Australian Rural & Regional News asked some questions of the Minister which have been responded to by a Department of Environment and Science (Qld) spokesperson, below the release.

The Hon. Meaghan Scanlon, Minister for the Environment and the Great Barrier Reef and Minister for Science and Youth Affairs (Qld), Media Release, 31 May 2022

The Palaszczuk Government has announced an $8.6 million partnership with Queensland Trust for Nature (QTFN) to restore and protect key koala habitat in the vast northern Brigalow Belt, west of Rockhampton and Mackay.

Speaking in Rockhampton today, Environment Minister Meaghan Scanlon said the multi-million dollar investment would see previously-cleared land revegetated to create a self-sustaining forest with koala food and shelter trees, while important land management like fire, weed and feral pest treatment would be carried out on existing koala habitat.

It comes as the Minister also announced expressions of interest were open for projects in south east Queensland to share in a further $2.7 million through the government and QTFN’s Koala Habitat Restoration Partnership Program.

“Protecting and restoring habitat is crucial in order for Queensland’s native species to thrive – it’s why we’re investing $1.4 billion in the environment to expand and maintain our protected areas, for wildlife care and ongoing research,” Minister Scanlon said.  

“This is the most ambitious koala project this region has ever seen. And it adds to a swathe of initiatives aimed at protecting species like koalas, including the addition of more than 1.2 million hectares in Queensland to our protected area estate since 2015.

“With the funding now locked in, the Palaszczuk Government and QTFN will now be able to identify land for restoration and important land management so koala populations can thrive.”

Minister Scanlon said in addition to ensuring positive environmental outcomes, the project would also help to drive the Palaszczuk Government’s COVID-19 Economic Recovery Plan in the region with jobs to be supported in land management and revegetation.

QTFN is an independent, not-for-profit organisation focused on protection of Queensland’s biodiversity and natural landscapes. It was created in 2004 through a Deed of Trust and seed funding grant of $5 million from the Queensland Government.

QTFN works across Queensland to develop innovative conservation projects and partnerships for environmental sustainability, and has protected more than 111,470 hectares of threatened species habitat.

QTFN CEO Dr Liz O’Brien said the organisation was proud to work with the Queensland Government to protect and restore the northern Brigalow Belt’s koala habitat.

“Habitat conservation is key to the survival of this iconic Australian marsupial, and we want to support restoration efforts to increase habitat quality and connectivity.

“We are particularly pleased to be working in Brigalow country as it is an important region not only for koalas but also other threatened species such as the Poplar box and squatter pigeon.

“We look forward to working in partnership with land holders to help support delivery of outcomes from this project,” Dr O’Brien said.

Minister Scanlon said more broadly great strides had been made to achieve positive conservation outcomes for koalas in Queensland.

“The South East Queensland Koala Conservation Strategy 2020-2025 annual report, released today (31 May), found implementation actions are well underway, with 32 of the 46 actions recommended by the independent Koala Expert Panel are already underway and three actions have been completed,” Minister Scanlon said.

“One of the highlights of the strategy has been the introduction of the strongest protections for koala habitat that Queensland has ever seen, using state of the art mapping to measure its success.

“New koala habitat protections have increased both by size and level of protections for koala habitat areas across SEQ.

“Since the latest update in 2021 more than 714,040 hectares are mapped as koala habitat including more than 332,278 hectares within koala priority areas.

“The $2.7 million we’ve also announced today for south east project will restore more koala habitat and adds to the $2 million we’ve already invested in the Koala Habitat Restoration Partnership Program.”

The South East Queensland Koala Conservation Strategy 2020-2025 annual report is available on the DES website at www.des.qld.gov.au.

Questions for the Minister

Australian Rural & Regional News asked some questions of the Minister which have been responded to by a spokesperson from the Department of Environment and Science (Qld).

• What is the target level of koala population density in the ‘protected’ areas?
• What is the status of the ‘protected’ land referred to? Is it privately owned, national park or a combination?
• If privately owned, what are the restrictions placed on the use of the land, and is there compensation for the landowners?
•  Of the 1.2 million hectares added to the protected area estate since 2015, how much of that was productive agricultural land converted to national park or otherwise for conservation purposes?
• Does the 714,040 hectares mapped and the 332,278 hectares in koala priority areas include land currently used for agricultural purposes? 
• Does the Queensland Government consider that land can be managed for agricultural purposes and at the same time sustain healthy, low densities of koalas?
• What is the ultimate amount of productive agricultural land that the Queensland Government intends to convert to use as a national park/ for conservation purposes? 
• How does the Queensland Government balance the need for land which produces food and products essential for human survival and other agricultural production with the reservation of land for conservation purposes?
• What is the impact on the domestic and export market of agricultural produce of the Queensland Government’s conversion of agricultural land, to date and from future conversions?

