Page 4294 - Week 11 - Thursday, 25 October 2018
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relevant land management agreements, and finalising the operational plans for the pink-tailed worm lizard and offset area Patch P. I am pleased to advise that the operational plan for the pink-tailed worm lizard has been delivered, and the remaining actions are due later this year. EPSDD is working with the relevant agencies to ensure they are delivering on time.
The audit report also made recommendations relating to improvements in the coordination and administration of the strategic assessment. These included recommendations to ensure that time frames are met and to ensure accurate record keeping and publication of reports. I am pleased to say the government has agreed to all 12 of the recommendations in the audit report.
The Environment, Planning and Sustainable Development Directorate is now overseeing the coordination of the strategic assessment and has been working with other agencies to develop and implement procedures to improve administration processes and deliver commitments on time.
Some of the key projects include implementing a procedure for the review and approval of construction and environmental management plans for greenfield projects in the strategic assessment area, developing a new recording procedure, and ongoing work reviewing and upgrading the strategic assessment webpage to ensure that all research papers and reports are publically available.
The audit report also noted that there is a need to consider potential systemic risks to conservation areas in achieving the ecological outcomes of the strategic assessment and to ensure that adaptive management is applied.
A review of the ecological objectives will be undertaken as part of a commitment under the strategic assessment to deliver an expert panel report, which is currently being prepared. The report will provide advice and recommendations for any amendments necessary to ensure that we are achieving the conservation outcomes and performance targets for matters of national environmental significance in the Molonglo Valley strategic assessment area.
In conclusion, I acknowledge that the Molonglo Valley strategic assessment is a long-term project and will require ongoing coordination and support to ensure that commitments are delivered in accordance with the plan. The ACT government has already undertaken a number of steps to implement the findings of the audit, delivering the required corrective actions and establishing new procedures and processes.
Further actions to deliver the findings in the audit report will be published in Molonglo Valley strategic assessment annual reports to ensure ongoing transparency and accountability on implementation of the strategic assessment commitments. The government’s response to the audit has been a valuable opportunity to provide leadership for the development and delivery of future strategic assessments throughout Australia.
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