Clandestine Koala Translocation Program results in Koala Deaths - Labelled Animal Cruelty and calls on Minister and Premier to Explain
A NSW Government Koala Translocation project, claimed to promote genetic diversity in south-east NSW has gone horribly wrong with 13 koalas translocated and 7 dead, leading to calls to explain how the project got off the ground, halt all translocations of koalas in NSW and investigate whether any charges for animal cruelty should be laid against those responsible.
Greens MP and spokesperson for the environment Sue Higginson says “What’s happened is deeply disturbing, tragic and cruel. How this even past muster as a Koala “conservation program” is unfathomable, something has gone radically awry and the Minister for the Environment Penny Sharpe is staying quiet, but she and Premier Chris Minns must explain,
“This level of experimentation with our endangered koalas is cruel, was a catastrophic failure and should not have happened. The control settings around this translocation experiment were obviously fundamentally flawed and I don’t think the public would find this level of experimentation with our endangered koalas at all acceptable,
“The evidence over many years shows that translocation of koalas is fraught with risk and failure. It is deeply concerning that the Government allowed thirteen healthy koalas to be taken from their habitat in the Upper Nepean State Conservation Area all the way to South East Forest National Park where there are no koalas. Given the outcome, it’s clear they shouldn’t have.
“Koalas are not expendable, any and all translocation programs must be immediately stopped and the ethics and controls around such programs need to be reviewed transparently and publicly. In this case there needs to be an investigation as to whether animal cruelty laws have been breached. It is hard to reconcile that only a few months ago wildlife carer Tracey Dodds was prosecuted for animal cruelty charges for caring for a rescued kangaroo that had to be euthanized,
“It’s a stark and tragic reminder that the only sure way to protect koalas and avoid their current dire trajectory of extinction is to protect them from predation, road strike and disease now, where they currently live and to improve and extend that very habitat.
“It’s deeply distressing and sends a very cynical message that the Government is focussed on high risk and failed koala program effort while it continues to allow the destruction of core koala habitat for development and logging of high quality koala habitat in the forests of the promised Great Koala National Park, with no end in sight.
“The Minns Labor Government promised to protect koalas, but it’s been over 2 years, they haven’t established the Great Koala National Park, changed any laws to better protect koalas, they haven’t even completed the review of the NSW Koala Strategy and the Minister for the Environment is staying quiet about what has happened here.