After the Australian Bushfires, Should Koalas Be Listed as Endangered?
According to SBS on March 6th, the New South Wales government is considering listing the koala as an endangered species after the bushfires.
Environment Minister Matt Kean said on Friday that the NSW Threatened Species Scientific Committee is considering upgrading the status of this marsupial from 'vulnerable' to 'endangered'.
During a parliamentary hearing, Kean was asked whether the koala would be listed as endangered in 2020 due to the bushfires. He said in the budget hearing: 'The Threatened Species Advisory Group is investigating… I will let the experts make these decisions, as they are best placed to make the decision, and I look forward to seeing what they put forward and respond accordingly.'
Kean stated that the current work is 'determining whether the koala's survival status should be upgraded.'
Previous reports suggest that NSW may have lost 5000 koalas this season due to the devastating bushfires, therefore there has been a call to list the koala as endangered.
A report released by the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) and Biolink Ecological Organisation researched how the recent fires have impacted the state's declining koala population.
The report found that koalas have been under pressure since 2001 due to land clearing, urban development and drought, resulting in a 30%-67% decline in the state's koala population.
Data released on Wednesday showed that over 5 million hectares of forest were burned from October 2019 to January 10th this year, with at least 5000 koalas dying in the fires.
IFAW wildlife protection activist Josey Sharrad said this is a conservative estimate and further research is being done to assess the impact of the fires. Sharrad also stated that this does not include the number of koalas facing death due to the destruction of their habitat.
IFAW calls for the urgent listing of the marsupial as endangered to ensure protection when the population recovers. IFAW has made recommendations to the Threatened Species Scientific Committee, which will subsequently make the decision on whether to list it.
A spokesperson said on Friday that the NSW Environment Department will review the report.
