Executive Summary
Introduction
This report examines the committee's inquiry into the status,
health and sustainability of one of Australia's most loved and iconic native
animals – the koala. The koala is an instantly recognisable symbol of Australia
as well as being an integral part of Australian cultural heritage.
Complexity
The committee was surprised by the complexity of this
multifaceted issue. Many features and factors influence Australia's koala
population. For instance in some areas (such as Queensland's Mulga Lands) their
population is in sharp decline, whilst in others (such as Kangaroo Island in
South Australia) their numbers are being actively managed because of an
overabundance and resulting over-browsing. A key challenge is the paucity of
data on the national koala population. The koala's diversity is another aspect
of added complexity, with northern koalas being far more diverse than their
southern cousins. The range of threats is also varied, for example habitat
loss, disease and motor vehicle strikes. As a result there are no easy
solutions.
The duration and level of interest generated by this inquiry
is an indication of the complexity of the issues raised. On four occasions the
committee extended its reporting timeframe in order to gather more evidence and
to conclude its deliberations.
Commitment
The committee was also surprised by the level of commitment
and passion openly displayed by koala advocacy groups and concerned
individuals. Over 70 of the total 101 submissions received by the committee
were from community-based koala conservation organisations and interested
individuals. Seating in the public gallery at each of the committee's three
public hearings was fully occupied which is not a usual occurrence.
The need for action
The status, health and sustainability of Australia's koala
population is not a new issue. It is one that the Environment Minister's chief
advisory body on threatened species, the Threatened Species Scientific
Committee (TSSC), has formally considered on no less than three occasions in
the past 15 years. Without significant commitment and proactive conservation
measures, it is the committee's view that the question of the koala's
threatened species status will continue to recur.
The committee agrees with the evidence presented to the
inquiry on the need for early conservation action. It will be more
cost-effective, and more importantly, improves the ability of species recovery,
to act now rather than allow the koala to drift ever closer to the threatened
species list.
The koala population is being impacted by a multitude of
threats. The report separates these threats into: threats to koala's habitat
(Chapter 3) and threats to individuals (Chapter 4). Threats to habitat include
direct human induced pressures such as urban development, forestry, mining, as
well as climatic events such as droughts and bushfires. Direct threats to
individual koalas also impact the overall koala population include disease, dog
attacks and motor vehicle strikes.
Impact of different threats
It was recognised that while these types of threats are
common across the koala's range, the relevant importance varies greatly from
region to region. As one koala expert put it: 'the major reason for the decline
in coastal populations is habitat loss and fragmentation, chlamydia disease,
dog attacks and vehicle collisions, with habitat loss the primary causal
factor. For western populations the major cause of decline is land clearing,
drought, heatwaves and drought stress on eucalypt trees.'[1]
Habitat degradation
The committee agrees that habitat degradation is the primary
cause of koala population declines and is the major threat to the koala's long-term
population viability. In this regard the committee has recommended the
Australian Government support habitat mapping in priority areas, a review of
Commonwealth land management, and initiatives to encourage private land owners
to undertake conservation activities (Recommendations 6–9).
Disease
The committee received evidence from a range of veterinary
specialists and academics about the increasing prevalence and impact of disease
in koalas. Although there was disagreement on the level of magnitude, the
committee notes the significant impact that disease, and in particular
chlamydia and the koala retrovirus, is having on the koala population.
It appears that the cumulative impact of the threats faced by
koalas is making them more susceptible to disease-related infection. This in
turn results in a less resilient koala population and lowers the probability of
future recovery. The committee accepts there is an increased prevalence of
serious disease-related infections in the koala population.
To address this problem the committee has recommended the
Australian Government provide funding to koala disease research
(Recommendations 10).
Dog attacks
The committee receive evidence about the growing number of
fatal domestic dog attacks as well as the body of research about the
significant impact of wild dogs. In this regard the committee has recommended
the Australian Government consider further wild dog control options in priority
koala areas (Recommendations 12).
Motor vehicles
Motor vehicles are also an increasing threat to koalas for
two reasons. The committee heard that in some areas direct koala strikes by
motor vehicles are the second most common cause of koalas being admitted into
care and the second most common cause of mortality.
The committee also heard that roads present an
insurmountable physical barrier for koalas to cross leaving them isolated in
pockets of bushland.
To reduce the impact of motor vehicles, the committee has
made several recommendations including encouraging the building or retrofitting
of koala 'friendly' infrastructure (Recommendations 13–15).
