❓ This parliamentary question probes the funding and future of several environmental programs in Western Australia, including community stewardship, feral cat management, and river care initiatives. The answer reveals varying funding statuses, with some programs facing discontinuation after 2026-27, and defers several parts of the question to other ministers or future government decisions.
AnsweredQoN 2090Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
(1) For each of the following programs, State NRM – Community Stewardship Grants; State NRM – Feral Cat Management Grants; Riverbank Funding (Swan Canning Riverpark); Community Rivercare Program; and the Coastwest Grants Program:(a) Is funding allocated to the program in the 2026–27 State Budget forward estimates and, if so:(i) for what period are the allocations made; and(ii) how does the level of funding compare to CPI for the relevant period;(b) How much funding is allocated to the program in the forward estimates and for how many years is the program planned to operate;(c) If funding is not allocated to the program in the forward estimates, does the Government intend to discontinue the program and, if so, what are the detailed policy reasons for the proposed discontinuance;(d) What new priority environmental initiatives will be added to these community-led programs and how much additional new funding, not reallocated from existing sources, will be provided for each initiative? Please list each initiative and the amount of new funding allocated; and(e) How many community groups received funding under the program in:(i) 2023-24;(ii) 2024-25; and(iii) 2025-26?(2) Does the Government intend to maintain, reduce, or increase the total amount of State funding available for community-led environmental restoration and rivercare programs in 2026–27 compared to 2025–26?(3) What assessment has been undertaken by the Department regarding the social, environmental and climate resilience benefits delivered by community volunteer environmental programs?(4) What additional funding targeted at maximising water harvesting and storage in the ground is planned across the forward estimates?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
9 June 2026
Responded by
Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for the Environment
Response time
10 days
(1) Information for State Natural Resource Management (NRM) – Feral Cat Management Grants, Riverbank funding and the Community Rivercare Program is provided below. Questions regarding the State NRM – Community Stewardship Grants and Coastwest Grants should be directed to the Minister for Agriculture and Food and Minister for Planning and Lands, respectively.
(a) Yes, funding is allocated for Feral Cat Management Grants, Riverbank funding and the Community Rivercare Program in the 2026-27 State Budget.
(i) Feral Cat Management Grants and Community Rivercare Program have funding allocated in 2026-27. Riverbank funding is allocated in 2026-27 and across the forward estimates.
(ii) It is not clear which CPI metric the member is referring to in his question.
(b) 2026-27 is the final year of funding for the Feral Cat Management Grants and Community Rivercare Grants. Funding is allocated to Riverbank across the forward estimates, including additional funding for the next four years as part of the 2026-27 State Budget.
(c) These questions relate to future funding decisions of the Government and therefore cannot be answered.
(d) These questions relate to future funding decisions of the Government and therefore cannot be answered.
(e) Feral Cat Management Grants
(i) 5
(ii) 3
(iii) Unknown as applications are currently being assessed
Community Rivercare Program
(i) 14
(ii) 12
(iii) 21
No community-led groups received funding through Riverbank as only public foreshore land managers are eligible.
(2) Funding for Feral Cat Management Grants is the same in 2026-27 as it was in 2025-26.
For the Community Rivercare Program, $700,000 was allocated over two years (2025-26 and 2026-27), which was allocated as $600,000 in 2025-26 and $100,000 in 2026-27 to allow for larger scale, multi-year projects in 2025-26. The 2026-27 grant round will fund smaller one-year projects.
Riverbank funding will be increased in 2026-27 compared to 2025-26.
(3) Reports and tracking progress against milestones for Feral Cat Management Grants is managed by the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development.
The department does not directly assess those benefits for community volunteer environmental programs, including the Community Rivercare Program. However, the department does collect information on weed control and revegetation, number of plants installed, number of events held, number of volunteer hours, and total value of co-contributions to projects for community volunteer environmental programs.
Riverbank funding is directed towards foreshore land managers not community groups.
(4) This question should be directed to the Minister for Water.
(a) Yes, funding is allocated for Feral Cat Management Grants, Riverbank funding and the Community Rivercare Program in the 2026-27 State Budget.
(i) Feral Cat Management Grants and Community Rivercare Program have funding allocated in 2026-27. Riverbank funding is allocated in 2026-27 and across the forward estimates.
(ii) It is not clear which CPI metric the member is referring to in his question.
(b) 2026-27 is the final year of funding for the Feral Cat Management Grants and Community Rivercare Grants. Funding is allocated to Riverbank across the forward estimates, including additional funding for the next four years as part of the 2026-27 State Budget.
(c) These questions relate to future funding decisions of the Government and therefore cannot be answered.
(d) These questions relate to future funding decisions of the Government and therefore cannot be answered.
(e) Feral Cat Management Grants
(i) 5
(ii) 3
(iii) Unknown as applications are currently being assessed
Community Rivercare Program
(i) 14
(ii) 12
(iii) 21
No community-led groups received funding through Riverbank as only public foreshore land managers are eligible.
(2) Funding for Feral Cat Management Grants is the same in 2026-27 as it was in 2025-26.
For the Community Rivercare Program, $700,000 was allocated over two years (2025-26 and 2026-27), which was allocated as $600,000 in 2025-26 and $100,000 in 2026-27 to allow for larger scale, multi-year projects in 2025-26. The 2026-27 grant round will fund smaller one-year projects.
Riverbank funding will be increased in 2026-27 compared to 2025-26.
(3) Reports and tracking progress against milestones for Feral Cat Management Grants is managed by the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development.
The department does not directly assess those benefits for community volunteer environmental programs, including the Community Rivercare Program. However, the department does collect information on weed control and revegetation, number of plants installed, number of events held, number of volunteer hours, and total value of co-contributions to projects for community volunteer environmental programs.
Riverbank funding is directed towards foreshore land managers not community groups.
(4) This question should be directed to the Minister for Water.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.