Press Release - June 21 2007

The Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC) is the lead agency for reporting on the status and management of biodiversity for the New South Wales Government. The Department also plays a primary role in supporting Catchment Management Authorities, Local Government and other government agencies in understanding biodiversity and the implementation of their respective planning processes to protect biodiversity.
Day to day departmental operational decisions, right up to government-wide strategic policy directions, are dependent on reliable and appropriate biodiversity information.  Arguably, this information is the most valuable and critical asset owned by DEC.

Spatial Vision was contracted to undertake a high level assessment of the ability of DEC's existing natural resource databases to meet existing and future reporting needs. Spatial Vision made recommendations regarding how:

• the value derived from existing databases can be maximised and
• the adoption of an integrated approach to data management can provide improved support for biodiversity decision making.

In undertaking the review, Spatial Vision consulted broadly with officers and the executive of DEC to appreciate their requirements for biodiversity information, the role played by existing data resources and how they could be more effectively utilised. The review outcomes were documented and presented to key stakeholders through a series of workshops.

In April 2007, DEC was renamed to the Department of Environment and Climate Change (DECC).

For further information, please contact:

Graeme Martin
Ph: (03) 9691 3000
email info@spatialvision.com.au

Copyright © Spatial Vision, Thursday, 21-June-2007