Landowner Biodiversity Conservation Grants 2021

Submissions closed at 5:00PM 31 October 2021 (AWST).

The Landowner Biodiversity Conservation Grant Program provides educational and financial support, up to the value of $3000 per property, to Cockburn residents living in the rural, rural living and resource zones who wish to conserve and enhance the natural bushland and / or wetland areas on their property.

 

What can I apply for?

The funding can be used for a range of management projects including (but not limited to):

  • Weed control;
  • Revegetation;
  • Fencing to exclude stock;
  • Dieback control; and
  • Habitat creation / water quality enhancement.

 

The project must take into consideration long term environmental outcomes and demonstrate ‘value for money’ based on:

  • Condition of bushland and / or wetlands on the property;
  • Threats to the bushland and / or wetlands e.g. weed invasion – types of weeds and abundance; dieback; feral animal impacts;
  • Size (ha) of bushland and / or wetland area; and
  • Improving ecological biodiversity corridors between properties.

 

How much funding can I receive?

You can receive up to $3,000 per property. Adjoining landowners are encouraged to make joint applications.

 

Who can Apply?

Landowner Biodiversity Conservation Grants are available to single or groups of properties/landowners in the City who:

  • Have a property situated in the rural, rural living and resource zones;
  • Have remnant bushland or wetland areas existing on the property and proposed works must benefit the conservation value of these areas. Preference will be given to properties with larger areas of bushland/wetland of good biodiversity value. Smaller areas will be considered if linked to adjoining properties or green corridors or if the conservation value of the area in question is extremely high, e.g. declared rare flora, poorly represented vegetation complexes.
  • Are the owner of the property. The City will assess applications for vacant land or land where the owner is not in residence on a case-by-case basis

When can I apply?

The grant round opens in September each year, and you must return your completed application form to the City by 31 October. Successful applicants will be notified within six weeks of the round closing.


To apply for a grant, please complete the following steps:

  • Please read these guidelines, and the associated Property Eligibility Checklist
  • Contact the City’s Environmental Services to discuss your project ideas, and book in an initial site visit to the property to determine eligibility
  • Applications can be made at the Cockburn Smarty Grants website.

 

Limitations and Conditions

  • If your property has a conservation covenant, you will not be eligible for funding and priority will be given to landowners whose property has no lawful protection;
  • Properties must be situated in the rural, rural living or resource zones (refer to map under Documents heading below); – Is missing on website?
  • Projects must have significant financial or in-kind contribution from the landowner (all manual in-kind labour is to be calculated at $30/hr;
  • Environment management practices must be technically sound;
  • All revegetation work must use only local native plant species (the City can supply a list of appropriate species);
  • Funding will not be for personal items such as uniforms, food or tools (some equipment may be considered e.g. weed spraying equipment);
  • Funds must not be used to comply with any conditions associated with any planning approval; and
  • Quotes must be provided for all items or works over $200, and a further quote is required for fencing works or engaging contractors

 

If successful, all grant recipients will need to:

  1. Sign a three year ‘Voluntary Management Agreement and Conditions of Funding’ form;
  2. Work with the City to develop a property Management Plan for your bushland and/or wetland areas;
  3. Have an ABN or complete a ‘statement by a supplier’ form.
  4. Attend a workshop hosted by the City; and
  5. Submit a ‘Final Report Acquittal’ prior to the 31 October of the following year (i.e.. Within twelve months of the grant closing date)

IMPORTANT: Please read information below to assist you in completing your application online.

BEFORE YOU BEGIN

Welcome to the City of Cockburn's online grant application service, powered by SmartyGrants.

You may begin anywhere in the application form. Please ensure you save as you go as you will be logged out after 60 minutes of inactivity.

If you need more help using this form, download the Help Guide for Applicants or check out Applicant Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)

NAVIGATING (MOVING THROUGH) THE APPLICATION FORM

On every screen (page of the form) you will find a Form Navigation contents box, this links directly to every page of the application. Click the link to jump directly to the page you want.

You can also click 'next page' or 'previous page' on the top or bottom of each page to move forward or backward through the application.

SAVING YOUR DRAFT APPLICATION

If you wish to leave a partially completed application, press 'save and close' and log out. When you log back in and click on the 'My Submissions' link at the top of the screen, you will find a list of any applications you have started or submitted. You can reopen your draft application and start where you left off.

You can also download any application, whether draft or completed, as a PDF. Click on the 'Download PDF' button located at the bottom of the last page of the application form.

SUBMITTING YOUR APPLICATION

You will find a Review and Submit button at the bottom of the Navigation Panel. You need to review your application before you can submit it.

Once you have reviewed your application you can submit it by clicking on 'Submit' at the top or bottom of the screen or on the navigation panel. You will not be able to submit your application until all the compulsory questions are completed and there are no validation errors.

Once you have submitted your application, no further editing or uploading of support materials is possible.

When you submit your application, you will receive a confirmation email with a copy of your submitted application attached. This will be sent to the email you used to register.

If you do not receive a confirmation of submission email then you should presume that your submission has NOT been submitted.

Hint: also check the email hasn’t landed in your spam or junk email folder.

ATTACHMENTS AND SUPPORT DOCUMENTS

You may need to upload/submit attachments to support your application. This is very simple, but requires you to have the documents saved on your computer, or on a storage device.

You need to allow enough time for each file to upload before trying to attach another file. Files can be up to 25MB each; however, we do recommend trying to keep files to a maximum of 5MB – the larger the file, the longer the upload time.

COMPLETING AN APPLICATION IN A GROUP/TEAM

A number of people can work on an application using the same log in details as long as only one person is working at a time. Ensure you save as you go.

SPELL CHECK

Most internet browsers (including Firefox v2.0 and above; Safari; and Google Chrome) have spell checking facilities built in – you can switch this function on or off by adjusting your browser settings.