This expectation was borne out by the very few Aboriginal people who attended the various forums.
Given that time and budget constraints of the whole project did not permit extensive travel to remote areas to meet and talk with Aboriginal communities on their own terms, nor to bring them in to regional forums, other efforts were made to gather information about Aboriginal perspectives. This issue is considered carefully in the Top End case study (see Chapter 4 and Appendix 2.7).
3.5.1 The Aboriginal way – Galtha Rom workshops: Yirrkala Community
Philosopher Dr Helen Verran from Melbourne University's Department of History and Philosophy of Science met with Community Solutions and provided both research publications and a briefing on the Galtha Rom program being run by the Yirrkala Community School in eastern Arnhemland as a central part of teaching for children throughout the 20 homeland centres of the Yolngu.
The workshops, which are an approved part of the education curriculum, seek to provide children between the ages of 5 and 18 with an understanding of their history and culture through what might be described in European terms as 'maths and science' Through a conceptual understanding of their history and culture, Yolngu people develop an intense knowledge of their land and relationships with all aspects of it. They have, for instance, used their knowledge to identify "vegetation mapping" which would have provided more appropriate local revegetation programs than those that have been practiced by the local mining company as part of their mining activities at Nhulunbuy.
Arising out of the 10 years of the Galtha Rom program is a series of publications 'Imagining nature', the latest of which in its Preface states that:
Underlying all of the books in the series is the conviction that the great nature-culture divide is an illusion, one might almost say, a figment of the Western imagination. In attempting to define our place in the world of nature, we deal not with nature on the one hand and culture on the other but rather with many and various cultural constructions of the natural world... Understanding nature in this larger and more intrinsic sense, involves close knowledge of relevant cultural traditions. This way of knowing nature, then, relies not only on the microscope and dissecting knife, applied to natural artefacts, but also on the conceptual tools of many academic disciplines, applied to the natural wisdom of many peoples. Most importantly, this approach implies accepting other peoples as equal participants in research (p. vi)86
As Helen Verran made clear, the Yirrkala program provides opportunities to 'export' the methodology to other communities. This is beginning through a conference involving other Aboriginal communities in East Arnhemland, and through teaching at Batchelor College.
Lack of continuity of funding, limited resources for transport and other needs in remote areas, the impacts of non-Aboriginal intrusions on the community and its work and a failure of non-Aboriginal interests (such as mining companies) to involve and respect Aboriginal expertise were all identified as barriers to the contribution which this program might make to biodiversity conservation.
3.5.2 Aboriginal initiated programs within a European setting – Bidjara Aboriginal Corporation cultural centre and wildlife park
While in Charleville, Community Solutions met with representatives from the Bidjara Aboriginal Corporation, who presented an overview of their plans for the development of a cultural centre and wildlife park on Aboriginal land on the town perimeter.
The 700-800 acres of land, which is held under leasehold, will be fenced using a $100,000 grant from ATSIC, and will be set up as a commercial tourist venture through which wildlife used traditionally to provide Aboriginal food are bred in captivity and are on exhibition in relatively natural surroundings. An Aboriginal cultural centre, providing both information and craft products, will form a focal point of the property. It is anticipated that the property will:
- provide income and employment for members of the local Aboriginal community;
- maintain a breeding population of local native species for release to other properties in the area;
- provide a focus for tourism and education pertaining to Aboriginal culture and wildlife management; and
- assist young Aboriginal people in gaining skills in National Parks and Nature Reserve management.
In discussing the project, members of the Bidjara Corporation stressed that the decision to establish a wildlife park had been taken by the community in preference to other alternatives such as the establishment of a commercial emu farm, because the latter is reliant for success on extensive slaughter of animals, beyond the community's food needs. A wildlife park was identified by the community as being more closely in tune with the Aboriginal land ethic.
3.5.3 The European system – opportunities for conservation partnerships with indigenous landholders
Dr Dermot Smyth and Ms Johanna Sutherland are conducting a consultancy for the Australian Nature Conservation Agency 'investigating conservation partnerships with indigenous landholders.' The initial aspect of that consultancy is a report on legislative options and constraints to such partnerships.
