Joint media release: Koala-ty care for Aussie icons

The Hon Tanya Plibersek MP, Minister for the Environment and Water
David Smith MP, Member for Bean

Whether it’s koala scent detection dogs, communities planting feed trees or First Nations people working on country, koalas are receiving a helping hand across Queensland, NSW, and the ACT.

Thirty-two koala conservation and protection projects are receiving a boost thanks to $5 million in community grants from the Albanese Labor Government.

The investment is supporting on-ground and community-led projects that will:

• improve koala habitat
• reduce threats from feral species and roads by building koala corridors
• increase understanding and management of koala disease; and
• improve understanding of koala populations

In the ACT, more than $100,000 is supporting Traditional Owner engagement to survey Gulas (koala) and boost their habitat on Ngunnawal Country.

A partnership between the Ngunnawal Community and ACT Government, the project will conduct surveys and monitoring, as well as tree planting events to improve the quality of koala habitat across the ACT.

Koalas are listed nationally as endangered in Queensland, NSW and the ACT. 

Overall, the Australian Government is investing more than $76 million through the Saving Koalas Fund for the conservation and protection of koalas.

Further information on the Saving Koalas Fund can be found here: Koala conservation - DCCEEW

Quotes attributable to the Minister for the Environment and Water, the Hon Tanya Plibersek:

“No-one wants to imagine an Australia without the koalas. The Albanese Labor Government is ensuring that our kids and grandkids will still be able to see koalas in the wild. 

“Communities across Australia play a crucial role in protecting and conserving this beloved animal. This funding is about supporting local groups to do what they do best – getting communities involved in protecting this iconic species.  

“That’s why the Government is investing a total of $5 million on local koala recovery projects, and a total of $76 million in our Saving Koalas Fund.

“I am committed to achieving our target of zero new extinctions in Australia – this includes the koala.”

Quotes attributable to Member for Bean, David Smith:

“Koalas are incredibly important to the local community – this project will upskill Ngunnawal people on survey methods so that community members can lead on koala monitoring.

“The information that is collected from these surveys will then guide how we restore their habitat.

“This funding will also go towards supporting a workshop which will allow the sharing of knowledge between the Ngunnawal Community and other First Nations groups.”