Urban Rewilding Program
Strengthening biodiversity and disaster resilience across urban and peri-urban areas in South East Queensland
Photo: from a similar project realised by Healthy Land & Water showcasing an increase of native vegetation in per-urban areas.
Urban Rewilding strengthens the biodiversity and disaster resilience of urban and peri-urban areas across South East Queensland by improving native vegetation condition, increasing the extent of native vegetation, and supporting threatened species through habitat refugia installation. This integrated, nature-based solutions approach addresses habitat loss, fragmentation, and threatening processes in urbanised landscapes while building community capacity for biodiversity conservation.
What we are doing
- Weed management across 12 hectares of threatened species habitat to reduce barriers to species movement and improve habitat condition.
- Development and implementation of a comprehensive fire management plan covering 3,250 hectares, supported by field data collection and camera trap monitoring to evaluate fire management effectiveness.
- Fox control program across 3,250 hectares using scent detection dog surveys and targeted fumigation of fox dens to reduce predation threats.
- Installation of species-specific habitat refugia and watering points with ongoing monitoring to increase protection from direct threats during drought and extreme weather events.
3 key outcomes:
- Improve native vegetation condition across urban and peri-urban areas through restoration activities.
- Increase native vegetation extent across urban and peri-urban areas through revegetation activities.
- Reducing the impact of threats and therefore protecting threatened species by reducing competition for habitat refugia and installing 70 habitat refugia to support reproductive success and population growth in urban and peri-urban environments.
Photo: Example of a similar Water Sensitive Urban Design project by Healthy Land & Water.
Work collaboratively with local governments, community groups, and landholders to identify priority locations and implement on-ground actions that enhance biodiversity and canopy cover while improving urban resilience to natural disasters and climate change.
Measuring success
This project will deliver:
Improved native vegetation condition across 140 hectares through direct threat mitigation, including invasive weed control, stock exclusion, and access management.
Increased extent of native vegetation by 180 hectares through revegetation and assisted regeneration, with select Water Sensitive Urban Design projects incorporated into the works.
Reduced impact of threats to threatened species through installation of 70 habitat refugia reduce competition for breeding sites and shelter.
Enhanced biodiversity and disaster resilience in urban and peri-urban landscapes across South East Queensland.
Why this project is important
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South East Queensland is one of Australia's fastest-growing regions, with urban expansion placing increasing pressure on native vegetation and wildlife habitat. Urban and peri-urban areas face mounting challenges from rapid population growth, urban heat, habitat fragmentation, increased disaster risk, invasive weeds, inappropriate land management, and loss of connectivity between habitat patches. Native vegetation in urban landscapes provides critical ecosystem services, including biodiversity conservation, climate regulation, flood mitigation, improved water quality and are crucial for the liveability of our cities. However, without active management and restoration, these areas continue to degrade, threatening both ecological values and urban resilience to natural disasters and climate change. The Urban Rewilding Program addresses these challenges through an integrated, nature-based solutions approach that improves existing vegetation, expands habitat extent and urban canopy cover, restores ecological corridors and provides critical refugia for threatened species. By working across multiple sites in urban and peri-urban areas, the project builds landscape-scale resilience while engaging communities in biodiversity conservation and demonstrating the multiple benefits of urban greening. |
Project snapshot
| Project name: | Urban Rewilding (2025-2028) |
| Project manager: | Natalia Hillcoat, Healthy Land & Water |
| Catchment: | Urban and peri-urban areas across South East Queensland |
| Funders/Partnerships: |
This project is funded by the Queensland Government’s Natural Resource Management Expansion Program. The project is delivered by Healthy Land & Water in partnership with South-East Queensland local governments, community groups, and private landholders, and aligns with the NRM Expansion Program Logic & Indicators Framework, NRM Regions QLD Plan 2024-2028, SEQ Natural Resource Management Plan 2021–2041, Queensland Biodiversity Conservation Strategy, Queensland Climate Adaptation Strategy, Queensland Matters of State Environmental Significance (MSES), Shaping SEQ 2023, and local council environmental objectives. |
Project collaborators
This project is funded by the Queensland Government’s Natural Resource Management Expansion Program.
The project is delivered by Healthy Land & Water in partnership with South-East Queensland local governments, community groups, and private landholders, and aligns with the NRM Expansion Program Logic & Indicators Framework, NRM Regions QLD Plan 2024-2028, SEQ Natural Resource Management Plan 2021–2041, Queensland Biodiversity Conservation Strategy, Queensland Climate Adaptation Strategy, Queensland Matters of State Environmental Significance (MSES), Shaping SEQ 2023, and local council environmental objectives.