Koalas are sacrificed while Dreamworld development fast-tracked

The Queensland Conservation Council has condemned the Deputy Premier’s decision to call in Coast Entertainment Operations Limited's development application to expand Dreamworld at Coomera, describing the move as a deeply troubling misuse of Ministerial powers that will have catastrophic consequences for endangered koalas and other threatened species.

The Deputy Premier has today announced his decision to call in the development, which will sideline the regular assessment process, leaving the final decision with the Deputy Premier.

The Queensland Conservation Council is calling for the Dreamworld expansion to be referred under the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act (PDF 422k) for independent federal assessment, and for the State Government to release all documentation underpinning the call-in decision.

Queensland Conservation Council director Dave Copeman said

This call-in silences the community and fast-tracks a highly controversial private development that should be subject to independent and transparent scrutiny.

This development will cut through one of the few remaining green corridors in the region, leaving koalas trapped between major roads and waterways with nowhere safe to go.

Recent surveys confirmed 68 koalas within a 2 kilometre radius in this heavily urbanised area, yet their scraps of remaining habitat is now under direct threat.

Queenslanders expect the planning system to protect nature and uphold due process, not to be overridden for commercial convenience.

The Deputy Premier’s decision ignores Queensland’s own Koala Conservation Strategy and undermines years of community advocacy for stronger habitat protection. The government has failed to deliver on a new strategy to protect koalas, instead choosing to fast track development over environmental safeguards.

It's a short-sighted move that puts profit before nature and community.

Image: CC-BY-SA-4.0 by MDRX

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