[3] As part of the National Reserve System Cooperative Program, the Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia framework was developed as a planning tool to assist in identifying areas of priority.

[7] In particular, after signing and ratifying the convention in 1992 the then Prime Minister, Paul Keating, announced [7] The establishment of a comprehensive system of protected areas is vital if we are to retain our status as a region of megadiversity.

This will be achieved in cooperation with States and Territories.Within the first 4 years (1992–1996) $11.2 million was spent establishing the system and, with the cooperation and agreement of the Australian States and territories 5,600 properties (covering almost 60 million hectares (150×10^6 acres)) were included within the system and a new Indigenous Protected Area (IPA) program was initiated to include some of the most valuable and rare ecological landscapes on Indigenous Australian owned lands.

During this time, starting in 1999, Tasmania took a lead investing in partnerships to create protected areas on other private lands; and by 2005 all the states and territories re-affirmed their joint commitment to what was to be described as a national 'flagship in biodiversity conservation'.

[10] CSIRO modelling has concluded that the NRS will be an important conservation tool to combat the effects of climate change in Australia on the environment.