Kate Carroll, Conservation Projects Officer
As the long delays on the north coast’s Great Koala National Park continue to frustrate communities and conservationists, momentum is gathering in the south with our next big proposal – the Great Southern Forest National Park. This landmark proposal is perhaps the NPA’s most ambitious yet. It represents years of groundwork and is now culminating in a powerful, evidence-based case to protect some of the most ecologically valuable public native forests in southern NSW.
A committed team from the Far South Coast, Milton, and Eurobodalla branches of NPA, supported by staff and volunteers are making this vision a reality. Their work has involved field surveys, scientific reporting, data analysis, campaign planning, stakeholder engagement and meetings. Every contribution is welcomed and plays a role in shaping a proposal that is both scientifically rigorous and community-driven.
The project has brought together people with diverse skills and experiences and energised them. “Being part of this team, I feel emotionally engaged,” says Jenny Atton from the Milton Branch. “I can use and grow my skills, resources and personality traits in a project of crucial environmental stewardship. Working together has been the most rewarding aspect of the project. Each team member brings their skill set, be it analysing scientific data, gathering indigenous knowledge, negotiating with stakeholders or educating communities. It can be demanding, but I’m learning from and sharing with others as we work together towards a common goal which will take months if not years!”
This camaraderie extends into the forests, where collaboration in field work is forging connections and shared experiences with wildlife encounters. For Dave Gallan, President of the Far South Coast Branch, solo and team field work has been both challenging and fulfilling. His recent work in Tallaganda State Forest demonstrates the dedication it takes to document species behaviour rarely seen on film.
“Recently I spent 12 winter nights in Tallaganda State Forest with greater gliders in the one tree so I could record their gliding launch and landing in slow motion. There is hardly any footage of this type available… It took up to 17 infrared lights in Tallaganda to record this natural behaviour without disturbing the gliders. Three hours to set up, fifteen minutes recording action (with multiple cameras) and one hour to pack down. It was freezing but there was no rain or wind. Then the next day, chasing sunlight in the forest for my solar panel to charge dozens of batteries for the lights and cameras for the next evening.”
Dave and the team’s efforts are not just for campaign material. The data, images, and footage are helping to strengthen our case for permanent protection. Field teams from across the three NPA branches have collectively recorded sightings of key threatened species. This includes the Sooty Owl, Yellow-bellied and Southern Greater Gliders, Glossy Black-Cockatoo, Masked Owl, Spot-tailed Quoll, Little Lorikeet, and Gang-gang Cockatoo. All are dependent on tree hollows; some requiring high densities, where individuals and family groups move between hollows for denning or nesting. Dave discusses the importance of hollows in the forest and what it would mean if this proposal became a reality:
“The loggers continually say that they operate in a sustainable way. That has never been true since the days of axes and bullock teams. If you go into forests that haven’t been touched since axemen worked them you can see a marked recovery. One such forest I photograph in is alive with species such as Yellow-bellied Gliders, Sooty and Masked Owls. Why? Hollows have been allowed to develop in these trees over time.
The massive industrial harvesting machines today, only employing three workers at each site, can harvest hectares in a day. Stopping industrial scale logging and employing people to mitigate fire and manage feral animals would have a massive positive impact on the forests. We know that Forestry Corp has been sanctioned many times for logging inappropriately since the mega fires. The loss of valuable forest hollows that take hundreds of years to form is reckless behaviour.
The Great Southern Forest National Park would allow forests to be undisturbed, allowed to mature, becoming more fire resistant and better habitat for endangered wildlife, especially for the Greater Glider, a particular focus of our campaign. It used to be one of the most common animals in forests and is now on the endangered species list.”
Well said Dave.
Active forestry operations continue in many parts of the proposal area, and valuable habitat is being lost every week. Whilst in the midst of the sixth mass extinction, it is unconscionable that this continues in critical holds for threatened species. The Great Southern Forest National Park is an important step towards ending industrial logging in the NSW south coast. If this became a reality, we would see a huge network of biodiversity corridors protected, increased climate resilience and regeneration of habitats. This vision motivates the project team, and we hope to bring many more people with us in NPA, local communities and conservation groups as we move forward with the proposal.