Written by Kate McIntosh and Luis Feliu
From the Tweed ECHO Thursday, 30 June 2011 –
A push to have the Tweed caldera region recognised as an internationally significant ecological site appears to be gathering momentum.
At its meeting last week Tweed Shire Council unanimously voted in favour of a motion to bring forward a report on whether council should back moves to have the Border Ranges region declared a UNESCO biosphere reserve.
The Caldera Environment Centre (CEC), which is leading the campaign, is seeking council support for its nomination.
UNESCO’s initiative, which celebrates its 40th anniversary this week, is designed to balance the protection of high-end conservation areas with sustainable development.
Biosphere reserves typically incorporate one or more protected areas and surrounding lands that are managed to combine both conservation and sustainable use of natural resources.
If the bid is successful, Mt Warning and its surrounding areas would join the ranks of iconic natural wonders including Uluru, the Zambezi and the Rocky Mountains.
‘I think it would enhance the environmental credentials that we already have in this shire,’ Cr Barry Longland said.
Greens councillor Katie Milne also praised the initiative, saying it was a potential tourism drawcard for the region.
‘It would be fantastic if we could realise something like that,’ she said. ‘The Tweed and in particular our caldera: it’s unbelievable what a significant duty we have to protect that.’
However, the CEC’s proposal would still need the federal government’s endorsement before it could be considered by UNESCO.
The Border Ranges National Park straddles the NSW-Queensland border and is home to a high number of rare and threatened species.
The CEC takes this opportunity to say Thank You! to the Tweed Echo for supporting our Border Ranges Biosphere project, this article quoted from the front page – Thursday, 30 June 2011 – EDITION of the Tweed ECHO.
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