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Byron Shire
March 28, 2024

Tweed Coast koalas need all the help they can get

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It may seem to many in the community that there are constant references for the need to protect our koalas, but we do need the wildlife aware people to keep up with this communication hoping that there will be some understanding and proper action taken to protect the koalas.

Apart from a few dedicated council workers to the care, planting and protection of the koala areas some Tweed councillors that hold the power just do not seem interested or truly concerned about the plight that is actually happening right now to the koala’s future on the Tweed.

Pottsville location is the perfect example of negligence in its highest form is presented where there is a lack of true care by some of the councillors.

Councillors Longland, Polglase, Byrne and Youngblutt have on several occasions voted against the safer options for koala protection at the Black Rocks sports ground. This land area is of vital importance to the integration and linking of habitat areas for the koala population.

It needs to be protected not efforts reduced or removed by the council.

To give a clearer picture of why it is so important, let us go right back to when the initial proposal was put together in 2002, where the National Parks and Wildlife service recommended that the sports field not be placed there so as to maintain the integrity of the wildlife corridor.

As with road and infrastructure it would severe this corridor path needed for the koalas to move about in the habitat. The human disturbance would also be an issue as it did not exist there at the time of the proposal.

So did the council listen to the National Parks and Wildlife then? No, and now we are in 2015 where koala survival issues are even more apparent and they are still not listening.

We now have on this vital parcel of land dogs roaming free, cars coming and going, numerous cricket games being played here where other fields are available and the clubs happy to use them instead, and now a group of remote controlled aeroplane enthusiasts zooming their planes straight into the forest areas.

All this sort of activity is going on and being reported to the council yet no rangers or monitoring to put a stop to this sort of thing is being done. It needs to begin now on a large scale especially with gates no longer protecting the area. Where are you council!

Not only the noise and danger of these machines have had an effect on the koalas, it has become evident that there has already been a dead baby osprey found and the probable cause was the fear from the planes making it scramble out of the nest to its unnecessary death.

May add here that the osprey is also an endangered species! We are privileged to have them in this area but are they being protected? No they are not.

Oh and if all this isn’t bad enough, some councillors are now interested and assisting the prospect of building a Men’s Shed on this precious land mass!

Can you believe it? It is truly bizarre that a group of supposedly intelligent people with such power just do not get the importance of this particular area.

In reality it should actually be re vegetated with koala habitat trees and be a walk in only area for people to come and view and maybe if lucky see one of these precious creatures in real life instead of only in photos when there are none left in the area.

So dear community though you may be a little tired of the letters and constant mentioning about this particular block of land, but please bear with it, as it truly is more than worthy of the effort in trying to inform and get some protection in place for this area. I hope my letter has helped you understand why others go to such effort trying to get some action on this matter.

If you are able to help and support the groups trying to get some protection happening please do.

Joan Doris, Nerang


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