The report identifies ample opportunities within conservation and land management legislation in most States and Territories and at Commonwealth level for cooperative management arrangements between government agencies and indigenous landholders. Whilst such arrangements are at present rare, Smyth and Sutherland identify that conditions exist for the establishment of protected areas on indigenous owned land as part of a national representative protected area system. They are of the view that such establishments should be subject to the wishes of Aboriginal and Torres Strait landholders.
A national workshop of indigenous organisations and government agencies to discuss the findings of the report by Smyth and Sutherland was held in Central Australia in June 1995. The outcomes of that workshop will have important implications for decision making as to the desired role of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the conservation of biodiversity in Australia.
3.6 Discussion and conclusions
The community consultation forums provided a valuable opportunity for participants interested and involved in biodiversity conservation and use to express their views on mechanisms and processes which would enhance biodiversity protection. The range of participants in both the general and ecotourism forums was broad, with agricultural, conservation and ecotourism sectors being most strongly represented. However, the 365 participants in the 13 forums held in 12 different locations provide but a 'snapshot' of views on the protection of Australia's biodiversity. Key among the recurring themes arising out of the forums were the needs to:
- involve local representatives of landholders, industry, local governments and community organisations in planning, decision-making and implementation of biodiversity conservation;
- better educate landholders and land users, urban dwellers and the Australian community generally about the values of biodiversity and the processes which impact on it; and
- better resource those sectors of the community having greatest responsibility for the day-to-day protection and management of biodiversity.
Local involvement
Ownership of initiatives for the protection of biodiversity by those primarily responsible for that protection was the most consistent theme emerging from both the general and ecotourism streams of community consultation. Resistance to imposed solutions was strong, and participants challenged any suggestion that governments might hold the answers to biodiversity conservation. There was strong cynicism expressed about government actions on biodiversity, and a resentment towards government policies introduced without due recognition of the particular circumstances facing communities and local ecosystems.
However, it is important to consider how well equipped local communities might be to take on the local control sought. As observed earlier in this report, much of Australia's rich diversity of species and ecosystems is found in rural and remote areas. Not only do those communities have less access to scientific research than do metropolitan communities, but in many instances they are less well equipped to play a controlling role in planning, decision-making and implementation of biodiversity conservation.
In recent years the rural sector has experienced a serious economic downturn, which has placed severe social and economic pressures on individuals and communities alike.
The Australian farm sector has been suffering relatively low incomes for the past four years. This has been the result of low world prices for some major agricultural commodities, particularly wool, and severe drought conditions in Queensland and parts of New South Wales (p.79).87
That same Committee set total rural debt in Australia at 30 June 1993 at $17.323 billion, this having risen steadily between 1978-79 and 1986-87. The reasons for rural debt are numerous and the social consequences extensive. Declining standards of living, stress-related impacts on physical, mental and emotional health and fragmentation of rural communities were all identified by the Senate Committee as being of major significance. So too was a decline in ability to educate children in rural families. In this climate, the Committee identified that...
while profit margins remain low, the pressure will be on producers to cut costs and boost productivity. Accordingly, producers will postpone or cancel important landcare programs (p.87).88
If these people are to take responsibility for the conservation of biodiversity, then they will require the resources, infrastructure and technical support to enable them to do so. Capacity building which is occurring in other areas, such as through the Commonwealth's regional development program, should also occur in relation to the conservation of biodiversity.
An additional issue of concern to the project team has been the lack of scientific evidence that will justify the major proposals put forward by those consulted. The key proposal is that development of local ownership of programs to protect biodiversity is necessary to bring about the changes needed to conserve biodiversity throughout Australia. Little objective research has been carried out in this area, either in Australia or overseas. One of the ongoing criticisms of the national Landcare program, for example, has been its inability to provide evidence that it is actually bringing about on the ground change.
Inherent in discussing this problem is the fact that it is individuals and communities with which we are dealing, and as such, their intentions and actions are not quantifiable in the normal sense of the word. However, it is fair to say that if the strong messages gained during the community consultation process are ignored then the desired outcomes will not be achieved, because the expressed views of resource users and land managers themselves will be directly contradicted. In other parts of this report, economic arguments that go a long way towards justifying this approach are proposed. As has been recognised in the recent review of the National Landcare Program, an essential component of any programs which move towards increasing local ownership and resourcing must be the development of performance indicators and accountability mechanisms which measure both on the ground change and levels of community and individual activity.
Education and information
There are, of course, several aspects to the provision of information to assist in the conservation of biodiversity. As is made clear in the National Biodiversity Conservation Strategy,
Major research initiatives are required in the areas of compilation and assessment of existing knowledge, conservation biology, rapid assessment and inventory, long-term monitoring, and ethnobiology (p.47).89
Participants in the various forums generally recognised that land uses, such as agriculture and mainstream tourism, do have impacts on biodiversity. Coupled with this was a concern that information is currently not available to enable us to measure the impacts of various activities on a day-to-day basis. The nature of disturbance to ecosystems is such that day-to-day measures may not be possible. Many of the impacts of human activity on species and ecosystems are cumulative, and become apparent only after prolonged periods. Where this is the case, landholders and land users need to know this and to be part of the ongoing process of monitoring and adjusting management practices. As was made clear in a LWRRDC review of remnant vegetation in the rural landscape,90 much existing research is seen to lack accessibility to those charged with on-the-ground management, and many landholders and Landcare groups are seen to embark on projects without adequate scientific input. As the National Biodiversity Conservation Strategy observes:
The media, educational institutions, government agencies and various societies and groups have all been effective in increasing public awareness of the importance of biological diversity conservation. Nevertheless it is necessary to ensure the continued availability of accurate and persuasive information about the benefits, costs and means of biological diversity conservation. The meaning of biological diversity and the consequences of its decline should be communicated in locally relevant terms (p.53).91
Creative strategies for community education at this level were in short supply throughout the consultations, although it was generally considered that the question of resourcing for education programs was pivotal. So too was the need for information to come from those most in tune with the needs of those to whom it is being delivered.
Scientists, educators, landholders and the urban community need to be brought closer together in their knowledge and understanding of the issues surrounding biodiversity conservation.
Better resourcing of biodiversity conservation
Protection of biodiversity was seen to be ultimately the responsibility of the Australian community as a whole, and as such it was generally agreed that the community should pay for actions necessary to conserve it.
A somewhat unexpected outcome of the consultation process was the lack of emphasis placed by forum participants on the pros and cons of individual mechanisms. Participants were more concerned about the overall level of resourcing provided to biodiversity conservation, rather than the methods of delivery of those resources.
Whilst the provision of economic incentives was considered to be an important signal from government that biodiversity protection is being taken seriously, greater emphasis was placed on the need for a redistribution of consolidated revenue, given the pivotal position which biodiversity conservation occupies in attaining ecologically sustainable development. Recent increases in State and Commonwealth Government funding of biodiversity initiatives was seen as a positive first step, but resources available were not seen to anywhere near match the economic, social and aesthetic significance of the problems.
In providing increased funding for the conservation of biodiversity, greatest returns were perceived to come from the channelling of funds and information directly to those actually involved in land management. Again, no real evidence was cited to back-up the claims put forward, with participants pointing to the fact that so-called 'top down' mechanisms had not worked in the past, and were generally inefficient. No single mechanism was favoured in providing such economic support, although mechanisms involving use of the tax system received most attention. This was particularly so in encouraging greater industry activity to conserve biodiversity, and was of less relevance to the majority of rural landholders, many of whom are asset rich but dollar poor.
Whether through the use of grants, tax concessions or credits or by other means, the provision of funding support directly to local communities and individuals, as well as reporting and accountability mechanisms, will be essential in ensuring that such funds are used wisely.