Regarding the SEQ Conservation Strategy 2020-2025 – Annual Report:

• The report talks of surveys in 2022 to establish a baseline for koala populations and enable population trend analysis and that that data is not yet available. Yet the stated vision of the strategy is to “Halt the decline of koala populations in the wild in SEQ, and secure their long-term survival.”
  How did you know populations were in (substantial) decline?  What was the evidence that populations were in decline?
• Has the Aroona cattle station project indicated that healthy, low densities of koalas can exist on productive agricultural land?

Response from the Department of Environment and Science (Qld), 9 June 2022

The vision for the South East Queensland Koala Conservation Strategy is to halt the decline of koala populations in the wild in South East Queensland, and secure their long-term survival rather than a specific “target density”.

The South East Queensland (SEQ) population study reflected in the UniQuest South East Queensland Koala Population Modelling Study report is the most recent research to generate a SEQ regional population estimate.

The Queensland Government has established four key targets to track achievement of the vision:

1. Populations—stabilise koala population numbers in SEQ

2. Koala habitat—a net gain in the total core koala habitat area

3. Koala habitat restoration—commence rehabilitation to restore 10,000 hectares of koala habitat

4. Threat reduction—commence 10 programs in threat priority areas to support at least a 25 per cent reduction in disease, injury and mortality rates in those locations.

These high-level interrelated targets are designed to work together to put south-east Queensland koala populations on the path to recovery.

Achieving a net gain in core koala habitat requires koala habitat restoration. Threat reduction as well as protecting and restoring habitat is also necessary to stabilise koala populations.

The actions outlined in the strategy will all contribute to meeting these targets, which will be underpinned by a monitoring and evaluation plan to track progress.

To this end, $24.6 million has been allocated in this year’s State Budget to support the further implementation of the Queensland Government’s South East Queensland Koala Strategy 2020-2025.

The strategy details the strongest koala protections yet increasing both area and level of protection for our local koalas.

Koalas live over a range of open forest and woodland communities, but ultimately their habitat is defined by the presence of a select group of food trees.

They are found in higher densities where food trees are growing on more fertile soils and along watercourses.

They are also found in areas where their habitat has been partially cleared and in urban areas.

Protecting koala habitat from land clearing, as well as threats such as inappropriate fire regimes, invasive weeds and climate change impacts, is fundamental to safeguarding populations.

The independent Koala Expert Panel found that the land-use planning framework was a core contributor to the protection of koala habitat in south-east Queensland into the future.

To this end, the Queensland Government has introduced new koala conservation protections through the Nature Conservation and Other Legislation (Koala Protection) Amendment Regulation that commenced on 7 February 2020.

Through the regulation, the Queensland Government works with local government and other land management agencies to ensure koala protection is front-of-mind in land use planning.

There are also requirements private owners need to consider if seeking to develop private land.

In terms of the recent announcement for $8.6 million for the regeneration of Brigalow Belt land for koala habitat, the region in question consists of some protected area estate (managed by the Queensland Government) and private land.

The Queensland Government (through the Queensland Trust For Nature) will work with private landholders to ensure key habitat areas are restored in ways that protect the environmental and habitat values of the land while balancing with compatible land uses that the landholder wishes to continue with.

Australian governments and various conservation entities (such as the Australian Koala Foundation) agree koala populations are in decline and in February 2020 the Australian Government changed the koala’s conservation status from vulnerable to endangered.

The change in status means an increased level of protection for koalas in Queensland, New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory.

Koalas were first listed as vulnerable in south-east Queensland under Queensland’s Nature Conservation Act 1992 in 2005, and in 2015 this was expanded to koalas across the entire state.

The Australian Government has noted that in some Australian regions koalas have been in decline over a number of years, while others have relatively high populations.

In parts of coastal Queensland and New South Wales koalas face threats of disease, habitat loss, vehicle strike, and predation, while being more susceptible to the effects of drought and climate change.

Over the past 200 years, Australian koala distribution does not appear to have reduced, however, individual koala populations have declined.

Local extinctions have occurred in part due to clearing and fragmentation of eucalypt woodlands and forests for agriculture and human settlement.

The Queensland Government acquires land of the highest conservation value for inclusion in the protected area estate. 

This land may have had a variety of pre-existing uses that once included agricultural or pastoral production.

For example, recent purchases include properties with large areas of remnant vegetation, wetlands of state significance, and protection for waterways in the Great Barrier Reef catchment.

Importantly, the Queensland Government only buys land for protected area from willing vendors.

Questions relating to agricultural production and markets can be addressed to the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries.