State of the Environment reporting
New South Wales State of the Environment 2009 (SoE 2009) reports on the status of the main environmental issues facing the state. It has been prepared in accordance with the requirements of section 10 of the Protection of the Environment Administration Act 1991. This is the seventh report prepared by the Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water (DECCW) and its predecessors with reports published in 1993, 1995, 1997, 2000, 2003 and 2006.
SoE 2009 aims to provide credible, scientifically based, statewide environmental information to assist those involved in environmental policy and decision-making and managing the state’s natural resources.
SoE 2009 is structured around seven major themes:
People and the Environment
Climate Change
Human Settlement
Atmosphere
Land
Water
Biodiversity.
Thirty environmental issues are reported on within these themes with data and information addressing 86 environmental indicators. The majority of these indicators are consistent with those covered in previous reports, and they align closely with the core environmental indicators approved by the Australian and New Zealand Environment and Conservation Council in March 2000. Some of the indicators have been further refined since SoE 2006 to ensure clearer definitions and to be consistent with those developed for reporting against the statewide natural resource targets.
SoE 2009 is prepared following the Pressure - State (or condition) - Response (PSR) framework originally developed by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development for state of the environment reporting. 'Pressure' refers to activities that can affect the environment and are not limited to those that result from human influences. 'State' (or condition) refers to the quality of the environment and the functioning of important environmental processes. 'Responses' are actions or initiatives that have been implemented to address the environmental condition or pressure that is having an impact on an environmental issue.
Although SoE 2009 has been prepared by the Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water (DECCW), much of the material it contains comes from extensive input from a wide range of government agencies, other organisations and individual specialists who have provided data, information, analysis and interpretation, and have reviewed the content of the report. DECCW relies heavily on support from contributing agencies.
The specialist input also includes the advice and support of independent experts as well as members of the NSW State of the Environment Advisory Council, which in 2007 was formed as a subcommittee of the Environment Protection Authority Board.
Page last updated: 27 February 2011
