Australia’s globally famous animal, the koala, is officially listed as endangered – a decision both long expected and completely preventable. But when the animal is the koala, people notice and it can prompt the question: how did we get here? This is the right decision by the environment minister, Sussan Ley. The Australian Conservation Foundation calculated this week that in the 10 years since the former environment minister Tony Burke listed the koala as vulnerable, federal governments alone have approved 25,000 hectares of clearing of koala habitat. Right now, clearing of connecting habitat for southern Sydney’s koala population is occurring for a housing development near Campbelltown.

Source: The Guardian February 12, 2022 08:44 UTC