‘Conservation outcomes don’t get much bigger than this’: Great Koala National Park announced

The Minns government will announce the proposed boundaries of its signature Great Koala National Park on Sunday, and call an immediate halt to logging in 176,000 hectares of state forest near Coffs Harbour.

The creation of the Great Koala National Park will fulfil a promise made by former Labor leader Luke Foley 10 years ago and taken to every election since. The announcement comes 2½ years after the March 2023 election, and logging has continued throughout the lengthy assessment and consultation process.

NSW Premier Chris Minns said the government would provide an additional $60 million for the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) to establish the park, on top of $80 million allocated in 2023, as well as $6 million to boost tourism in the region.

“Koalas are at risk of extinction in the wild in NSW – that’s unthinkable,” Minns said in a statement. “The Great Koala National Park is about turning that around. We’ve listened carefully and we’re making sure workers, businesses and communities are supported every step of the way.”

In what Wilderness Australia described as “the most significant outcome for forest conservation in NSW in 25 years”, the government has committed to the full 176,000 hectares it assessed, though Forestry Corp will retain access to designated plantations next to and surrounded by the park.

While a significant victory for environmentalists, the news will be a heavy blow for the timber industry and trade unions that campaigned hard against the park. Last year a forestry delegation lobbied parliamentarians for a “preferred” option of a 37,000-hectare park or an “acceptable” option of a 58,000-hectare park.

The legislation to create the park will be delayed until the federal government approves a proposal for the state to earn carbon credits for forest protection, but the NSW government said if this was unsuccessful it would consider how best to deliver the park.

The proposal connects the state forests to existing national parks such as Bindarri, Dorrigo, New England, Guy Fawkes, Chaelundi and Nymboi-Binderay to protect 476,000 hectares in total. The state forests contain nearly 12,000 koalas and 36,000 greater gliders, both endangered species, according to drone surveys commissioned by the government.

Ecologists believe protecting as much remaining koala habitat as possible, and connecting the coast to the Tablelands, will give the animals the best chance of surviving the ravages of climate change.

Environment Minister Penny Sharpe said the Great Koala National Park had “been a dream for more than a decade”.

“It will ensure koalas survive into the future so our grandchildren will still be able to see them in the wild,” Sharpe said. “These amazing old-growth forests are among the world’s top biodiversity hotspots – home to more than 100 threatened species including greater gliders, the powerful owl and yellow-bellied gliders.”

Environmentalists have grown increasingly concerned about the volume and intensity of logging while the assessment and consultation dragged on, but on Saturday the mood among those briefed on the government’s plans was joyful.

Wilderness Society NSW campaigns manager Victoria Jack said: “Conservation outcomes don’t get much bigger than this. This historic announcement will give koalas a fighting chance for a future.”

National Parks Association chief executive Gary Dunnett said the conservation outcomes and economic opportunities for eco-tourism meant it was “truly a win-win for the people of NSW and nature”.

Jacqui Mumford, chief executive of the Nature Conservation Council NSW, welcomed the “science- and evidence-based decision to deliver the park in full”, continuing “a proud Labor legacy of forest protection over many decades”.

However, a fight is looming over plantations dotted throughout the park, many of which are similar in composition to native forests with mature trees and rainforest components that provide excellent koala habitat, but were excluded from the assessment process. While native forests are subject to selective logging, plantations can be clear-felled.

The moratorium on logging will commence on Monday. The government has negotiated with six out of 25 mills to provide JobKeeper-system payments to cover salaries and financial assistance to business operating costs, as well as other support, ensuring wood supply to other mills is unaffected.

The Great Koala National Park represents 21 per cent of state forests on the North Coast, and the government insists that it does not spell the end of forestry in the region. Separately, the government is developing a Forestry Industry Action Plan about the long-term future of the industry statewide.

Agriculture Minister Tara Moriarty said the government was “committed to a sustainable forestry industry in NSW”.

The government believes the park will boost tourism by an additional 85,000 visitor nights a year, delivering an additional $163.25 million in economic activity over 20 years.

The Great Koala National Park has the support of most of the crossbench, but the Coalition, especially the Nationals, opposes its creation as unnecessary and likely to cruel regional communities.

One of the reasons for the delay was that the government needed to assess vastly different claims about jobs in forestry and timber processing. Timber industry lobbyists, citing a 2023 Ernst & Young report the industry commissioned, claim that the hardwood sector – native forest logging and eucalyptus plantations – supported 8900 direct and indirect jobs across NSW, including 5700 in north-eastern NSW where the park is located. WWF, citing 2024 analysis by Frontier Economics it commissioned, puts it at 1070 direct jobs across the state.

The government has concluded the park will cost 200 to 300 jobs spread between Forestry Corporation of NSW, harvest and haulage contractors, and timber mills. Forestry Corp workers will have priority placement into roles in NPWS if they choose to transfer.

Dedicated Aboriginal rangers will be employed via Aboriginal controlled organisations to work on Indigenous cultural heritage in the park.

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