Creating 'ownership' of biodiversity initiatives by those who are primarily responsible for its protection and management is the most consistent theme emerging from both the general and ecotourism forums. There is a clear expectation that the Commonwealth Government should play a leadership role in setting the framework for national action and for resourcing biodiversity conservation. However that framework, decision making and implementation of actions for the conservation of biodiversity must all be achieved through partnerships involving those directly responsible for land use and management, together with scientists and others in the community.
Nowhere in the forums were striking and innovative mechanisms identified to achieve those partnerships, nor were there clearly defined ways for bringing together Aboriginal perspectives of land stewardship and non-Aboriginal perspectives. The means to build these partnerships are explored through the case study summaries in the next chapter, the design principles chapters which follow it and then in the recommendations presented at the end of this report.
84. Agriculture includes both grazing and intensive agriculture interests. For the purposes of sectoral comparisons, Landcare representatives who indicated that they represented both agriculture and conservation interests, have been included under the agricultural sector. Where possible, both government employees and scientists were classified according to the sector in which they worked.
85. Neither conservation nor agricultural sectors dominated in number in the Darwin forum.
86. Watson, H. and Chambers, D.W. (1989) Singing the land; signing the land. Deakin University Press, Geelong.
87. Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Committee (1994) Rural adjustment, rural debt and rural reconstruction report. Parliamentary Paper, the Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra. December, 1994.
88. Senate Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Committee (1994) Rural adjustment, rural debt and rural reconstruction report. Parliamentary Paper, the Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra. December, 1994.
89. Australian and New Zealand Environment and Conservation Council Task Force on Biological Diversity (1993) National strategy for the conservation of Australia's biological diversity. Department of the Environment, Sports and Territories, Canberra.
90. Lambert, J. and Elix, J. (1993) 'Remnant vegetation in the rural landscape.' Consultancy Report on LWRRDC Involvement in National Research, Land and Water Resources Research and Development Corporation. Occasional Paper, No 04/93. Canberra.
91. Australian and New Zealand Environment and Conservation Council Task Force on Biological Diversity (1993) National strategy for the conservation of Australia's biological diversity. Department of the Environment, Sports and Territories, Canberra.


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Baltimore St has a Walk Score of 42 out of 100. This location is a Car-Dependent neighborhood so most errands require a car.
Nearby schools include Lopatcong Elementary School, Busy Bees Learning Center and Phillipsburg Christian Academy.
The closest grocery stores are Piazza Farms & Greenhouses, Ahart's Market and Greenwich Deli LLC.
Nearby coffee shops include Cafe on 22 and Dunkin' Donuts. There are five restaurants within a 15 minute walk including Clove Fine Indian Cuisine, Number One China and Brunos Pizza & Pasta LLC.


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In Other News
Breaking News
More than 30 teens escape from Tennessee detention center
Police: Knife-wielding suspect shot during Connnecticut chase
Breaking News
Meds to cut stress may help women smokers quit, Yale prof says
Torrington Democrats to host annual summer picnic Wednesday
102nd Goshen Fair comes to a close, attendance estimated at 45,000
102nd Goshen Fair comes to a close, attendance estimated at 45,000
GOSHEN >> Fairgoers came from far and wide to participate in the festivities on the last day of the 102nd annual Goshen Fair on Labor Day, taking part in some good old-fashioned New England fun. ...
Money rolling into Connecticut's 5th District congressional race
HARTFORD >> Connecticut's 5th Congressional District race is expected once again to be an expensive battle, attracting millions of dollars in outside money. ...
Breaking News
More than 30 teens escape from Tennessee detention center
NASHVILLE>> A spokesman says more than 30 teens escaped from a Nashville youth detention center and 17 are still being sought.
Police: Knife-wielding suspect shot during Connnecticut chase
WASHINGTON>> State police say a car theft suspect wounded himself with a knife after being shot at by a trooper and Woodbury officer during a chase.
Meds to cut stress may help women smokers quit, Yale prof says
For the last 50 years, men have consistently had an easier time quitting smoking than women.
