In the ACT, two ecological communities, and 17 plant and animal species are endangered; a further 14 species are vulnerable. The number of endangered and vulnerable species is increasing.

• Yellow Box-Redgum Grassy Woodland is habitat for eight threatened species and other woodland species that are described as declining.
• Natural temperate grasslands are under considerable threat as are a number of threatened and declining species that live in the grasslands.
• Woodland birds and native fish are both in decline.
• Five native fish are threatened or endangered particularly from reduced flows and quality of water in rivers from regulation of flows, degradation of habitat, lower water quality, barriers to fish migration, presence of alien species, pressure from recreational fishers, outbreak of disease and loss of genetic integrity, as well as drought (MDBC 2004).

White Box-Yellow Box-Blakely’s Red Gum Grassy Woodland and derived native grassland was declared a critically endangered ecological community under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (Cwlth) on 17 May 2006.

Only 2345 ha of the associated community Yellow Box-Red Gum Grassy Woodland (or 9.3% of the total remaining in the ACT and surrounding region from commencement of European settlement) are protected in nature reserves. Some are also protected on rural leases. Although the ACT meets the Regional Forests Assessment target of 15% of its original extent within its own borders, the total for the region is only 8.5%. Future signifi cant impacts will need to be referred to the Australian Government under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999.

Preservation of individual trees does not protect the ecological community since the understorey is lost. Preservation next door to suburbs with no protection from pets such as cats and dogs is also unlikely to be particularly successful.

The ability of native species to be maintained in a landscape depends on the quality, quantity and connectivity of its preferred habitat. Achievement of this target will ensure conservation of endangered species and communities through successful implementation of recovery plans, strategies and action plans, and mitigation of key threatening processes.

The target relates to the 2008 baseline of 17 endangered species, 14 vulnerable species and two endangered communities in the ACT. Progress over the long term would see species and communities gradually becoming more secure and being removed from the list. If species (or communities) are allocated three points for extinct, two for endangered and one for vulnerable, the 2008 ‘conservation listing’ score for the ACT is 50. The target is to reduce this to 40 by 2030.