Radiata Plateau saved for future generations

Blue Mountains Conservation Society

Home to rare and threatened species, and a magnet for the local outdoor community, Radiata Plateau, towering high above the rolling Megalong Valley, has been saved for future generations. 

On 8 October 2019 the NSW Minister for the Environment, Matt Kean announced the State Government had purchased Radiata Plateau for incorporation into the national park system. The area was recently formally gazetted and named, and is now known as Ngula Bulgarabang (large wood forest in the local Aboriginal language) Regional Park.

Situated just past Katoomba and forming part of the Blue Mountains southern escarpment, Radiata Plateau is the last remaining undeveloped peninsula-plateau in the upper Blue Mountains. The Plateau was one of the largest private landholdings in the upper mountains.  Major developments, including a large resort and conference centre were proposed in the past but ultimately did not proceed, leaving the Plateau untouched.

The community and the Blue Mountains Conservation Society have fought for the conservation of the Plateau for over thirty years. Its unique and outstanding environment and Aboriginal cultural heritage values include:

• spectacular and stunning clifflines, which include internationally recognised rock-climbing crags and walls;
• significant Aboriginal heritage, including the Plateau being used as a traditional pathway down into the Megalong Valley via the state heritage listed ‘Blacks Ladder’;
• the presence of rare Blue Mountain Swamps, a threatened ecological community in NSW;
• habitat for many endangered animals, including Spotted-tailed Quoll and Greater Gliders;
• home to two threatened plants, including one of only ten places where the highly-endangered Dwarf Mountain Pine and the shrub Leionema lachnaeoides grows;
• an extensive network of walking tracks used by local residents, bushwalkers and birdwatchers.

The Plateau’s future is now secured, to be enjoyed and treasured by the Blue Mountains and wider community. This landmark decision is a major win for the environment, and could not have been achieved without the strong community campaign that maintained pressure on the NSW Government for over thirty years.