Pet of the Day: Sherry
Sherry Sherry is a gorgeous female spayed tortie mix cat, approx. 2-3 yrs. old. She is shy at first and then warms up. She has gorgeous markings. She is calm, mellow, healthy, friendly, and a real sweetheart. Sherry likes dogs and cats and has lived with them before. She would be happiest and best in a home with a dog or a cat or both (ones that like cats also). She is in need of a reliable foster home until placed. Everything is provided to the fostering family or person. Call Pet...
Sharon: "Live Well" classes begin Sept. 3
SHARON >> VNA Northwest offers a free, six-week workshop to help people with chronic diseases gain more control over their lives. "Live Well," covers a new topic each week and provides opportunities for interaction and group problem solving. Sessions will be held at Sharon Hospital, 50 Hospital Hill Road, on Wednesday mornings, starting Sept. 3, 9:30 a.m. to noon weekly through Oct. 8.
Litchfield Historical Society walking tours explore town's past
LITCHFIELD >> The Litchfield Historical Society concludes its annual walking tours with some exciting topics for September. During each tour, a museum educator offers participants a new way to look at their surroundings with themed walks through Litchfield's history.
Winsted library holding "Jello Fest" Sept. 13
WINSTED >> Few desserts are more fun to eat than Jello, so why has it been reduced to a wiggly cube under a blob of artificial topping?
Litchfield: Parkinson's support group holding fundraiser walk
LITCHFIELD >> The Torrington Area Parkinson's Support group will host its second annual "Walk in the Woods' for Parkinson's researh at White Memorial Conservation Center, Route 202 on Sunday, Sept. 7.
Miles 4 Moe Foundation to hold annual walk, festival Sept. 21
TORRINGTON >> The Miles 4 Moe Foundation will hold its fifth annual 5K Walk/Run to be held on Sunday, Sept. 21.
General news
Torrington Democrats to host annual summer picnic Wednesday
TORRINGTON >> The Torrington Democrats will be hosting their annual picnic Wednesday from 5-8 p.m. at Elks Pond at 180 Guerdat Road in Torrington.


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nycARTscene Interview: Pavel Acosta
Pavel Acosta's site-specific artwork, "Wallscape," was recently installed directly upon a wall in El Museo del Barrio's permanent collection gallery. The large scale collage will be featured in El Museo's upcoming biennial exhibition "La Bienal 2013: HERE IS WHERE WE JUMP" opening June 12th, 2013.
nycARTscene contributor Keith Schweitzer leads us in conversation with the artist:
KS: You recently installed an artwork directly upon a wall in El Museo del Barrio's Permanent Collection gallery. The wall is scraped almost completely raw of paint, leaving only a large rectangular section at the wall's center, within which we find a meticulously detailed collage. Please explain the collage and the process used to create it.
PA: My work at El Museo del Barrio is titled "Wallscape."
In the process of making it I actually scraped the whole wall. I lifted all the existing layers of paint I found on the wall — about five of them— until reaching the brown paper of the sheetrock. Only then, I started pasting the scraped paint chips back again, to make a collage. It has been a long process that always starts by classifying the different textures and colors found in my scrapings. Although the material found was pretty homogeneous, there were different tones of white and beige, which allowed me to re-create the forms and contrasts in the picture.
I wanted to reproduce the piece that was in front of the wall I was assigned to. I was not thinking of any specific image, but Macarulla's painting was perfect. It is a very challenging image, colorful and baroque, and I needed to achieve it with a very limited palette. On the other hand, this process is a way for me to engage in the dialog with the history of the institution, because these walls have accumulated layers and layers of paint that relate the stories which other artists have come to tell, throughout the years.
KS: Years back, you began a series, "Stolen Paint," while living in Havana, Cuba. Please describe this series and the motivations behind it.
