The humble NSW koala has led to local Liberal MP Catherine Cusack crossing the floor, and serious internal disputes between the NSW Liberal and National Party over land and koala management policy, with the koala wars a particular flash point in 2020.
Finally, last Thursday, 22 October the legislation to create the Great Koala National Park (GKNP) passed in the NSW Parliament.
The legislation will add more than 178,000 hectares of state forest and other Crown land to existing national parks, establishing a more than 475,000-hectare safe haven for koalas on the Mid North Coast.
Key advocates for the GKNP were North East Forest Alliance (NEFA) and the North Coast Environment Council.
‘This is a historic step forward in the conservation of NSW’s forests and their long-suffering inhabitants. Premier Chris Minns and Environment Minister Penny Sharpe are to be congratulated for finally making this promise a reality,’ said Dailan Pugh, President of NEFA.
‘This park encompasses some of Australia’s most important forests and vital climate refuges for the future of many species. And as leading koala expert Dr Steve Phillips has said, “the Creation of the GKNP will stand in history as the most significant contribution to koala conservation in NSW since the species was first listed as Vulnerable during the 1990s”.’
It is estimated that the GKNP will protect an estimated 12,000 koalas, and 36,000 greater gliders, along with the ecosystems that so many other native Australian species call home.
Management concerns
North Coast Environment Council spokesperson Susie Russell said, ‘We appreciate the need to designate some areas as regional parks to accommodate the spectrum of recreational uses. However we believe some of these would be better managed as national parks and will be encouraging participation in the plan of management preparation to address outstanding concerns.’
‘We are pleased that no State Conservation Areas (SCAs) are being created to allow continued mining exploration, and that some existing SCAs are being made into national parks.
‘We recognise that the NSW government made it clear from the start that they were going to exclude plantations from the park, but we urge them to consider the future inclusion and rehabilitation of key areas of plantations needed to establish habitat links and improve the integrity of the park.’
WWF-Australia’s CEO, Dermot O’Gorman, said, ‘This is conservation at the scale nature needs.’
‘More than 60 years ago, China began establishing nature reserves to protect giant pandas. Those efforts helped panda populations recover and ultimately move off the endangered species list. We hope the GKNP can help put koalas on a similar path to recovery.’
The government has provided a support package for timber workers affected by the creation of the GKNP.
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