BHP Protecting Koalas Project
A three-year koala conservation project to protect, restore, and increase koala habitat.
BHP/POSCO Australia investing money that will be used for on-gound works and koala conservation efforts.Healthy Land & Water’s Protecting Koalas Project is one of the largest koala habitat improvement projects ever delivered in South East Queensland.
By July 2023, 450 hectares of koala habitat will be restored. This will encourage natural regeneration and improved health of native koala food tree species, resulting in improved koala movement
This portion of the project was funded by BHP/POSCO Australia and most funds will go towards on-ground deliverables and koala conservation efforts. This includes weed removal and koala habitat improvement, natural regeneration, and habitat tree planting.
Flinders Peak/Teviot Range was selected as the location for this work, from more than 20 priority koala habitat areas (known as Areas of Regional Koala Significance – ARKS) identified in an earlier study.
This project focuses on:
- Restoring 20 hectares of koala habitat through revegetation (targeted weeding and planting).
- Creating new koala habitat through 3 hectares of revegetation.
- Building conservation outcomes through collaboration with governments, communities, Traditional Owners, and researchers.
What we are doing
This project will maintain and improve contiguous landscapes of koala habitat to allow their survival and movement.
The project aimed to protect and restore Koala habitat involves:
- Maintaining, improving, and expanding contiguous landscapes of koala habitat to allow koala survival and movement.
- Improving collaboration for koala conservation and knowledge of local koalas and habitat management.
- Improving community and land manager capacity to contribute to koala conservation.
- Protecting biodiversity across the rehabilitated area.
Measuring success
As a result of this project, we will be able to maintain and improve contiguous landscapes of koala habitat to allow for koalas' survival and movement, through:
- Restoration of 20 hectares of koala habitat.
- Targeted weeding and planting.
- Creation of new koala habitat through 3 ha of revegetation.
In addition, we will build conservation outcomes through collaboration with governments, communities, Traditional Owners, and researchers.
By July 2023, 450 hectares of prime koala habitat will be restored. This will encourage natural regeneration and improved health of native koala food tree species.
Why this project is important
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Koalas are vulnerable to extinction, and koala populations in South East Queensland are at elevated risk for a variety of reasons. Our populations are coming under increasing pressure, not only from disease and natural disasters but human interference. A growing human population has led to the large-scale clearing of better-quality Koala habitats with many now struggling within smaller, fragmented patches of poorer-quality forest. Koalas prefer forests growing in better soils, possibly due to the better nutritional value of tree leaves. |
Project snapshot
| Project name: | Koala Habitat Restoration and Landscape Resilience Improvement Project |
| Project manager: | Mark Waud, Healthy Land & Water |
| Catchment: | South East Queensland |
| Timing: | July 2022 - June 2024 |
| Budget: | $100,000 |
| Partnerships: |
This project is supported by Healthy Land & Water, through funding from BHP/POSCO Australia - BM Alliance Coal Operations Pty Ltd. |
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Project collaborators
This project is supported by Healthy Land & Water, through funding from BHP/POSCO Australia - BM Alliance Coal Operations Pty Ltd.