Some good news today … ALP committed to establish a Great Koala National Park on the mid-north coast, NSW if elected to govern in the state election in March.
Sadly the proposed Great Koala National Park starts north of Kempsey and does not include the Bulga Forest and other native timber forest worth saving from logging.
The NSW election will be held on 25 March, 2023. The future of the koala depends on the outcome.
NSW Labor’s commitment to creat the Great Koala National Park after the March, 2023 election, if elected
Right on cue, the LNP finally released their response to the petition to save Campbelltown’s koalas threatened by LendLease Development (PDF) – it is reprinted in full at the bottom of this page.
Here is the petition to the Legislative Assembly to create the Great Koala National Park, which is still open for signatures until 4th July 2023
The Great Koala National Park
To the Speaker and Members of the Legislative Assembly,
We draw your attention to the significant decline in the NSW Koala population. There were an estimated 54,000 wild koalas in NSW in 2012, by 2016 the NSW Chief Scientist estimated only 36,000 were left.
The 2019/20 bushfires destroyed over a quarter of remaining prime Koala habitat in northeast NSW and killed approximately 10,000 koalas in NSW. Many koala populations are now on the verge of collapse.
The 2020 NSW Upper House Koala inquiry found that NSW koalas will become extinct before 2050 without urgent government intervention. Habitat loss and fragmentation through logging, land clearing and bushfires, are the primary cause of the koala’s decline.
Koalas in NSW are now listed as Endangered. The only way to prevent their predicted extinction is to stop the loss of koala habitat by protecting it in perpetuity.
The Great Koala National Park (GKNP) would protect an estimated 20% of NSW’s remaining koalas. It would also generate significant regional economic benefits through nature-based tourism and is well supported by the community.
Current industrial scale logging in State Forests within the proposed GKNP is destroying the very habitat critical to ensuring Koala survival.
We respectfully request that:
1. A moratorium be placed on all logging of public native forest within the National Parks Association of NSW’s proposed Great Koala National Park.
2. That koalas be protected for future generations by immediately creating The Great Koala National Park as proposed by the National Parks Association of NSW.
°°°°
The establishment of the Great Koala National Park was originally a Greens proposal, however the Bill to create the Park was defeated in Parliament. The Greens responded:
Politics Wins Over Koalas: Great Koala National Park Bill Defeated
8 June 2022, NSW – Politics has once again won out over the future of koalas in NSW with the Government and Opposition voting against a Greens bill to establish a Great Koala National Park on the mid-north coast to protect koala habitat at threat from logging says Cate Faehrmann Greens MP and koala spokesperson
Outgoing Liberal MP Catherine Cusack while speaking in support of the bill revealed the deals done by the Liberal and National parties during the so-called Koala Wars last year.
Cate Faehrmann Greens MP and koala spokesperson said:
“This bill was a massive opportunity to begin making the gains in protecting koala habitat which are absolutely essential if we are to stop koalas becoming extinct before 2050. It’s incredibly disappointing that all government and opposition members, except Ms Cusack, voted against the bill,”
“Unfortunately Labor voted with the Government to stop the creation of the Great Koala National Park meaning the vote was lost 30 to 7. With Labor’s support tonight, this bill would have passed the Upper House.
“As a result of Ms Cusack, once again, crossing the floor to vote in support of koalas we had an opportunity to get some of the best protection for koalas in place that this state has ever seen. But it wasn’t to be.
“Catherine Cusack showed courage and integrity tonight and demonstrated that she will continue to use her position to do all she can to get better laws in place to protect koalas and their habitat. She has prioritised saving koalas from extinction over the self-interest of the Liberal Party and I commend her for that,”
said Ms Faehrmann.
The National Parks and Wildlife Amendment (Great Koala National Park) Bill 2021 would have:
- Gazetted 175,000 hectares of state forests, adding them to existing protected areas to form a 315,000 hectare protected area on the Mid North Coast, protecting an area that is home to around 20 per cent of the NSW koala population
- Required the government to develop an economic, conservation and tourism plan for the ‘Great Koala National Park; and
- Required the government to develop a transition plan, including a structural adjustment package, for forestry workers
A University of Newcastle report found the Great Koala National Park would generate $412 million in visitor expenditure and create 9,810 full-time-equivalent jobs.
°°°°°
On 18 January, 2023 – the same day that NSW Labor announced their commitment to the Great Koala National Park, the Clerk of the Legislative Assembly, Parliament House, released the Minister’s response to an e-petititon about Campbelltown’s koalas threatened by LendLease Development:
Dear Ms Minnican
Thank you for referring a petition regarding the protection of koalas in the Macarthur region and across NSW. The NSW Government is committed to protecting the habitat of our threatened species, including koalas which are listed as vulnerable under the NSW Biodiversity Conservation Act 2016 and endangered under national environmental law.
