The country’s cutest Australian icon has officially been listed as “endangered” in Queensland, NSW and the ACT, a move anixjmtzywmal groups have dubbed as “grim but important”.
Koalas were officially classed as endangered under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC Act) 1999 on Friday, with federal Environment Minister Sussan Ley announcing the species has a higher risk of extinction.
Koalas have been listed as “vulnerable” in the three regions since 2012 and, without stronger protection, are now at risk of disappearing forever.
“Today I am increasing the protection for koalas in NSW, the ACT and Queensland, listing them as endangered rather than their previous designation of vulnerable,” Ms Ley said.
Numbers of koalas have plummeted across Queensland, NSW and the ACT in recent years.
Ms Ley said the impact of prolonged drought, Black Summer bushfires and impacts of disease, urbanisation and habitat loss over the past 20 years had led to the decision.
In a bid to boost the level of protection for the much-loved marsupial under national environment law, the federal government is seeking agreement from the states and territory for a national recovery plan.
Ms Ley wants NSW, Queensland and the ACT to sign up to the recovery plan, which will cost $50m over four years and work to conserve and protect koalas.
She hopes the endangered listing will highlight the threat to koala populations.
“We are taking unprecedented action to protect the koala, working with scientists, medical researchers, veterinarians, communities, states, local governments and traditional owners,” Ms Ley said.
“As part of our $200m bushfire response, I asked the threatened species scientific committee to consider the status of the koala.
“The new listing highlights the challenges the species is facing and ensures that all assessments under the Act will be considered not only in terms of their local impacts but with regard to the wider koala population.”
The Australian Conservation Foundation welcomed the decision to accept the recommendation of the threatened species scientific committee and change the koala’s status to “endangered”.
The ACF’s nature campaign manager Basha Stasak said many people would be “very upset” to learn the koala was “another step closer to extinction”.
She said many Australians were used to koalas being central to the country’s image.
“Our furry friends are in serious strife,” Ms Stasak warned.
The federal government approved the clearing of more than 25,000 hectares of koala habitat since the species was declared vulnerable 10 years ago.
A 2020 parliamentary inquiry warned that koalas could become extinct by 2050 if urgent changes were not made.
Ms Stasak said national environment laws were “ineffective” and had done little to stem the “ongoing destruction of koala habitat in Queensland and NSW”.
“Just four months ago, Australia declared its support for ambitious global goals to protect nature, yet today the koala, one of Australia’s most well-known and loved species, was declared endangered. This is embarrassing for Australia on the world stage,” she said.
“The extinction of koalas does not have to happen.
“We must stop allowing their homes to be bulldozed for mines, new housing estates, agricultural projects and industrial logging.”
The International Fund for Animal Welfare campaign manager Josey Sharrad said koalas were an international and national icon.
But Ms Sharrad said they were living on a knife edge before the Black Summer bushfires, with numbers in severe decline due to landclearing, drought, disease, car strikes and dog attacks.
“This decision is a double-edged sword. We should never have allowed things to get to the point where we are at risk of losing a national icon. If we can’t protect an iconic species endemic to Australia, what chance do lesser known but no less important species have?” she said.
“The bushfires were the final straw.
“This must be a wake-up call to Australia and the government to move much faster to protect critical habitat from development and landclearing and seriously address the impacts of climate change.”
WWF-Australia conservation scientist Stuart Blanch said the endangered listing was a turning point for koalas.
Dr Blanch is calling on federal and state governments to commit to doubling koala numbers on the east coast by 2050.
“Koalas have gone from no listing to vulnerable to endangered within a decade,” he said.
“That is a shockingly fast decline. Today’s decision is welcome, but it won’t stop koalas from sliding towards extinction unless it’s accompanied by stronger laws and landholder incentives to protect their forest homes.”