PA: Back then, I decided I needed to find the way to make a living as an artist, and I did it through stealing —in the middle of the economic crisis in Cuba everyone was doing that. As a painter I use pigments, and I realized I could obtain them from anywhere in the city without buying expensive art materials. The streets of Havana are filled with aging and falling bits of paint, as buildings and objects are not regularly maintained. I started scraping layers of paint and using them to create collages on canvas and on paper. I found a range of possibilities this way. This variety made every collage different. The quality of the paint chips would determine the look and style of the work. I developed an ability to adapt myself to whatever I found, and I thought this was interesting, both formally and conceptually. The recycling and re-utilizing of found materials somehow echoed the whole Cuban experience of the time.
KS: While viewing your "Wallscape" at El Museo, there is no placard or signage to indicate who or what we are looking at. It's as if a vandal broke into the museum, destroyed a wall, and left behind a gift in the form of an artwork. Gazing across the gallery, we realize that what we've been looking at is a reproduction of Manuel Macarulla's painting, "Goat Song #5: Tumult on George Washington Avenue." You've previously described yourself as a thief and here appear to be a vandal. Are you either of these things?
PA: Sure. I am possibly a thief and definitely a vandal. However, I am not sure whether it is a bad thing to be. I have been destroying one of the Museo's walls, and copying another artist. Only I did not break in, they just let me in this time.
KS: Why did you choose Manuel Macarulla's painting?
PA: I didn't choose that specific work; the curators did. They assigned me that wall, and Macarulla´s work was across from the wall. All I knew was I wanted to reproduce whatever work was in front of my wall; even a sculpture if that was the case. I am very happy it was Macarulla's though, because of what I explained before.
KS: How long have you been living and working in New York? Do you feel that New York has influenced your work and artistic practices in any form? How has your experience at El Museo affected you?
PA: I came to New York two years ago, and the experience has definitively changed my work. I still am in the process of digesting the vastness of what this city offers visually, and even materially. Looking at my former work in Cuba, I realize that the person who started the Stolen Paint series has very different concerns now. The links between the technique employed and the context where my collages were generated have definitively disappeared. I felt I had to re-think my approach to painting and to art as a whole, in relationship with new subjects and issues. I am opening up to new possibilities, including developing site-specific projects, such as Wallscape. This is only my first intervention in a U.S. Museum, where the relationship between the artist and the institution is quite different. I really appreciate this great opportunity at El Museo.
"Wallscape" will be featured as part of El Museo's Bienal, but in the context of the permanent collection galleries, and it will be on view for almost a year. I look forward to the reaction of the audience to the dynamics that this work activates inside the gallery.
Pavel Acosta: pavelacosta.com
Keith Schweitzer: keithschweitzer.com
Video of the installation: https://vimeo.com/67144633
El Museo del Barrio: elmuseo.org
1230 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10029 (at 104th Street)
Since its first edition in 1999, La Bienal – formerly known as The (S) Files – has been a significant means for creating ties between institutions and artists, while building networks and opportunities for a wide variety of talented Latino artists.
images courtesy of El Museo del Barrio and the artist
nycARTscene Interview: Pavel Acosta
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LAST CHANCE TO SEE LA BIENAL! The critically-acclaimed exhibition be up until Saturday, February 15th! Stop by this week...
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Dope! I see this almost everyday downstairs at the galleries.
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NRA Official Smallbore Rifle Target USA/NRA-50 50-Foot Paper Package of 100
Product #: 112282 NRA #: USA/NRA 50
Product Information
Official NRA targets suitable for scoring matches or for match simulation during practice.
Technical Information
10-1/2" x 12"
1-1/4" black centers
Technical Information
Delivery Information
The total weight of the product, including the product's packaging as it sits on our shelf. Since some products ship directly from the Manufacturer, their weight may be unavailable. Because of variations in the manufacturing process, similar products may have differing weights. Unless the product is designated as "Ships Alone", Shipping Weight does not include the shipping box or packing materials associated with your order.
Product ships from MidwayUSA, separate from any other products on your order due to its size. Products that are Shipped Alone incur separate "Per Order" and "Per Pound" shipping charges.
