The Victorian Division of EIANZ invites you to attend an upcoming webinar on FFG Act reform – Implications of the new Threatened List and other changes to Victoria’s key biodiversity legislation.

The Victorian Government recently gazetted (May 2021) a substantial number of species under the Threatened List under the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 (FFG Act) – a result of the long-running Conservation Status Assessment Project. This was one of the major steps to implementing the amended Act. Some other important changes include:

• Critical habitat and habitat conservation orders
• Protected Flora – general and restricted
• public authority duty to consider Biodiversity Strategy

The Environment Institute of Australia and New Zealand (EIANZ) together with Ecological Consultants Association of Victoria (ECA Vic) are delighted to host a seminar that will explore the amendments and upcoming changes in more detail to look at what it means for environmental professionals, regulation and conservation of flora and fauna. Three Victorian government staff who have been working on the reforms will speak at this webinar, followed by a Q&A session allowing you to enquire and discuss the changes to the FFG Act.

Meet the speakers:

• Vanessa Craigie | Threatened Species Policy, Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning (DELWP)
  Vanessa has worked with in the area of threatened species and communities for many years, most notably in native grassland ecosystems. She has been involved extensively in implementation of the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act, and worked in the Threatened Species and Communities Section, in previous iterations of the Department, developing Recovery Plans and FFG action statements. She was a member of the team that developed Biodiversity 2037. For the past four years she has led the Conservation Status Assessment Project, re-assessing the conservation status of Victorian threatened species, in accordance with the Common Assessment Method, in the Threatened Species Policy team. She is currently working to deliver new action statements for the many newly listed species.
• Sheri Burmeister | Acting Manager of Threatened Species Policy (DELWP)
  Sheri has worked in the Biodiversity Division for 19 years in native vegetation policy and implementation, market-based programs, offsetting and Biodiversity 2037. For the past 2 years she has worked in the Threatened Species Policy team, dealing with complex threatened species policy problems, implementing the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 and leading the Victorian Government input into the Parliamentary inquiry into Ecosystem Decline in Victoria. Sheri is currently Acting Manager, Threatened Species Policy.
• Steve Goldsworthy | Acting Manager, Regulatory Design (DELWP)