Save our native forests
Native State forests in Queensland provide critical habitat for threatened and endangered species and act as significant carbon stores. Their protection is crucial for Queensland and Australia's environmental credibility.
By transitioning these State forests to conservation reserves, the protected areas estate in Queensland could increase by up to 20%. This expansion would make a significant contribution towards Australia's national protected area target of 30% by 2030, as agreed upon at the 2022 Convention on Biological Diversity.
Queensland has the largest area of native forest of any state or territory in Australia, yet currently, only around 4.4 million hectares (8%) is protected.
Logging in State Forests is having disastrous effects on wildlife, particularly arboreal marsupials like the Greater Glider, whose conservation status was elevated to endangered in 2022.
Transitioning native State forests to protected areas would not only benefit nature but also regional communities. National parks generate billions in annual revenue from tourism, providing employment opportunities for locals in hospitality and nature-based tourism.
How you can help
1. Sign the petition now - Demonstrate your support for Queensland Government to end native forest logging and work with Traditional Custodians to ensure the ongoing protection of these forests and their invaluable natural and cultural values.
2. Sign up to volunteer - Get active to help build support and visibility in your community.
3. Join our Forest Watch Project - We are using citizen science to help highlight why these areas need protecting. Join our iNaturalist project and check out our Forest Watch guide. You can join our next bioblitz or organise your own with some friends.
Read more: Campaign to double Queensland's Protected Areas
Native Forests Facts
- Queensland has the largest area of native forest of any state or territory in Australia, at 51.6 million hectares. That's 39% of the nation’s native forests.
- The largest area of Rainforest is found here: two million hectares and 55% of Australia’s total. No wonder our rainforests were the subject of one of the most celebrated and successful forest conservation campaigns, which led to the creation of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area!
- Queensland has the second largest area of publicly owned native forest managed for timber and ‘multiple uses’, at 2.9m hectares. This is the largest area of state forest in any Australian state or territory.
Further reading
Driml, S., Brown, R., Moreno Silva, C. (2020) 'Estimating The Value Of National Parks To The Queensland Economy'. Discussion Papers Series 636, School of Economics, University of Queensland, Australia.
Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (2021) Annual Report 2021-2022. Queensland Government www.daf.qld.gov.au
Eyre, T.J. (2006) Regional habitat selection of large gliding possums at forest stand and landscape scales in southern Queensland, Australia I. Greater glider (Petauroides volans). Forest Ecology and Management 235, 270-282.
Timber Queensland Queensland forests facts and figures www.timberqueensland.com.au/growing/facts.aspx Accessed March 2023
State of Queensland (2016) Queensland Forest and Timber Industry: An Overview:4. Published online: www.publications.qld.gov.au