The Service was responsible for the establishment and management of National Parks and other reserves and the conservation and protection of the flora and fauna of the State. The Service was created as a result of changes that had begun in 1968. The bulk of the restructuring had been carried out in anticipation of the new National Parks and Wildlife Act of 1970. ;;;;The Service was responsible for the management of the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area, including the delivery of Crown Land administration, in total representing 432 reserves covering 2.74 million hectares, or about 40 per cent of the State. The Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area is one of the largest conservation reserves in Australia. At 1.38 million hectares, it covers approximately 20 per cent of the land area of Tasmania and is one of only three temperate wilderness areas remaining in the Southern Hemisphere.;;;;On 1 May 1987 the National Parks and Wildlife Service was amalgamated with the Department of Lands to form the Department of Lands, Parks and Wildlife.