Michael Kemp MP, the NSW State Parliamentarian for the seat of Oxley has a point.  A good point that needs to be spelt out in more detail.

On 14 March 2024 he stood in the NSW State Parliament and stated that the decision on the establishment of the Great Koala National Park (GKNP) on the Mid North Coast of NSW:

“does not belong to a single voice but should involve many voices, mostly from the Mid North Coast. The Labor Government is attempting to blindfold us. Rather than using its chance to engage in authentic discussion with the community, it chooses to undermine us by including carefully curated elitists pretending to be our community representatives.”

On 7 March 2024 the Minister for the Environment, the Hon Penny Sharpe, said at Budget Estimates in the Portfolio Committee No 7:

“One of the things that I promised people from opposition was that, when we came into government, we would have people at the table who are impacted and who are stakeholders. That includes our environmentalists, who I’ve worked very closely with for a long time. It includes the scientists who are there but it also includes farmers and it also includes the development industry and others who have a view in relation to this, and we have said that they will be able to provide input into that and that’s what we’re also doing. I am more interested in getting this right and doing it in the right amount of time rather than just simply rushing in to do this. That’s the approach that I take.” (p 34, emphasis added)

In November 2023 the Premier Chris Minns said that there were three critical components to the process in establishing the GKNP, one of them was a community advisory panel.

In September 2023 the Minister for the Environment said similar words: “the Government is taking serious steps towards its creation and will work closely with the community.”

Michael Kemp stated:

“community consultation begins at the grassroots. It is not inviting people to vocalise their thoughts on a region foreign to them—those who live within the concrete walls of Greater Sydney and are seated on a board as chair or listed as a campaigner for a not‑for‑profit. Almost one‑quarter of the community panel does not live on the Mid North Coast … Real community members should be the first picked for a seat at this table. If the Minns Government wants the voices of activists, campaigners and not‑for‑profits, there should be another panel curated to their skill set.”

Well, the reality is different to what the Premier and his Minister have asserted.

Not a community consultation committee, the majority are long term supporters of anti-native forestry.

The summary of who the Government appointed:

• Only one person on the community committee comes from the private sector;
• One is a NSW public servant in the business area who lives in the region;
• One person from tourism from outside the region; and
• All the others are well known environmentalists.

The full breakdown of the nineteen members of the Community Committee:

• The eleven members who live in the region:  one is a private sector business person, a pharmacist, seven are well known active environmentalists, two are local government officers and one a NSW public servant;
• Five members come from outside the region and all but one are associated with environmental organisations based in Sydney.  All of these (four) are well known environmental not for profits who campaign aggressively against native forestry operations.
• Five are NSW State bureaucrats.

The Committee Members were selected by the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service who are part of the NSW Department of Environment.  The Minister for this Department is The Hon Penny Sharpe, a well-known and long-term member of the left wing of the NSW State ALP.  A fervent supporter of the anti-native forestry movement.

The Convenor of the GKNP consultation is Trish Harrup, Executive Director, Conservation & Aboriginal Partnerships of the NSW National Parks & Wildlife Service.  Before entering the NSW public service Ms Harrup was a Climate Team Leader of Greenpeace in Sydney and before that the Executive Director of the Conservation Council ACT Region. This information is available on the web.

In short, Michael Kemp MP is correct, the Community Consultative Committee is not a community-based body, there are no Chamber of Commerce representatives, no prominent local business people, no community service bodies, or any general community connection save for one person.  The composition of the committee is a stack for the anti-forestry movement across the NSW State.

Does the Community Committee speak for the divergent views of the North coast community. No!

Conflict of interests enhanced by the government

Conflicts of interests are being promoted by the NSW Government:

• The NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service are the beneficiaries of the establishment of the GKNP, yet this agency is running the consultation process;
• The National Parks Association, a private body seeking the extensions of national parks and who proposed the concept of the GLNP, are on the consultative panel.

Both these matters would in a usual review process compromise the finding.  Not so under the administration of the NSW ALP.

The two Government agencies that should be included but are excluded from the table are the:

• Natural Resources Commission, the government’s neutral umpire between government departments on government resource issues., and
• The Forestry Corporation of NSW, the manager of state forests, conservation manager for sensitive areas of state forests and the only holder of detailed data on state forests.

The political reality

All of this puts into context the words of the Premier and the NSW Minister for the Environment.  What they said before the review and consultation process started, they had no intention of doing.

The ALP Government, when it has had carriage of the inclusion of state forests into national parks has had a process where State Forests, stakeholders, and National Parks sat around a table with maps.  The loss of timber yield, the forest connectivity issues and the desire for more areas being declared as national parks were hammered out using the topographical data with forest data.

The Minns Government has elected a process that lacks transparency, seemingly lacks real data, and has removed any stakeholder on the productive side of State Forests save a Union representative.  A representative that does not represent the union members of the North Coast of NSW.

The list of members of the Community Consultative Committee

The list of the Community Consultative Committee for the establishment of the GKNP is as follows, with relevant comments.

1. Ashley Love, Bellingen Environment Centre (BEC); well-known local environmentalist;
2. Atticus Fleming AM, A/Coordinator-General, Environment and Heritage Group (EHG);
3. Dailan Pugh, President, North East Forest Alliance; well-known local environmentalist;
4. Dr Grahame Douglas, President, National Parks Association (NPA); University of Western Sydney with a PhD in bushfire protection and climate change;
5. Jonathon Cassell, Councillor, City of Coffs Harbour Council; a Councillor who is also well-known local environmentalist;
6. Linda Taylor, Regional NSW Tourism Industry Council; a State Government bureaucrat from Sydney;
7. Lyndon Schneiders, Executive Director, Australian Climate and Biodiversity Foundation; Sydney based and former national director of the Wilderness Society. Lyndon has been a vocal advocate against native forestry for some time.  It is understood his partner is Felicity Wade who is the convener of the Labour Environment Action Network (LEAN). When she was on the staff of the NSW State Opposition Leader, Luke Foley, Felicity Wade wrote the ALP policy for the establishment for the GKNP;
8. Patricia Edwards, Clarence Environment Centre; well-known local environmentalist;
9. Paula Flack, President, Nambucca Valley Conservation Association; well-known local environmentalist;
10. Sally Townley, Councillor, City of Coffs Harbour Council, environmental scientist;
11. Scott Lenton, Manager Environmental and Regulatory Services, Clarence Valley Council; a town planner and a local government public servant;
12. Dr Stuart Blanch, Senior Manager, World Wide Fund for Nature; WWF is an organisation with over a $70M income and which is based in Sydney.  Well-known for being anti native forestry and fundraising on this basis;
13. Steve Allan, Mayor, Bellingen Shire Council; a local pharmacist and business owner;
14. Susie Russell, Vice President, North Coast Environment Council, well-known environmentalist.  The North Coast Environmental Council is the peak umbrella environment group in northern NSW.
15. Will O’Neill, Principal Project Officer, NPWS, EHG, a State Government bureaucrat based in Sydney;
16. Wilson Harris, Forest Campaigner, Nature Conservation Council, well-known local environmentalist against native forestry and frequently seeks donations for campaigns. The organisation is based in inner Sydney;
17. Kellon Beard, Regional Director, Mid North Coast, Business NSW; NSW public servant based in Port Macquarie;
18. Lori Modde, Chief Executive Officer, Outdoors NSW & ACT; this body is the peak body for Outdoor, Education, Therapy and Adventure Tourism. Not based on the North Coast.
19. Megan Jones, Environmental Planning Officer, Kempsey Shire Council; a local government public servant.