Koala Woman Says

There is a huge area of bush in this electorate, mostly in Marramarra National Park. Why is it National Park? Because of the rugged landscape and poor soils, nobody wanted it for farming or timber. Possibly Australia’s first Koala Sanctuary was established at Mount Ku-ring-gai in 1953 with 20 Koalas. Even then it was recognised that suburban cars and dogs posed a great threat to Koalas. A huge bushfire devastated the Park in 1994, this would have killed most of the Koalas. There are very few records in the Park; they are mostly around the edges where the soils are a bit more fertile, and of course these areas are mostly cleared. Still, there are 23 records within the last 10 years so there is a persistent small population, but many of them are close to the Pacific Motorway at Berowra.

We haven’t heard anything from later politicians, but we sent a letter to the then member, the Hon Philip Ruddock. His response (in part) to our letter seeking commitment of support to a Koala Protection Act was:

“If elected, the Coalition will closely examine any proposal to ensure the sustainability of Australia’s koala population, and we will continue to consult with the Australian Koala Foundation on this important issue.”

Will he Act or Axe?