NSW Koala Strategy
As you may be aware, in April this year the NSW Government released its new NSW Koala Strategy. The strategy outlines key koala conservation targets, with over $190 million committed to delivering the strategy and working towards the Government’s goal of doubling the number of koalas in NSW by 2050.
This is the single largest investment in koala conservation in Australia and recognises the iconic nature and cultural importance koalas hold in the NSW community. Under the Koala Strategy the koala population in south-west Sydney has been designated as one of 19 populations for immediate investment. Targeted investment of this population will include protecting and restoring habitat and mitigating threats such as vehicle strike and dog attack.
More information on the NSW Koala Strategy is available at www.environment.nsw.gov.au/ topics/animals-and-plants/threatened-species/programs-legislation-and-framework/nsw-koalastrategy.
Georges River Koala Reserve
The NSW Government is further building koala protections through the Cumberland Plain Conservation Plan (CPCP). The CPCP plays an important role in protecting Sydney’s unique koala population and commits to the establishment of the Georges River Koala Reserve.
When finalised the reserve will protect up to 1830 hectares of koala habitat along the Georges River from Appin north to Long Point and will be managed by NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS). I am pleased to confirm that the first 54 hectares of land was transferred into the management of NSW NPWS in April 2022. A further transfer of land is expected to occur in 2023. The NSW Government owns around 65 per cent of the land within the future reserve.
For more information on the CPCP including its final documentation, mapping and supporting factsheets, please visit the Department of Planning and Environment’s (the Department) website at www.planning.nsw.gov.au/Policy-and-Legislation/Strategic-conservation-planning/CumberlandPlain-Conservation-Plan.
Gilead development
The Mount Gilead Stage 2 proposal is now on public exhibition. The planning proposal and supporting documents can be accessed at www.planningportal.nsw.gov.au/ppr/underexhibition/gilead-stage-2. The Department is inviting submissions on the proposal until 19 December 2022.
In conjunction with the exhibition of the planning proposal, the Department has also now published an updated structure plan and accompanying Guide to the Greater Macarthur Growth Area. These can be found on the Department’s website at www.planning.nsw.gov.au/Plans-for-yourarea/Priority-Growth-Areas-and-Precincts/Greater-Macarthur-Growth-Area.
The structure plan now provides an up-to-date status of the growth area. Among the updated information, the structure plan and Guide now shows the results of a significant body of work, including strategic investigations and protections for koala corridors in the Gilead Precinct.
Koala crossings
Through the CPCP the Government is committed to delivering koala conservation actions, including the construction of at least 2 koala crossings at Appin Road, restoration of koala habitat and installation of koala fencing. The Department is working in partnership with Transport for NSW to complete a crossing for koalas and other fauna underneath Appin Road at Kings Falls Bridge south of Appin.
This work, in conjunction with associated koala exclusion fencing to help guide koalas to the crossing, is in the final stages of construction. Also, in partnership with Transport for NSW, the Department has completed feasibility studies and is preparing a Review of Environmental Factors for a new koala crossing on Appin Road at Ousedale.
Two additional crossings of Appin Road are being considered as part of the Mount Gilead development. These would be located at Menangle Creek (Noorumba Reserve) and Woodhouse Creek. Koala corridors The NSW Government is committed to protecting functional koala corridors across the Greater Macarthur region to assist the movement and dispersal of koalas across the landscape.
The CPCP has considered the advice provided by the Office of the NSW Chief Scientist and Engineer. The Department’s response to that advice was published in December 2021 and can be found on the CPCP website www.planning.nsw.gov.au/Policy-and-Legislation/Strategicconservation-planning/Cumberland-Plain-Conservation-Plan.
The Office of the Chief Scientist and Engineer has recommended average minimum widths of 325 metres – 450 metres for functional koala corridors in the Greater Macarthur and Wilton growth areas. The final mapping for the CPCP incorporated this advice by protecting at least 325 metres. In many places the width of the protected koala corridor is much wider than 325 metres. Protecting up to 450 metres for a koala corridor was not possible in all locations due to existing zoning or development.
The advice from the Office of the NSW Chief Scientist and Engineer has also been taken into account for the planning proposal for Mount Gilead development. Protection of koala corridors along Menangle Creek, Woodhouse Creek and the Nepean River have been incorporated into the planning proposal.
Should the petitioners have any questions, they are welcome to contact Ms Maria Plytarias, Acting Director, Environment Policy, at the Department on 9274 6569. Thank you for taking the time to bring this matter to the Government’s attention.
Yours sincerely
The Hon. Anthony Roberts MP
Minister for Planning, Minister for Homes
°°°°
The NSW election will be held on 25 March, 2023. The future of the koala depends on the outcome.
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