page_title: Peter Murrell Conservation Area
section_title: General
hierarchical_section_title: Peter Murrell Conservation Area / Management / General
caption_attribution_description: English: Provided by the TPWS
context_page_description: The Peter Murrell Conservation Area is located in Huntingfield, Tasmania, approximately 15 km south of the state's capital city, Hobart. The conservation area has an area of 135 ha and is one of three reserves within the Peter Murrell Reserves. Also within these reserves are the Peter Murrell State Reserve and a Public Reserve. These reserves and the Conservation Area lie at the base of the Tinderbox Peninsula, between the suburbs of Kingston, Howden and Blackman's Bay. The Peter Murrell Conservation Area surrounds the northern, western and southern sides of the Peter Murrell State Reserve.
context_section_description: The Peter Murrell Reserves, comprising the Conservation Area, State Reserve and Public Reserve, are managed as one land management unit of 277 ha. Management of the Peter Murrell Conservation Area is the responsibility of the Tasmanian Parks and Wildlife Service (TPWS). A 25 ha portion of the area, however, is leased by the Huntingfield Pony and Riding Club, which is responsible for fire control, while the TPWS maintains responsibility for vegetation management.
  As part of the municipality of Kingborough, the Conservation Area is zoned as 'Environmental Management' under the Kingborough Planning Scheme 2000., and the Draft Kingborough Council Planning Scheme 2012. Classified as 'Environmental Management', the aim with respect to the Peter Murrell Conservation Area is to: provide protection and management of natural and cultural resources, including cultural heritage, natural heritage, scenic landscapes, fragile landforms, water catchments, coastal area and areas of recreational value; prevent urban sprawl by not allowing ribbon residential development between townships; and allow use or development that is compatible with these values.
  Management actions undertaken by the TPWS include provision of facilities such as car parks and doggy bags and disposal bins. Particular locations within the Conservation Area have been designated for particular uses, as a means of providing appropriate protection to flora and fauna living within the Conservation Area. For example, a horse riding trail extends from the northwestern tip of the Conservation Area, around the western and southern perimeters, to the southeastern corner. Designated fire trails also exist within the area.
  Another management action employed by the managing authority, TPWS, is the execution of fire management burns as a means of eradicating Phytophthora cinnamomi. Such a management action can make a significant contribution toward the protection of biodiversity, as Phytophthora cinnamomi poses a serious threat to native vegetation in the Conservation Area, particularly the biodiversity of buttongrass and orchid communities. Fire management practices are also employed as a means of protecting the Conservation Area's orchid community. The Fire Management Plan for the Peter Murrell Reserves (2006), was developed for a variety of reasons, some of which were to provide ecological and fuel reduction outcomes, and facilitate maintenance of ideal conditions for orchid regeneration.
  
  Another important measure being taken to protect one of the Conservation Area's threatened species, the eastern barred bandicoot, is the development and ongoing work of Tasmania's Fox Eradication Program. Now managed by the Resource Management and Conservation division of the Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment, this program was first part of the TPWS, at its inception in 2002.
  While the Peter Murrell Conservation Area is managed by the TPWS, there is currently no Management Plan for this area, or its associated reserves.
caption: Rubbish bin facilities - erected by the TPWS
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