2022-02-08
A new report from the Australian Conservation Foundation released today shows that despite the koala being listed as vulnerable, the Morrison Government has approved 63 projects that have cleared 25,000 hectares of koala habitat over the last 10 years.
Greens Spokesperson for the Environment, Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said:
"Unless we take urgent action to protect koalas, they will be extinct in parts of Australia by 2050.
"We know that one of the greatest threats to koalas is the clearing of their habitat. While Scott Morrison and his Environment Minister have been posing for photo ops cuddling koalas, they have also been giving licences to mining companies and big developers to clear koala habitat and destroy their homes.
"The Greens have a bill before the parliament that could be passed ahead of the election to put an immediate moratorium on the clearing of koala habitat.
"The Environment Minister must immediately list the koala as endangered and put in place a moratorium on the clearing of koala habitat so that we can protect our national treasure from going extinct within just a couple of decades."