Monitoring and reporting on reserve management effectiveness
Monitoring, evaluation and reporting on management effectiveness for Tasmania's national parks and reserves is necessary in order to:
- provide factual feedback about management performance to guide informed decision-making for improving the achievement of the objectives and desired outcomes; and
- provide public and parliamentary transparency and accountability for the investment of funds in management of Tasmania's national parks and reserves, including World Heritage listed areas.
The monitoring and reporting system for Tasmania's national parks and reserves
The Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service (PWS) has developed a state-wide management effectiveness Monitoring and Reporting System to measure and report on evidence of management progress, achievements and challenges in Tasmania's public national parks and reserves. Key features of the system are that it is: outcomes focused, evidence-based, operationally practical and scalable, and transparent to the public.
To understand how management of Tasmania's national parks and reserves is performing, the PWS and its stakeholders need reliable, factual information about a variety of topics known as key performance areas (KPAs). These KPAs form the framework of the Monitoring and Reporting System for Tasmania's national parks and reserves.
Evaluated case studies
An important component of the monitoring and reporting system is evaluated case studies of the monitored effectiveness of significant and selected projects. Examples of published evaluated case study reports include:
Evaluating management effectiveness for the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area
The first comprehensive evaluation report examining management effectiveness for the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area (TWWHA) was published as the State of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area - an evaluation of management effectiveness, Report No 1, 2004. The second State of the TWWHA Report is currently in preparation.
TWWHA Status and Trend reporting
A series of status and trend reports on the condition of cultural and natural values in the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area (TWWHA) have been prepared to assist in managing the Outstanding Universal Value of the TWWHA. For more information and to view published reports visit the Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania website.
Integrating evaluation into reserve management plans
The Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service is progressively integrating statements of key desired outcomes and provisions for monitoring, evaluation and reporting into new reserve management plans. For example, see Chapter 9 'Monitoring Evaluation and Reporting' in the TWWHA Management Plan 2016.
Where possible, the PWS is aiming to identify what would be a 'great result', a 'satisfactory or acceptable result' and an 'unsatisfactory or unacceptable result' for each identified Key Desired Outcome in a reserve management plan or major project. This establishes an agreed framework for assessing how management is performing. Examples of this work include Appendix 1 of the Melaleuca-Cox Bight Management Statement and Appendix 4 of the Recreation Zone Plan for the Walls of Jerusalem National Park.