More than 100 Gold Coast koalas killed as a result of government policy

This was confirmed in Queensland’s budget estimates hearings on Wednesday, when opposition environment spokesman David Crisafulli questioned Environment Minister Leeanne Enoch about koala deaths in what is described as Queensland’s largest-ever koala translocation project.

Queensland’s koala translocation policy means the animals are shifted from koala habitat to other bushland when land is needed for development, instead of planning alternatives.

The government issued scientific permits and koalas were sedated to allow them to be shifted.

The policy has been described by some conservationists as “politically expedient extinction” and is under intense scrutiny and review.

Between 2008 and 2014, the koalas were shifted 40 kilometres to enable the Coomera Town Centre development to proceed.

The outcome of the koala shift policy has never been revealed before.

Fairfax Media questioned the Coomera koala deaths this week when it reported conservation group Australians for Animals would take the Palaszczuk government to court for its slow pace in protecting koala.

The group has raised almost $3000 for this court action.

The Department of Environment and Heritage Protection’s acting deputy director-general, Nick Weinert, on Wednesday said almost half of the 260 koalas translocated from Coomera were dead.

“In relation to that project the mortality rate for the koalas that were relocated was 42 per cent,” Mr Weinert said.

“This compares with 35 per cent for koalas at that recipient site.

"...It was 50 per cent at the (Coomera) site from where they taken.”

Mr Crisafulli said the policy must change and said he was shocked at the low priority government was taking to protect koalas.

“My concern is that there doesn’t seem to be pressing concern for action,” Mr Crisafulli said. “It is as if we are attempting to delay acting on something that deserves our attention.”

He said Ms Enoch should fast-track plans to announce the new Koala Advisory Council and “urgently review” the translocation policy.

Earlier, Mr Weinert told the estimates hearing the policy was now under review, but was still a government policy tool.

“The (expert) panel has recommended that translocation ought to be considered as a tool for koala population management,” he said.

“But it cautioned that it should not take the place of a proper assessment process in terms of a development assessment.”

Ms Enoch earlier said the government was now assessing government planning legislation connected to koalas.

The new Koala Advisory Council is being finalised and a new koala conservation strategy is under way, she said, which included reviewing the koala translocation policy.

The 2018-19 Queensland Budget has allocated $715,000 for this work.

Ms Enoch was asked by Mr Crisafulli about the “scientific advice from the department” of the current koala translocation policy.

“Does the science support that policy going forward?” Mr Crisafulli asked.

Ms Enoch did not directly answer this question.

“The (koala) expert panel’s report was provided to the government and we have made our response and that response has been made public,” she said.

Another problem facing the government is inadequate statistics over current koala populations.

In the answer to a question on notice on July 28 on Queensland’s koala deaths, Ms Enoch said “the department is unable to provide a comprehensive breakdown of mortality and morbidity” because records are now kept by individual wildlife hospitals.

“The available data shows that the total number of koalas found and/or treated in Queensland for 2015 was 1175; 1146 in 2016; 968 in 2017; and 244 for 2018 (as at 2 July 2018)," she said.

A Uniquest study of south-east Queensland koala populations in 2015 showed a drop of around 80 per cent of koala populations from Moreton to the Gold Coast, and 54% in Pine Rivers, between 1996 and 2014.

More recent figures were unavailable.