Product is regulated by the US Department of Transportation (DOT) and cannot be shipped via USPS or air shipping methods. DOT-Regulated products must ship UPS Ground.
Product is restricted by shipping carriers and cannot be shipped to certain locations or via certain shipping methods.
Additional shipping charge for HazMat products. Carriers charge extra to ship packages with products they consider hazardous, such as reloading powder and primers.
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Customer Reviews
The statements and opinions expressed within Customer Reviews reflect each author's personal perspective and do not imply endorsement by MidwayUSA, its Employees or any other organization. Customers should in no way infer that MidwayUSA has validated review information as safe, accurate or appropriate.
NOTE: Prices, specifications and availability are subject to change without notice.
We reserve the right to correct typographic, photographic and/or descriptive errors.
We reserve the right to correct typographic, photographic and/or descriptive errors.
Suggested Products
- National Target Pasters 3/4" Round Package of 250... $2.59 - $4.99 View More Options
- MidwayUSA Medium Duty 3/8" T50 Target Stapler... $9.99 Available
- NRA Men's Amendment Logo Short Sleeve T-Shirt... $9.99 View More Options
- NRA Men's Guns Logo Short Sleeve T-Shirt... $9.99 View More Options
- NRA Men's Pewter Logo Short Sleeve T-Shirt... $9.99 View More Options
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- NRA Official Pistol Target B-3 50' Timed and Rapid Fire Paper... $9.19 Available
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- The New AR-15 Complete Owner's Guide Book by Walt Kuleck with... $21.99 Available
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- Redding Small Base Body Die 223 Remington... $34.49 Available
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- NRA Official Smallbore Rifle Training Target TQ-3/1 50 Yard... $3.09 Available
- NRA Official Smallbore Rifle Target A-51 50-Yard UIT Paper... $21.49 Available


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Please add this newsletter to your Safe Sender listView this email as a Web page | Manage Account
John Commins
Healthcare learned from the nursing shortage how to retain and engage older workers. Now other industries could learn from healthcare HR how to cater to the needs of older workers and benefit from their experience. >>>
Healthcare created 11,600 jobs in October, a significant drop from the jobs created by the sector in September. Even with the decline, healthcare remains a leading source of job creation in the overall economy. But there are limits on how many healthcare jobs the economy can absorb. >>>
When tragic medical mistakes harm patients, defensive attitudes and behavior can make litigation more likely and prolonged, and can add more anxiety and suffering to the affected patients and their families, says an Institute for Healthcare Improvement report. >>>
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THE SCENE PRESENTS SRI-LANKAN FILM "MACHAN" by Uberto Pasolini
Thu May 29,2014
On Wednesday 11th June The Scene Club will screen the Sri-Lankan tragi-comedy MACHAN by Uberto Pasolini. The screening will take place at Dubai Knowledge Village Conference Centre at 8pm and will be followed by a Q&A session with the film screenwriter Ruwanthie De Chickera. Entry is on a 'first-come, first-served' basis and guests are requested to arrive at 7pm to collect their pre-booked complimentary tickets.
The Scene Club is Dubai's first-established film club, monthly showcasing the best of world independent cinema; it is run with the support of the Dubai Culture & Arts Authority (Dubai Culture), the Emirate's dedicated Authority for culture, arts and heritage and the Dubai International Film Festival.
Based on a true story, MACHAN is a tragi-comical tale about a sports team with a difference.
Stanley is tired of life as a fruit seller in the perpetually unstable Sri Lankan city of Colombo. Faced with a lifetime of drudgery, his frequent get-rich-quick schemes have only succeeded in bringing his family to the verge of bankruptcy. But when by chance, he hears that there will be a handball tournament in Bavaria, Germany, an escape scheme hatches in his mind.
Despite not knowing anything about handball, Stanley coerces his pals into forming the first Sri Lankan National Handball Federation. An official invitation is sought, funding and visas applied for.
But as the fateful date with destiny draws ever closer, it becomes glaringly apparent that none of the would-be migrants has a coherent plan for achieving asylum in Germany…
MACHAN marks the directorial debut of Uberto Pasolini, producer of the international hit The Full Monty.
