AN initiative allowing property owners to be paid for environmental management is set to expend into the Riverland. 

The Department of Environment and Water (DEW) last week announced the Biodiversity Credit Exchange program – offering eligible landholders access to funding to manage and protect areas of native vegetation in order to generate biodiversity credits – would be launched in the region. 

DEW native vegetation manager Sarah Reachill hoped to replicate successful programs at the Yorke Peninsula, and Mid North, in the Riverland. 

“(Those) landholders are being paid on an annual basis for 10 years to protect and manage over 820 hectares of remnant native vegetation on their land,” Ms Reachill said. 

“This is a region with an important and diverse range of native vegetation that we want to preserve for future generations.”

Ms Reachill said the program gave local landholders an opportunity to “diversify their income while helping to protect the environment”.

“The credits generated on their land are listed on the Native Vegetation Credit Register and can then be sold to buyers that are required to offset vegetation clearances in the same region,” she said. 

“What this does is supports sustainable development in our growing regional economies while providing long-term protection for our state’s ecosystems and ensuring there is no net loss of native vegetation for South Australia.

“The number of credits your site will generate is dependent on its current condition and the expected improvement in biodiversity that would result from its management and protection. This will be determined by an on-ground assessment conducted by field staff.”

Further information regarding the Biodiversity Credit Exchange is available by visiting the website (https://bit.ly/3gcdUgB).