- Date:
- 13 Oct 2025
Chief’s message
Kate Gavens
Chief Conservation Regulator
Welcome to the Conservation Regulator’s Year in Review for 2024–2025. This year, the Conservation Regulator continued to achieve important outcomes – from completing investigations into significant wildlife crimes to launching our Focus Species program.
We launched Taskforce Ironbark with support from Parks Victoria to tackle illegal take of firewood in commercial quantities from public land. Taskforce Ironbark was established to target organised black market operators impacting threatened species and Aboriginal heritage values.
Ensuring safe and sustainable access to State forests for recreation is a key priority of the regulator. In 2024–2025 we continued our focus on engaging with Victorians in the great outdoors to support compliance through education campaigns, on-ground presence and partnering with recreational users and environmental groups.
We continue to look for new ways to protect forests, wildlife and threatened species. This year, the Conservation Regulator entered into an Enforceable Undertaking after investigating damage to threatened native roadside flora. Enforceable Undertakings provide an alternative to prosecution and, in this case, ensure that damage is restored as well as sanctioned.
Cruelty to wildlife investigations continue to be a regulatory priority. This year, the Conservation Regulator successfully prosecuted an individual, guilty of extreme cruelty to eastern grey kangaroos in the state’s northeast, who was fined $80,000. We also concluded a years-long cruelty investigation resulting in an individual being found guilty of poisoning and killing more than 140 native birds, including around 125 wedge-tailed eagles. These results highlight the seriousness of wildlife crime and the importance of our work in protecting our native species.
We continued our joint campaign with Crime Stoppers, Wildlife Crime: It’s your call encouraging members of the public to report suspected incidents of wildlife crime. This campaign educates the community on the seriousness of wildlife and environmental crime while also increasing reporting to provide a clearer picture of non-compliance in Victoria.
Year-on-year, our successes would not be possible without the valuable input of community members, stakeholders and partners. As we strive to continuously improve our regulatory approach, support from our networks forms a vital source of information and feedback.
I hope you enjoy reading about our achievements in this Year in Review. I look forward to continuing our work and sharing it with you again in 2025–2026.
Sections of this report
About us
The Conservation Regulator is responsible for the regulation of public land use, native wildlife, biodiversity and fire prevention. We are a specialist regulator, established within the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA).
Our regulatory priorities
The Conservation Regulator is committed to delivering on our regulatory responsibilities. By focusing on what matters most, we can design more proactive and preventative approaches to ensure that all Victorians can enjoy our State forests and the remarkable biodiversity within them.
Permissions
The Conservation Regulator is responsible for administering a range of permits and licences under the Wildlife Act 1975, the Flora and Fauna Guarantee Act 1988 and the Forest Act 1958.
Educating and engaging to improve compliance with the law
The Conservation Regulator recognises that education and engagement is one of the most important ways to promote the safe and respectful use of our State forests.
Our people and governance
The Conservation Regulator considers that our people are our most valuable resource. We aim to support and empower staff to continue to build our regulatory capability and deliver on our regulatory mission. Operational staff conduct patrols for monitoring and educative activities. They include Forest and Wildlife Officers and Authorised Officers, who have specialised training and are authorised to enforce relevant laws and regulations.
Budget and reporting
Detailed financial reporting is included in the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action Annual Report 2024–2025.
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