Conservationists have uncovered planned logging in a forest near Maryborough where a high number of the endangered Southern and Central Greater Glider has been recorded, as the Queensland Government signals it is willing to hand over our public forests to the timber sector.

The evidence of planned logging comes after the Crisafulli Government just announced intentions to 'grow the state’s timber industry', steered by a new taskforce that excludes conservationists entirely from consultations on the future of public forests in Queensland.

The state government’s plan to turn core koala habitat into housing is a death sentence for many of the nation’s most iconic animals and at odds with community needs, a Queensland Conservation Council investigation has found.

185 hectares of core koala habitat providing important food and shelter for the South East’s koala populations is set to be impacted by large scale urban sprawl with the announcement of a 900ha Priority Development Area at Southern Thornlands in Redlands, an area proudly considered Queensland’s 'Koala Coast’ with one of the most significant koala populations right next door to a major city.

All of the Redlands is mapped as a 'Koala Priority Area', meaning there are large, connected areas that have the highest potential for supporting the long-term survival of koalas. The PDA also supports habitat for a range of other threatened species including the Glossy-Black Cockatoo, White-throated Needletail and Spotted-tail Quoll.

The Queensland Conservation Council is calling for the state government to revoke the PDA, rule out any new greenfield developments, and renew and strengthen the expiring South East Queensland Koala Conservation Strategy.

The Albanese government has today confirmed it has no plans to follow through with an election promise to reform Australia's weak environment laws, just days after hundreds gathered in Brisbane demanding the government deliver its promised Nature Positive laws.

New analysis shows that despite the Albanese government committing to no new extinctions, 138,617 hectares of koala habitat was bulldozed in just one year in Queensland. This forest was bulldozed under the current, weak federal nature laws, leaving the loopholes wide open for further clearing, putting the koala on a fast track to extinction.

Queensland Conservation Council is calling for the Albanese government to deliver on its election promise and create stronger protections for Australia’s iconic threatened species, including the koala.

Queensland Conservation Council strongly condemns the decision by the Prime Minister not to proceed with Nature Positive legislation before the senate, in spite of reported agreement between the Greens in the Senate and Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek.

The state’s peak environmental body has called for the LNP to outline their plan to protect koalas beyond wildlife hospitals, with newly released research showing almost 75% of koalas admitted to such facilities don't survive.

With a Queensland state election just days away, time is running out for the LNP to outline their plan to ensure koalas and other wildlife are protected and that our world class eco-tourism can continue ahead of the 2032 Olympics.

The LNP’s commitment to increase funding for a handful of wildlife hospitals will do very little to save the iconic species, with University of Queensland research showing that only 27% of koalas admitted are released back into the wild.

Today, new footage from the Wilderness Society and Queensland Conservation Council shows potential habitat for the endangered koala being deliberately burnt and bulldozed to make way for beef pastures. The footage comes just weeks before Queenslanders head to the polls for the state election, with both major parties yet to outline clear plans to protect and restore forests and bushland.

The burnt and bulldozed forest is likely habitat for numerous federally-listed Endangered species that rely on these decades-old regenerating forests for survival, including the Australian Painted Snipe, Koala, Greater Glider, Northern Quoll, Red Goshawk, and Star Finch.

Queensland is Australia’s most biodiverse state, however has the highest rate of deforestation and land clearing on the continent year on year. Between 2021-2022, 323,676 hectares, an area the size of more than 43,000 Suncorp Stadiums was bulldozed.

Wilderness Society analysis shows that in 2021, 75% of all ‘unregulated woody vegetation’ was at least 15 years old and therefore functioning forest ecosystems, consistent with High Value Regrowth regulated under the Queensland Vegetation Management Act. 90% of this deforestation was in threatened species habitat. The latest Queensland government data showed that 58% of deforestation and land clearing across the state occurred in vegetation that was over 15 years old. As functioning forest ecosystems, forests over 15 years old can be hollow-bearing, providing near-irreplaceable habitat for threatened species like koalas and gliders. These forests also act as carbon storage, helping to stabilise the climate.

Conservationists are celebrating the announcement today of a new park to protect iconic greater gliders who have been spotted in hollows of irreplaceable forest trees in the Eastern Hardwoods region near Maryborough.

The Queensland government plans to establish a new Greater Glider Forest Park as part of a plan to reform the state's timber industry and protect nature.

Queensland Conservation Council congratulates the Minister for Environment on taking forward this idea proposed by QCC, signifying the Government’s commitment to ending native forest logging and saving iconic species, alongside having a sustainable timber industry.

QCC Director Dave Copeman said:

We strongly welcome this new 54,317 hectare refuge for greater gliders! Glider habitat continues to be logged and cleared on both private and public lands across their range, so every hectare we can save is critical.

It is a much needed breather for one of our cutest and irreplaceable Queenslanders, the greater glider.

Sadly we know from overwhelming evidence that logging is incompatible with protecting this species. When greater gliders’ feed trees or nest trees are taken, they die.

It’s urgent we do all we can to save this incredible Queensland species from extinction, and shift the timber sector into planted forests which already supply 90% of our timber needs.

Logging native forests is outdated and we owe it to Queensland to create a more sustainable path and timber supply.

Forests are worth more to Queenslanders when trees are left standing, for jobs in nature, tourism, clean water, healthy soil and other things we take as a given.

Read the report: Koalas or coal mines, how the federal government can help save Australia's most iconic species (PDF 40mb)

A shocking new report, 'Koalas or coal mines, how the federal government can help save Australia's most iconic species' reveals that federal Environment Minister Tanya Plibersek is facing approval decisions on 23 new coal mines and expansions in NSW and Queensland that are proposing to clear thousands of hectares of endangered koala habitat and produce more than 8 billion tonnes of carbon pollution.

The research concludes that at least 26 proposed new coal mines will clear important koala habitat, including 23 projects that are being assessed under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act and seeking approval from the Albanese government and three projects that have not yet been referred for EPBC assessment. The 26 coal mining projects plan to clear a combined total of 11,644 hectares of koala habitat if granted approval by the federal government, an area equivalent to 112 square kms, which is around 5,822 MCG sized sporting fields, or 41 times the size of Sydney's CBD.

Confronting new video evidence shows logging occurring in the habitat of endangered greater gliders in publicly owned native forests, shortly after the government promised a greater glider forest park would be created.

This shocking development also comes right as more Australian animals have been declared threatened and on the brink of extinction.

Screenshot from video evidence of logging in a state forest near Maryborough, close to den and feeding sites of the endangered greater gliders.

A team of volunteer experts and citizen scientists went to a state forest near Maryborough at the end of July, and discovered a high density population of the endangered greater glider - a species which is native to Queensland and on the decline across the country.

Logging was documented less than three kilometres from a site where the group spotted seven of the elusive, nocturnal greater gliders in just one night.

Today's incoming 50c public transport fares for south east Queensland could cut the number of kilometres driven on our roads by 1.5 billion km every year, saving 245,000 tonnes of carbon pollution every year, and reducing wildlife deaths.

The new analysis from Queensland Conservation Council is based on SEQ's new public transport fares diverting just 10% of commuters to trains and buses from private vehicles, with the state's environmental peak body calling for on-going public transport investment to ensure people take advantage of this climate and cost of living solution.