Introduction: Wilderness in Australia
Amongst the western industrialised nations, Australia is lucky to have an unusually
large area of surviving wilderness representing Australia’s exceptionally rich
landscapes and biodiversity. But we also carry a frightening record of damage to our
environment and wildlife. These facts raise a special responsibility to protect what
remains, for all humanity and for the magnificent life with which we share the land
and waters.
Australia’s remaining wilderness areas are shrinking, biological ‘islands’ in an
expanding sea of exploited and wounded land. The number of species that can survive
in these remnants decreases as the ‘islands’ become more fragmented. Legal
protection and careful management of our remaining wilderness can help to arrest this
decline, and make a powerful contribution to rescuing the Earth.
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