Officially, the Australian government has listed the After a decline of its numbers and habitat shrinkage, the koala is now considered endangered.
Sussan Leey, the environment minister, accepted the recommendation from the threatened species scientific panel that the koala population of Queensland, New South Wales, and the Australian Capital Territory be given a higher conservation status.
The stronger listing under Australian law is recognition of the urgent need for koalas and the failure of successive Australian governments to improve the situation. Koalas were listed as vulnerable in 2012, so the stronger listing is necessary.
The funding comes after the Morrison government announced $50 million to help the species last month. Environment groups were happy to receive the funding but they said it was only a drop in a larger ocean if the root causes of species decline are not addressed.
Ley stated that the government was considering an endangered listing and a long-awaited national plan for the recovery of the koala.
Ley stated that I am increasing the protection of koalas throughout NSW, ACT and Queensland today, listing them as endangered instead of their previous designation as vulnerable.
The advice is based on the cumulative effects of disease and urbanisation over the past 20 years, and the impact of prolonged drought.
Environment groups have long advocated for the koala’s conservation status to be improved. It was nominated by three organizations: Humane Society International (HSI), WWF-Australia, and the International Fund for Animal Welfare.
Dermot Ogorman, chief executive of WWF-Australia, stated that within a decade the koala was removed from the endangered list and is now listed on the Australian east coast.
This is a shockingly rapid decline for one the most iconic animals in the world. Minister Ley has made a difficult but crucial decision to place the endangered status of the animal.
If the uplisting is a turning point in conservation of koalas, there is still time for this iconic species to be saved. Protecting their forest homes requires stronger laws and better incentives for landholders.
Because it lowers thresholds at which development must be evaluated under national laws for potential impacts on the species, the endangered listing will protect koalas even more.
The recovery plan outlines the main threats facing the koala, and the actions that must be taken to prevent its extinction.
While such a plan had been required by the species’ national environmental laws for the last nine years, no Australian government had created one. It was one of nearly 200 plans for recovery of threatened species and habitats in Australia that were long overdue.
It took the terrible black summer bushfires to trigger consultation on a draft. A final version was delivered to the minister in late last year.
Ministers are legally bound to follow the recovery plan once it is approved. However, governments are not required to implement it.
Multiple ongoing threats are putting the koala under pressure, including global warming, disease, and the clearing of its habitat to allow for development.
A NSW parliamentary inquiry concluded that the species would become extinct in the state by 2050 unless governments take urgent action to preserve its habitat and reverse the declines.
Alexia Wellbelove from HSI is a senior campaign manger and stated that Leys decision should inspire Australian governments to take more action to address the country’s declining environment.
She said that although it is devastating for the koala, it is an important step for their protection.
It is a signal for governments to stop habitat clearing for koalas. We cannot continue to do business as usual.
Wellbelove stated that the decision must be followed by action by the former head of the competition watchdog, Graeme Samuel, to review national environmental laws.
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Samuel discovered that the Australian government had failed to fulfill their duty to protect the environment, and that the country’s iconic wildlife was suffering as a result.
He made 38 suggestions to transform the act. This included a proposal for new national standards for environmental protection that would ensure clear outcomes for Australian plants and animals.
Until we have strong national environmental regulations that define no-go zones around critical habitats such as the Koala, habitat destruction is likely to continue. Wellbelove said.