CENTRAL Victorian ecosystems are in "severe and ongoing" decline, according to a draft report that could be sent to state parliamentarians as soon as this week.
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Macedon Ranges Shire councillors will consider sending the warning to a parliamentary committee into environmental health when they meet on Wednesday night.
The current draft says the Macedon Ranges has witnessed significant species decline as habitats have been fragmented by land clearing and logging.
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"This decline will continue as land is further fragmented by subdivision and development and remnant patches of native vegetation are degraded by threatening processes," the draft states.
Those processes include a lack of pest and weed management, inappropriate fuel reduction works, overgrazing and domestic uses.
The draft also calls for more funding for public agencies that manage conservation reserves, including Parks Victoria and the Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning.
The submission asks the state government to enact recommendations from a two-year investigation by the Victorian Environmental Assessment Council, which called for extra protections and resources to protect natural reserves in three separate areas, including areas close to Kyneton and Bendigo.
That report was published last year and the government was expected to respond by February 2020.
A spokesperson said that the government delayed responding until later this year because of summer bushfires and then COVID-19.
The delay has frustrated environmentalists who say central Victoria is among Australia's worst extinction zones, including the Biolink Alliance's Sophie Bickford.
"It's critical we don't forget the dire situation of our environment and native species - our nature crisis has no 'Pause During the Pandemic' button," she said as environmentalists raised concerns about forests last June.
The Macedon Ranges' draft also calls for more resources for private land, which makes up 87 per cent of the council's range.
"This means that private land owners play a critical role in protecting and enhancing local ecosystems," the draft says.
Story continues below draft submission.
It argues that landholders would be able to set aside more of the good quality forest on their land if they could set up more protective covenants with conservation groups like Trust for Nature.
The council would like landholders to get more advice about regenerative agriculture through custom-made services or through local governments themselves.
Other ideas include declaring deer a pest species and finishing a statewide management plan to deal with the feral animals, as well as ways to ease burdens on volunteer conservationists.
Macedon Ranges councillors can choose to endorse or reject sending the document to the parliamentary committee.
The committee is accepting submissions from councils, individuals and other groups until the end of August.