Document ID: chunk:federal_register_of_legislation:F2022L00555:body:0:p51
Version: federal_register_of_legislation:F2022L00555
Segment Type: other
Provision Reference: 
Character Range: 165669–168562

between 2000 and 2017 (Ward et al. 2019b). The revised 2021 distribution for the Koala (this recovery plan, DAWE 2021a) is greater than the 2014 mapping used by Ward et al. (2019b), and consequently the area of cleared habitat is expected to be higher than the number reported in Ward et al. (2019b). Clearing associated with grazing during this period was the major driver of loss of Koala habitat, accounting for the majority of deforestation within the Koala's distribution (Evans 2016; McAlpine et al. 2015). Large areas of woodland have been lost in western parts of the species' range, including the Brigalow Belt, Mulga Lands, Darling Riverine Plains, Einasleigh Uplands and Desert uplands since 2000 (Ward et al. 2019b). These areas are home to large Koala populations (Adams-Hosking et al. 2016). Most clearing events occurred on freehold or leasehold land (Ward et al. 2019b).
Land-clearing continues to impact habitat across the listed Koala's range (DES 2018; DPIE 2018). Clearing for mining and urbanisation has localised impacts on the Koala (Evans 2016; Ward et al.2019b). Urban expansion is concentrated along the eastern seaboard fringe of Queensland and New South Wales (Clarke and Johnston 2016), which is also a stronghold of the listed Koala. Low density and peri-urban development are expanding into forested and agricultural landscapes in these areas, while clearing for grazing and agriculture continues to occur across the Koala's distribution. The expanding coal and coal seam gas developments of the past two decades and recent clearing for renewable energy projects represent additional but localised impacts to Koalas (McAlpine et al. 2015). Land use decisions affecting Koalas have been influenced, both positively and negatively, by the policy environment and social attitudes around land-clearing (Heagney et al. 2021; Simmons et al. 2021).
It is also important to note that land use change can increase Koala abundance. An example of this is the increased Koala abundance seen in plantation forests in Victoria, although this can have long-term impacts on local population viability through boom-and-bust cycles driven by over-browsing (Ashman et al. 2020).

19.3 Natural systems modification

Native forestry
The distribution of the listed Koala overlaps with areas managed under Regional Forest Agreements in New South Wales, as well as areas managed for timber production in Queensland. Koalas are known to use logged areas within a mosaic of logged and unlogged forest (Jurskis and Potter 1997) for foraging (Ashman et al. 2020; Kavanagh et al. 2007; Woodward et al. 2008) and movement (Kavanagh et al. 2007; Woodward et al. 2008). Koalas are also known to retain home ranges in selectively logged coupes (Kavanagh et al. 2007).
Long-term research on these aspects, the impacts of the bushfires in 2019–2020, nutritional quality of forests and demographics