The Conservation Commission of Western Australia (Conservation Commission) is an independent statutory authority that was established by Parliament in November 2000 under the CALM Act 1984.
The Conservation Commission is the controlling body in which the State’s terrestrial conservation estate is vested. This includes national parks, conservation parks, nature reserves, state forests and timber reserves.
The Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC) manages lands on behalf of the Conservation Commission. The Forest Products Commission was established in 2000 to carry out commercial production, allocation and sale of products from the State’s native forests.
The Conservation Commission is responsible for the preparation of management plans for lands vested in it. Management plans are developed on behalf of the Conservation Commission by the Department of Environment and Conservation and independently monitored and audited by the Conservation Commission. The development of management plans includes the development of Forest Management Plans.
The Conservation Commission develops policies and provides independent advice to the Minister for Environment with respect to conservation, the management of ecological biodiversity and the application of ecologically sustainable forest management.
The Conservation Commission’s mission is to conserve the State’s biological diversity and ensure the conservation estate is managed in an ecologically sustainable manner. A complementary body, the Marine Parks and Reserves Authority, is responsible for the care and control of marine reserves and relevant land vested in it.
Membership
The Conservation Commission consists of nine members of the community who are appointed on the nomination of the Minister and is supported by a small executive team. Members are appointed on the basis of their knowledge and experience in:
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Biological diversity conservation;
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Environmental management (including managing the natural environment for recreational purposes); and
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The sustainable use of natural resources.
One member must be a person who has knowledge of and experience in Aboriginal culture and Aboriginal heritage matters relevant to the function of the Conservation Commission, and is able to make a contribution to its functions.
The Conservation Commission meets monthly and considers strategic planning, changes to the conservation estate and estate issues, applications for leases, licences, permits and mining tenements, management planning, performance assessments and policy.
Operational relationship between the Conservation Commission and the Department of Environment and Conservation (The Department)
The Department provides:
- the Conservation Commission with such assistance as it may reasonably require to perform its functions; and
- the Conservation Commission with any staff and facilities that it may reasonably require to perform its functions.