After its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival in 2008 where it picked up the prize for Best European Film, MACHAN was shown at over 30 international film festivals and won several awards, including Best Film at Brussels Film Festival, Best Screenplay at Durban Film Festival, Best Feature Film at Palm Beach Film Festival, Audience Award at Transylvania Film Festival and Kerala Film Festival.
Language: Sinhalese and English with English subtitles
Duration: 103 minutes
Rating: 15
Award winning Sri-Lankan screenwriter Ruwanthie De Chickera will be joining the evening for an open Q&A session with the public. Ruwanthie's plays have been produced in Sri Lanka, the UK, Japan, India, Australia and the Philippines. Her first play won the British Council International New Playwriting award in 1997 and was the first Sri Lankan play to be performed in London's West End.
Tickets to The Scene Club are complimentary and are given on a "first-come, first-served" basis on the night of the screening from 7pm at the club's Ticket Desk at Knowledge Village Conference Centre. Pre-booking at thesceneclub.com is required, as priority is given to the people who have reserved a ticket. Guests are encouraged to arrive on time at 7pm to avoid disappointment, as seats are limited and the screenings are hugely popular.
Between 7pm and 7.45pm all guests can meet fellow film enthusiasts in The Scene Club networking lounge, while enjoying complimentary refreshments. The film will start at 8pm and the evening will conclude with the Q&A session with screenwriter Ruwanthie De Chickera.


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jennyluvzfrogs owns it. 2 years ago
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Angel Smith owns it. 2 years ago
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Mina and her husband appear to be the perfect couple from the outside. They have serious intimacy issues within their marriage. Mina becomes more intrigued with afternoons spent with younger men, than repairing her marriage. When an unsuspected affair becomes public, it astounds their suburban circle,
***Contains Adult Material.
Lendle stats
- 3 Lendlers own it
- 3 Copies available
- 0 Lends requested
- 0 Lends fulfilled
- 0 Lends outstanding
- 0 Spots in line booked


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Riding Lessons in North Carolina
Scroll down to browse our newest North Carolina riding lessons listings or use the quick search on the left to search by farm, trainer, area or discipline.
Do you offer horseback riding lessons? List your NC riding lessons services in our equine business directory - free!
Erika Cook Horse Training - Specializing in eventing, dressage, and jumpers
Creedmoor, NC
Jon Walker Stables & Riding Academy / Jon Walker/Carolyn Walker - English Ridng Lessons
Gastonia, NC
Sunset Ridge Equestrian Center / Diane DeRienzis - Diane DeRienzis has 25 yrs. experience teaching, training and barn management. She started her ridin
Taylorsville, NC
Johnson Riding Academy / Kevin Johnson - Hunter/ Jumpers
Mount Airy, NC


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Benefits and how to become a LEGO VIP
We apologize, but we are unable to take telephone orders and ship product from this location.
Visit the LEGO Store!
October's Mini Model building event will take place on Tuesday, October 7 beginning at 5:00 pm until supplies last.
Hey LEGO® Club Members! Sign up now for the October LEGO Star Wars club meeting--space is limited and filling up fast! Saturday, October 18 & 25.
Visit the LEGO® Store to try out LEGO Juniors sets September 1-28! LEGO Juniors features easy instructions and quick start builds to help your little builder advance.
Mouse over newletter to see details!
Check out the LEGO Brand Ribbon at the LEGO Store!
Create and customize your own LEGO Minifigure!
Check out your favorite LEGO set in 3D!
Check out our large variety of LEGO bricks and elements in the LEGO Store!


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a funny song by govinda and ruchi (brother n sister)
Lyrics & Chords
he is my gud brother.he is just 11 years old and really gud singer as i think abt him.
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by Ruchi Sharma
uploaded over 5 years ago
- 55 Plays. Last played on September 25, 2014
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- 0 a funny song by govinda and... MP3 Download