Aramco launches project to protect and conserve threatened species in Australia

Aramco, together with Conservation Volunteers Australia (CVA), has launched a community-based biodiversity conservation project across Australia to plant over 18,000 native trees and create 150 nest boxes for threatened animal species.

The project is expected to protect and restore over 125 hectares of incredibly valuable and yet threatened pockets of native habitat across the major cities of Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide. Aramco’s project will contribute towards CVA’s goal of 1 million more actions for nature by 2030.

Fai K. Aldossary, Managing Director of Aramco Singapore said, “Environmental stewardship is deeply integral to Aramco’s approach in how we operate and we are committed to working with like-minded partners in promoting and supporting biodiversity conservation efforts that will make a difference to the local communities where we have a presence.”

A recent CVA research¹ revealed that Australia’s threatened species list exceeded 2,000 for the first time in history. In addition, the share of species now listed as critically endangered – the last step before extinction – has doubled in the past decade. About half of threatened species also lived in urban areas, alongside 96% of the population.

Phil Harrison, CEO of CVA said, “CVA has an inclusive approach to pursuing our goal of enabling all of us to take positive action for nature. We strongly believe that by working with the community, industry, and government, we will get the changes needed to protect and restore nature. We hope that this will be start of a long-standing partnership between Aramco and CVA to make a meaningful impact on a larger scale on the on-going biodiversity conservation in Australia.”

To mark the launch of the project, representatives from Aramco and CVA gathered at the Cumberland Plain Woodland – one of Australia's most endangered last remaining biodiverse woodlands – for the inaugural volunteering session to remove invasive weeds as well as monitor and record sighting of threatened bird species.

Through Aramco’s support, community groups will also have the opportunity through to do their part for nature and in turn raise awareness on the importance of conserving Australia’s biodiversity.

¹ Source: ‘Biodiversity in your Backyard report’
https://conservationvolunteers.com.au/more-threatened-species-listed-past-2-yrs-than-previous-10-yrs/#:~:text=The%20Commonwealth%20Threatened%20Species%20List,of%20the%202011%20SOE%20Report.