They had doubts, but this couple has grown a native forest from scratch

Topic:Environmental Management

John Thompson and Annette Vojinov's 18-hectare property is shared with 70 hectares of critically endangered Tasmanian white gum forest. (ABC News: Mackenzie Heard)

In short

In Australia, nearly 7 million hectares of land are bound by 'conservation covenants', which means owners must protect a property's natural values.

John Thompson and Annette Vojinov have been growing a native eucalyptus forest on their property.

What's next?

An expert says landowners play an important role in conservation, and supporting them to contribute is crucial.

John Thompson and Annette Vojinov took on an unconventional retirement project — growing a native forest.

"This looks pretty natural, it doesn't look like a plantation," Mr Thompson said, gazing up at towering white gums.

Surrounding him are blackwood, myrtle and fern trees.

The north west Tasmanian property has a conservation covenant on 14 of the 18 hectares, which means current and future owners are legally bound to protect the natural values in perpetuity.

"One of the great joys of living on a covenanted property, which you're regenerating or rehabilitating … is to actually see it grow year by year," Mr Thompson said.

The land had been deteriorated by settlers farming livestock in the area. (ABC News: Mackenzie Heard)

"Within a generation, it's starting to look like a forest coming back from extinction."

The Gunns Plain property and three other properties make up about 70 hectares of the critically endangered Tasmanian white gum Eucalyptus viminalis wet forest.

And it's coming closer to resembling the healthy forest it was 200 years ago.

Too large to chop down, settlers stripped the bark from the giant gums and raised livestock among the dead trees.

In the middle of Tasmania sits a 5,000-hectare property once used for sheep grazing. But when the sheep farmers left, an unlikely buyer moved in.

They used the land for grazing and growing barley, but not being overly productive, farming eventually ceased.

While some pockets of the forest recovered, large swathes were choked by weeds like blackberry and onion twitch, broken up by rank pasture.

"Because it had been ploughed up and turned over so frequently, there was virtually no native seed left … which is why this has been quite a barren ground for natural recruitment," Mr Thompson said.

No manual for growing a forest from scratch

Winding up their working lives and eager to keep busy, restoring four hectares of degraded land seemed the perfect challenge for the couple, they said.

Back in 2010, blackberries and other weeds choked the now-rehabilitated land. (Supplied: John Thompson)

The pair spent long days outdoors controlling weeds, planting trees, and guarding them from possums.

With no background in botany or ecology, it meant reading voraciously, and "picking people's brains".

"But as Annette and I found out, there is no textbook or manual for growing a wet verminalis forest from scratch," Mr Thompson said.

Towards 'active conservation'

Conservation covenants have been around for decades, stemming from the idea that private landowners can contribute to national biodiversity and wildlife conservation goals.

Around 7 million hectares of Australian land is bound by conservation covenants like John Thompson and Annette Vojinov's. (ABC News: Mackenzie Heard)

In Australia, nearly 7 million hectares are protected, and that's only growing.

"[But] numbers of covenants and areas of hectares protected don't necessarily tell us what's happening on the ground," University of Tasmania Professor in environmental law Benjamin Richardson said.

Australia is party to the Convention on Biological Diversity, which includes the '30 by 30' target to protect and conserve 30 per cent of land and sea by 2030.

Professor Richardson said it reflects an overall shift from the traditional "lock it up and leave it" approach to active conservation.

University of Tasmania Professor in Environmental Law Benjamin Richardson. (Supplied)

"If you're a landowner who wants to put your hand up and have a covenant on your land, you've got to accept it might be more than just letting nature take its own course," he said.

"It might mean some really active responsibilities like clearing weeds, controlling pest animals, fencing to exclude livestock, introducing management protocols to protect against bushfires."

Professor Richardson said support for landowners wanting to get into conservation is crucial.

"We have a dilemma with conservation covenants, because in practice there's not a lot of reciprocity between the landowner who's voluntarily putting their land into conservation, and the other half of the bargain, which is a government agency or a conservation group," he said.

Tall white gums at the Gunns Plain property. (ABC News: Mackenzie Heard)

Last year, Australia launched the Nature Repair Market — where landholders can earn certificates for biodiversity projects, which they can sell to investors.

One of the methods being developed is "Protect and Conserve", which would support projects that safeguard existing biodiversity values and improve management of land already under protection.

'1,000 per cent' improvement

Now in their 70s, after 16 years, Mr Thompson and Ms Vojinov have decided it's time to pass the beloved property on to the next custodians.

A practice that has helped care for land for more than 60,000 years returns to Yuwibara Country in north Queensland.

"We thought well, we might as well go out before we're carried out," Ms Vojinov said.

"Bodies and minds are still holding up, but it is a lot of work to look after a covenanted property," Mr Thompson said.

"We've got it to as low maintenance as possible now, all the hard work's done, but it still does require people to look after that land," he said.

Both said it's been a privilege and have taken comfort in knowing their hard work will live on through the recovering forest.

The retirees said they are now ready to pass their hard work on. (ABC News: Mackenzie Heard)

"It's indescribable, it's improved 1,000 per cent … you can hear all the birds now," Ms Vojinov said.

"I had no idea of what I was in for, but I loved every minute of it … I just loved our adventure, and it is an adventure."

"We have put a lot of our lives into this property, I think we've got a lot more out of it than we've put into it, really," Mr Thompson said.

"I don't think we really believed we could pull it off," he said.

Promotion