Tasmanian Land Conservancy buys 425 hectare Sloping Main property for $2.4m, establishes reserve

A stunning property with significant natural values has been snapped up by an independent Tasmanian not-for-profit, thanks to millions of dollars in donations from the public.

Conservationists have teamed up with residents of the Tasman Peninsula to raise more than $3m for the establishment of a huge seaside nature reserve.

Following a wildly successful crowd-funding campaign, the Tasmanian Land Conservancy (TLC), an independent not-for-profit, purchased the previously family-owned 425ha property at Sloping Main for $2.4m.

The organisation set a fundraising target of $3.4m, with $1m to go towards ongoing maintenance of the property, which is west of Saltwater River and adjacent to the Lime Bay State Reserve. It hit its goal in record time, taking just four months to raise the required funds.

TLC CEO James Hattam said there were 19 threatened plant and animal species in the reserve, including critically endangered black gum forests.

Sloping Main nature reserve, recently purchased by the Tasmanian Land Conservancy. Picture: Eddie Safarik

“It’s one of our most biodiverse reserves and we’ve got a whole suite of reserves, so it’s a real jewel in the crown,” he told the Mercury.

“Often we’re seeing losses of species and places being lost to all sorts of things around the world and I think it’s a really positive thing to see a community of supporters come together to purchase a place like this.

“Hopefully it gives people hope for the future. In a time where all the world leaders are gathering at COP27 in Egypt, this is a real tangible, practical way that people have contributed to something that hopefully will protect places like this in Tasmania for generations to come.”

More than 500 donors chipped in to ensure the property was protected, with the Elsie Cameron Foundation matching every donation dollar for dollar.

CEO of the Tasmanian Land Conservancy James Hattam. PICTURE: CHRIS KIDD

Mr Hattam said there was “quite a lot of interest” from peninsula residents and estimated that 50-100 donors were from the local area, or about 10 per cent of total donors.

TLC conservation ecologist David Hamilton said the new reserve could even serve as a sanctuary for a particularly elusive Tasmanian mammal.

“Excitingly, there is potential for the property to provide a refuge for one of Tasmania’s most cryptic and least understood mammal species – the Tasman Peninsula dusky antechinus,” Dr Hamilton said.

The TLC now owns 25 reserves and protects more than 97,000ha of Tasmanian habitat through all its programs.