Two thirds of national parks are being opened for commercial development.

Changes to regulations have meant it’s easier to build a tourism development in a national park than on private property.

In August 2013, 21 eminent Victorians wrote to Premier Denis Napthine and called legislation allowing national parks to be exploited by commercial interests as “betrayal of public trust”.

The brutal facts are Victoria’s animal species and habitat types are becoming increasingly threatened and endangered.

Victoria is home to more than 300 different habitats and about 80,000 species of native plants, animals, insects and fungi.

National parks and other conservation areas account for 17 per cent of the state yet only 0.6 per cent of the state budget is spent on them.

Nowhere is this lack of funding more reflected than the significant job cuts to the Department of Environment and Primary Industries and Parks Victoria.

In regional Victoria some forest areas and parks have no staff at all. Both these organisations are responsible for protecting the environment and wildlife.

There has been a terrible failure in environmental management under the Napthine-Ballieu governments.

Besides the inadequate funding they have initiated weak laws with no enforcement.

I urge anyone who has a concern for the environment to consider their vote carefully.

— ALAN HEWETT,

Indigo Valley