Research
DECC research addresses State priorities as outlined in the State Plan - A new direction for NSW.
Our research enables DECC to develop and implement effective environmental, cultural and natural resource policies, programs and regulation, provide technical advice and support, and develop public information programs.
DECC undertakes research in the areas of:
For published results from our research, see research papers.
Scientific research
DECC undertakes a broad range of scientific research including work on:
DECC is also undertaking ecological research on a range of fauna including:
DECC ecological research includes research on woodland ecology which aims to:
- provide practical strategies for landholders so they can effectively conserve biodiversity on their properties
- improve biodiversity on private land.
Woodland ecology projects include:
- BioMetric: terrestrial biodiversity tool for the NSW property vegetation plan developer – a Microsoft Excel-based tool to help DECC staff assess proposals from landholders to clear or improve native vegetation under the NSW Native Vegetation Act 2003. Also see the FAQs on Biometric
- Rapid site assessment for biodiversity – a simple scoring system for accurately and quickly assessing biodiversity on private land
- Vegetation types and benchmarks across NSW – vegetation maps and techniques to measure the range of variability of vegetation across NSW
- Spatial mapping of vegetation condition – developing methods for spatially mapping the condition of native vegetation across entire landscapes
- Market-based approaches and incentives for biodiversity conservation – standard, repeatable methods for assessing biodiversity on private property for incentive schemes
- Woodland birds – investigating the causes of the decline of woodland birds in the wheat–sheep belt of NSW, by studying their habitat. Also read the research paper, Threatened and declining birds in the NSW sheep-wheat belt
- Paddock trees in agricultural landscapes – assessing the contribution of paddock trees (isolated trees and small patches of trees) to regional conservation
- Tree hollows and wildlife conservation in Australia – assessing which animals rely on which types of tree hollows, and ways in which these hollows can be conserved
- Lakebed cropping and biodiversity – guidelines for growing crops on dry lakebeds, and research into biodiversity in lakes and floodplain woodlands in western NSW. Also view the Guidelines for managing cropping in lakes in the Murray–Darling Basin research paper
- Impacts of salinity on biodiversity – investigating the effects of dryland salinity on the health of native vegetation
- Managing biodiversity on farms – practical strategies for managing biodiversity on farms.
For more information about this work, contact DECC’s woodland ecology team.
Social research
DECC’s social research includes:
- Educating the community about litter: changing knowledge, attitudes and behaviour 2000 to 2003 – a synthesis of the results of research and evaluation conducted in association with litter public awareness campaigns in NSW from 2000 to 2003
- Who cares about the environment? – a triennial survey measuring people’s environmental attitudes, knowledge, skills and behaviour. View Who cares about the environment in 2006?
- Patches of Green reviews the state of environmental education in early childhood. Published in June 2003, the report provides a basis for improving early childhood environmental education in Australia.
- Industry and the Environment 1997 - a benchmark survey of environmental management in NSW industry, was commissioned by EPA NSW to examine current levels of environmental management in NSW industry and the factors affecting the adoption and effectiveness of environmental management practices.
- The environment and NSW ethnic communities in 2004 – surveyed the relationships between ethnicity and environmental knowledge, attitudes and behaviours in NSW. This research updates and expands on the first survey of ethnic communities and the environment conducted in 1996.
- An Ecological Footprint Study of New South Wales and Sydney (08215ecofootprintnswsyd.pdf, 450KB) - Report for DEC by Manfred Lenzen, Integrated Sustainability Analysis, The University of Sydney, which calculates the ecological footprints of NSW and Sydney using population and expenditure data. The findings provided input to NSW State of the Environment 2006.
For more information about this research, email sustainability@environment.nsw.gov.au.
Economics research
DECC’s economics research includes:
- Environmental valuation reference inventory (EVRI) – a resource run by Environment Canada providing more than 1700 international studies on environmental valuation
- Envalue – a database of studies on environmental valuation first released in 1995.
- Economic benefits of protected areas in NSW - individuals, businesses and communities derive socio-economic benefits from national parks and other reserves, through income from employment and providing goods and services, recreational benefits and, in some cases, from using wild resources.
For more economics research, view the research papers:
- The contribution of the Montague Island Nature Reserve to regional economic development
- Fitzroy Falls Visitor Centre – economic impact of management and visitor expenditure.
Page last updated: 07 August 2008