Great Koala National Park commitment is good news for biodiversity

The Wilderness Society welcomes NSW Labor’s re-commitment to establishing the Great Koala National Park, a move that would help to ensure koalas survive in the wild in NSW.

National Parks Association NSW, Nature Conservation Council NSW and many others have long fought for this new park, which would spare many thousands of hectares of native forest on the mid-north coast from industrial logging. This is critical because loss of habitat is threatening the survival of the koala and other endangered species.

NSW Labor is yet to detail its plans for the scope of the park.

The Wilderness Society supports the proposal that the park link 140,000 hectares of existing national parks with around 170,000 hectares of state forest.

“Polling shows there is widespread community support for forests to be protected, yet the NSW government allows logging to continue in bushfire-affected forests across the east coast of NSW,” says NSW Campaigns Manager Victoria Jack.

“This is despite scientists advising that it’s critical to protect unburnt patches that provide refuge to native species after two thirds of the NSW native forest estate was burned during the Black Summer Bushfires.

“The scientific evidence and community sentiment are both clear: continued industrial logging of these native forests is the pathway to a worsening biodiversity crisis and wildlife extinctions.

“It’s critical that all high conservation value forests in or next to bushfire-affected areas are protected.

“The community deserves to be heard and for our leaders to deliver the environmental outcomes we want and need.”

For more information contact NSW Campaign Manager Victoria Jack; 0481 125 427