We recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders as the sovereign Traditional Owners of Australia and thank them for their stewardship of this Country, its lands, waters and skies. We respectfully acknowledge their culture and customary practices, and pay respect to their Ancestors, Elders and future leaders.

For the first time, the State of the Environment report includes a strong Indigenous narrative across all 12 thematic chapters, a narrative crafted through recognising the leadership, collaboration and authorship of Indigenous Australians who continue their connection as Traditional Owners to their lands, waters and skies.

Click to view the State of the Environment report

On 28 March 2025 the government assumed a Caretaker role. Information on websites maintained by the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water will be published in accordance with the Guidance on Caretaker Conventions until after the conclusion of the caretaker period.

Due to technical issues, graphs, maps and tables are currently not displaying within the main content, however, are available via the chapter resources navigation bar. We are working on a solution to resolve the issue.

Reference

Williams J, Hindell JS, Jenkins GP, Tracey S, Hartmann K & Swearer SE (2017). The influence of freshwater flows on two estuarine resident fish species show differential sensitivity to the impacts of drought, flood and climate change. Environmental Biology of Fishes 100(9):1121–1137.

Hallett CS, Hobday AJ, Tweedley JR, Thompson PA, McMahon K & Valesini FJ (2018). Observed and predicted impacts of climate change on the estuaries of south-western Australia, a Mediterranean climate region. Regional Environmental Change 18(5):1357–1373.

Gillanders BM, McMillan MN, Reis-Santos P, Baumgartner LJ, Brown LR, Conallin J et al. (2022). Climate change and fishes in estuaries. In: Whitfield AK, Able KW, Blaber SJM & Elliott M (eds), Fish and fisheries in estuaries – a global perspective, John Wiley & Sons, Oxford, UK.