It is clear that Australia's national population has
undergone marked decline.[2]
It is also clear that koala numbers in certain areas of its range (including
most of Queensland and New South Wales) have experienced much larger declines
than the national average. Declines of 80 per cent in some areas and even
localised extinctions in other areas have been documented. By contrast, in
parts of Victoria and South Australia numbers are flourishing, despite the
declining trend nationally.
However, what is not clear, or at least insufficient in the
view the TSSC, is the demographic data available on koala numbers. On three
occasions the TSSC has advised the Environment Minister that despite
significant decreases, koala population data is insufficient to confidently
conclude that the declines meet the indicative thresholds required under the
Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act (EPBC Act) and
associated guidelines.
In the committee's view it is unsatisfactory for a paucity
of population data on a nationally important species such as the koala to
stymie an effective threatened species listing assessment. Accordingly, a key
recommendation of this report is that the Australian Government fund a properly
designed, funded and implemented koala monitoring and evaluation program across
the full range of the koala (Recommendation 2). The committee has also made a
number of complementary recommendations including the establishment of
standardised methodologies for estimating koala numbers and greater funding for
research into the genetic diversity of the koala population (Recommendations 1
and 4). The data deficiencies in these areas make it very difficult to
prioritise conservation activities effectively.
The committee has also made a recommendation on the broader
subject of monitoring significant Australian species: that the Australian
Government establish a nationally coordinated and integrated program for
population monitoring of threatened species and other culturally, evolutionary
and/or economically significant species (Recommendation 3).
Finally on this topic, the committee carefully examined the
2010 advice from the TSSC to the Environment Minister regarding its assessment
of the koala for threatened species listing. The committee expressed concerns
about the TSSC's advice which in the committee's view omitted several critical
items of information and analysis. Primarily the committee's concerns relate to
the fact that the TSSC did not provide to the Minister a national estimate, a
'plausible lower bound', nor the necessary figures for historical comparison,
despite providing such information to this inquiry. The committee also noted
that there was a range of new information that had emerged since TSSC's advice
was prepared, such as the 80 per cent decline in the Mulga Land population.
Accordingly, the committee has recommended that the TSSC
provide clearer information in all future threatened species listing advices,
review its advice to the Minister, and that the Environment Minister consider
the evidence provided to this inquiry when making his final decision on listing
the koala as a threatened species (Recommendations 5 and 16). The committee has
also recommended that the Environment Minister consider options to improve the
conservation status of the rapidly declining koala populations in New South
Wales and Queensland to ensure a nationally resilient population is maintained,
including the option of listing the koala as vulnerable under the EPBC Act in
areas where populations have declined significantly or are at risk of doing so
(Recommendation 17).
The final chapter of the report considers the National Koala
Conservation and Management Strategy, which was described as an overarching
framework for the national conservation of the koala. However, concerns were
raised about the strategy's effectiveness. The committee also received evidence
criticising the adequacy of the strategy's identified measures. The committee
made two recommendations in this regard:
- that an independent external review be conducted on the National
Koala Conservation and Management Strategy to monitor the adequacy of progress
(Recommendation 18); and
- that the Australian Government adequately resource the National
Koala Conservation and Management Strategy, and ensure that it is properly
implemented through committing to a much stronger leadership role
(Recommendation 19). and
The most prominent issue raised during this inquiry was
whether the koala should be listed as a threatened species. Although the
committee does not have the technical expertise of the TSSC, and therefore
believes it is not qualified to determine whether or not the koala should be
listed as threatened, the committee is deeply concerned about the
sustainability of Australia's koala population.
On one hand, the committee is pleased that the koala may not
yet be eligible for listing as threatened. The committee believes that to have
such a significant Australian icon included on the threatened species list
would be a national shame.
On the other hand, the committee believes there are parts of
the koala population that require much greater protection. This is occurring to
some extent in Queensland and NSW where the koala is listed in some areas under
state environment protection legislation. However, state listing has not
stemmed the marked decline in the population. If declines continue it will only
be a matter of time before the koala is nationally listed as a threatened
species.
The EPBC threatened species listing process is reactive and
not well suited to the conservation needs of the koala. In the committee's
view, there ought to be processes available to enable proactive protection for
the koala as well as other significant Australian species. In this regard the
committee notes the possible mechanisms announced as part of the government's response
to the review of the EPBC Act which could enable a more proactive approach to
koala conservation. Perhaps, building on the TSSC's proposal to monitor species
of cultural, evolutionary and/or economic significance, there ought to be a category
of nationally significant species.
Ultimately, the committee would like to see Australia's
koala population return to plentiful numbers of healthy individuals, in
resilient habitats, across the koala's natural range.
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