Wednesday 13 June 2018

NSW GOVERNMENT'S NEW KOALA PROTECTION CLAIMS



 MEDIA  RELEASE

New analysis shows Berejiklian government’s koala reserve system offers the species virtually no new protection  

The Berejiklian government’s planned koala reserve contains only 2% of high quality koala habitat and offers no significant new protection for the species whose numbers are rapidly declining, new analysis has shown.

The North East Forest Alliance obtained and analysed maps of 24,000 hectares of mostly state forests that the government plans to use for a koala reserve system, which is a major plank in the government’s long-delayed Koala Strategy, unveiled on May 6.


KEY FINDINGS
  • 82% of the “new reserves” offer no new protection to koalas. That is because 82% of the “new reserves” were already protected in forest reserves.
  • Only 2% (554ha) of the new reserves are high-quality koala habitat. This assessment is based on the government’s latest koala habitat modelling.
  • Hunting will be permitted in 8 of the 12 areas because they will be designated Flora Reserves.
  • All the reserves are in the hinterland, away from the coastal forests where the best koala habitat exists.
  • Less than 2.5% of the “new” reserves match the proposed Great Koala National Park.
(See the table below for a detailed analysis of the new reserves.)

North East Forest Alliance spokesperson Dailan Pugh:

 “It is fraudulent for the NSW Government to pretend that these are new Koala Reserves. There are many state forests known to be far more important for Koalas that the Government has ignored. 

“The selection of these areas has been a cynical political exercise with no attempt to identify and protect the most important Koala habitat on State Forests, with the only apparent criteria being to have no impacts on timber.”

National Parks Association Senior Ecologist Oisin Sweeney said:

 “It is clear the government has made a choice – it is timber over koalas.

“The government’s own mapping shows the importance of the Great Koala National Park proposal, yet the government plans to implement an intensive harvesting zone that will see koala habitat destroyed over large areas and reduced forests to monocultures of blackbutt between Grafton and Taree.”

Quotes from the Nature Conservation Council CEO Kate Smolski: 

 “Koala populations on the North Coast have collapsed by 50% in the past 20 years and the NSW Government’s strategy will do little to redress that decline.

“If the Berejiklian government was serious about saving our koalas from extinction it would ending native forest logging, strengthen land clearing laws and create the Great Koala National Park.

“The government’s koala strategy fails to do any of these things and as a result it will fail koalas.”


Summary of analysis of the government’s new koala reserves
Reserve name
Region
Area (OEH claim)
Proposed designation
% already protected (Forest Mgt Zones)
High-quality koala* (ha)
Koala records
Hunting allowed
Mt Lindesay
Northeast
6195
Flora Reserve
36
244
49
No
Belanglo SF
Sth highlands
1818
Flora Reserve
69

68

Yes
Barrington Tops
Northeast
155
Flora Reserve
96
0
0
Yes
Corrabare
Northeast
843
Flora Reserve
98
0
1
Yes
Watagan
Central Coast
3107
Flora Reserve
99
0
3
Yes
Olney
Central Coast
Flora Reserve
-
0
6
Yes
Carrai
Northeast
2103
National Park
100
0
0
No
Comleroy
Northeast
2905
Flora Reserve
100
0
0
Yes
Mount Boss
Northeast
1383
SCA
100
273
2
No
Oakes
Northeast
593
National Park
100
37
1
No
Jellore SF
Sth highlands
1415
Flora Reserve
100
NA
3
Yes
Meryla SF
Sth highlands
4084
Flora Reserve
100
NA
0
Yes

Total
24601


82%
(19,802ha)
554
(2% of total)
133
No = 4
Yes = 8