Conservation and Land Management

Conservation & Land Management is a great career choice if you enjoy the outdoors and are dedicated to conserving our land. Many organisations from a variety of industries employ workers for the conservation of the land they hold or conduct business on and Maxima offers qualifications at Certificates II-IV.

Career pathways

The table below indicates the career pathways and types of jobs associated with each level of qualification. Links provide information about the course structure, available units and cost for 'user pays' enrolments.

*Stream*	Australian Apprenticeships Job Options			Further Study Options
	Certificate II > > >	Certificate III > > >	Certificate IV > > >	Diploma > > >	Advanced Diploma
General Land Management	General Conservation Assistant	General Conservation & Land Management Officer	General Conservation & Land Management Supervisor	Manager	Business Manager
Earthworks	Conservation & Earthworks Assistant - Erosion Control Assistant	Conservation Earthmoving Operator - Erosion Control Technician	Conservation Earthworks Field Supervisor	Manager	Business Manager
Community Coordination & Facilitation	Community Project Assistant	Community Coordination Officer	Conservation & Land Management Community Coordinator	Manager	Business Manager
Indigenous Land Management	Indigenous Land Management Assistant	Indigenous Land Management Officer	Indigenous Land Management Supervisor	Manager	Business Manager
Lands, Parks & Wildlife	Land, Parks & Wildlife Field Assistant	Land, Parks & Wildlife Senior Field Officer	Land, Parks & Wildlife Field Supervisor	Manager	Business Manager
Natural Area Restoration & Management	Natural Area Restoration & Conservation Assistant	Natural Area Restoration Officer	Natural Area Restoration Supervisor	Manager	Business Manager
Weed Management	Weed Control Assistant	Weed Management Operator	Weed Management Supervisor	Manager	Business Manager
Vertebrate Pest Management	Vertebrate Pest Management Assistant	Vertebrate Pest Management Technician	Vertebrate Pest Management Supervisor	Manager	Business Manager

Characteristics of the CLM workforce

Conservation Earthworks

The Civil Contractors Federation estimates that there are some 30,000 plant operators in Australia and it is estimated that 10,000 of these are involved in conservation and land management. Additional employment in the industry numbers a further 10,000 including farmers, contractors, Federal, State and Local Government plant operators and managers of small contracting businesses.

Community Coordination and Facilitation

During the 1990's Australia experienced a major shift towards community participation in natural resource management. In 2002 it is estimated that there are over 4000 autonomous volunteer community groups and their grass roots leaders fostered by the "Decade of Landcare".

While most of these groups comprise farmers and other landowners seeking to increase the sustainability of their own land use, there are also hundreds of groups in cities and towns across Australia working to conserve and protect parks, bushland, creeks, rivers and streets.

An ethic of land stewardship drives hundreds of community groups working along our coasts. There are other community-based networks, with more specific interests such as forestry and fishery management.

Lands, Parks and Wildlife

Employment in lands, parks and wildlife at state and territory levels occurs across a range of departments often with multiple responsibilities that may include primary industry, heritage, land and water conservation, forestry, coastal protection and fisheries. The major employer at the federal level is Environment Australia.

There is also a number of private or non-government organisations working in natural and cultural resource management including private parks/reserves, community groups, land councils, mining and some local governments. It is estimated that there are some 10,000 people employed in this industry across Australia.

Natural Area Restoration

Currently it is estimated that there are over 2000 students engaged in related formal studies. The demand for training - and traineeships - in this area is extremely high. Many secondary schools are keen to train in this area. There are approximately 100,000 people involved in natural area restoration predominantly as volunteers. However, 'real jobs' are estimated at around 8,000 comprising Federal, State and Local Government, consultants and project related workers.

Indigenous Land Management

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples own or lease some 17% of the Australian land area. A large proportion of this land has been degraded by inappropriate land use in the past and there is a growing responsibility for those living in these areas to manage and rehabilitate their land. The management required is a mixture of western land management practices combined with local knowledge and practices.

Some 270,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people live in these regions. The number of people formally employed in land management-related activities is estimated at 10,000 in work such as tourism, national parks, agriculture, horticulture and land and sea management while many communities have established joint management agreements with government agencies. Indigenous people are employed by Federal, State and Local Government in land management and by local communities.

Vertebrate Pest Management

It is estimated that the industry employs over 2,500 people covering Rural Lands Protection Boards, private contractors, National Feral Animal Control Program, Federal, State and Local Government agencies. These figures do not include those employed in vertebrate pest control by lands, parks and wildlife and indigenous land management sectors.

Weed Management

It is estimated that the industry employs over 5,000 people covering private contractors, Federal, State Government and Local Government agencies and a further 50,000 volunteers in Land Care, Bush Care, Coast Care and similar programs.

Further information

More information about the structure and requirements to gain a qualification from the Conservation & Land Management Training Package (RTD02) can be found here. [link open in a new window].

If you want to do a Certificate in Conservation and Land Management as an Australian Apprentice, Maxima may be able to help through our Group Training services. Check out the Apprenticeships and traineeships pages.

Employers wanting Australian Apprentices in this field will find our Group Training services a convenient way to meet their needs. Alternatively, you can nominate us to train your Australian Apprentices under 'User Choice' provisions, with almost all the cost of the training subsidised.