Biodiversity loss affects most areas of our region to varying levels. Overall, inappropriate land management practices, weeds and pests, and climate change are the biggest threats to biodiversity in our region (Department of Environment and Resource Management, 2010). This includes vegetation clearing in inappropriate areas, overgrazing, lack of weed and pest control, changes to hydrology and inappropriate fire regimes. These practices result in:
- species extinction;
- reduced landscape resilience (ability of country to absorb disturbance and recover quickly without dramatically changing) resulting in a change in thresholds (the point where there is no recovery and the country changes);
- the loss and fragmentation of habitat and movement corridors;
- changes to ecosystem functions (soil generation, water cycles, native fauna and flora compositions);
- loss of seasonality;
- competition for food and predation from feral animals;
- soil erosion;
- sedimentation or erosion of watercourses and wetlands;
- eutrophication in wetlands; and eventually
- pollution of marine waters that support the GBR.