Indigenous Protected Area - Project Assessments
Applications for Indigenous Protected Areas (IPA) funding are assessed against the guidelines for the establishment of the National Reserve System.
The Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts (DEWHA) encourages potential applicants to submit early drafts of applications, so constructive feedback can be provided to guide further development.
When the Department receives an applications, it passes it on to the relevant State or Territory government for comment. The application is then provided - together with technical assessment information - to the IPA Advisory Group for its comment and recommendations.
At the end of this process recommendations are referred to the Minister for the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts for consideration.
Project Assessment Criteria
The Department uses the criteria listed below to assess applications and allocate resources.
Applications that meet the following criteria are usually highly regarded:
- the proposed project is located in an Australian Biogeographical Region with a very high, high or medium priority ranking - which contains few protected areas; or the proposal includes land with significant natural and cultural heritage values
- the community applying for declaration have a strong interest in managing their land for conservation purposes
- the community applying has the capacity to carry out the project and to administer funds according to Australian Government funding requirements
- demonstrated support from the relevant State/Territory nature conservation agency