Conservation of Freshwater Ecosystem Values (CFEV) Assessment Framework

The purpose of the CFEV assessment is to identify important freshwater values.

The Conservation of Freshwater Ecosystem Values Project (CFEV) developed an assessment framework as part of the Water Development Plan for Tasmania. The CFEV assessment identifies high priority freshwater values are appropriately considered in the development, conservation and management of Tasmania's water resources.

The design of the CFEV assessment framework is based on Comprehensive, Adequate and Representative (CAR) principles and also includes the condition of the catchment. It complements the terrestrial and marine management systems already in place in Tasmania.

The assessment uses existing environmental data to identify the freshwater values for rivers, water bodies, wetlands, saltmarshes, estuaries, groundwater dependent ecosystems and karst systems and combined with other data relating to special values, to provide a conservation value. All freshwater-dependent areas throughout Tasmania can be identified with a conservation management priority score of low, medium, high or very high priority.

A GIS database stores the assessment results and can be used to produce reports for any freshwater related area of the State.

Criteria are based on Comprehensive, Adequate and Representative (CAR) reserve design principles, as well as Naturalness, Representativeness and Distinctiveness (NRD).

State wide datasets including:

• Indices and scores from various assessment and monitoring schemes
• GIS dataset and modelling
• Remote imagery

Expert panels, GIS experts and database management.

A database platform for data storage, manipulation and values assessment, a Geographic Information System (GIS) platform for result presentation and interpretation.

Conservation/priority values for wetland ecosystems in Tasmania:

• Integrated Conservation Value (ICV) of freshwater dependent ecosystems
• Conservation Management Priority - Potential (CMPP2) of freshwater dependent ecosystems
• Conservation Management Priority - Immediate (CMPI2) of freshwater dependent ecosystems

A GIS based database that can act as a planning and information tool, showing areas of low to high conservation value and their proposed management priorities:

• A public interface to the GIS database.
• GIS database interface to the GIS database that provides users with greater access to data and functionality.

• freshwater-dependent ecosystems are assigned conservation value and a conservation management priority
• Inclusion of freshwater values in assessment of future water development proposals and other environmental impact studies
• Setting environmental objectives for environmental flows assessments
• Focussing management efforts to protect or restore high conservation value ecosystems

The method is best by government agencies.

Tasmania's water management and conservation authorities use the CFEV database to help them assess the ecological sustainability of future water related developments, to protect significant freshwater values, and to assist in focussing freshwater management efforts to protect and/or restore high conservation value ecosystems.

• State wide assessment
• Objective conservation prioritisation
• Uses existing assessments
• Integrated expertise
• Ground truthing

• Relies on existing datasets
• Modelled data sources
• High level of expertise required

Conservation of Freshwater Ecosystem Values Database

This page should be cited as:

Department of Environment, Science and Innovation, Queensland (2019) Conservation of Freshwater Ecosystem Values (CFEV) Assessment Framework, WetlandInfo website, accessed 18 March 2024. Available at: https://wetlandinfo.des.qld.gov.au/wetlands/resources/tools/assessment-search-tool/conservation-of-freshwater-ecosystem-values-cfev-assessment-framework/