Rebuilding lost habitats for our koalas

Five council-owned sites across the Gympie region are among those identified for environmental offsets as part of the Bruce Highway Upgrade - Cooroy to Curra, Section D (C2CD) project.

The council-owned sites will be exclusively used to offset the impact of the highway’s construction to local koala habitats as part of an agreement between Gympie Regional Council and the Department of Transport and Main Roads (TMR). The five sites were selected by TMR based on their proximity to the existing habitat, as well as their suitability to support native habitats.

Transport and Main Roads Minister Mark Bailey said the sites were part of a much larger environmental offset package for the project. “My department is proposing to protect and maintain more than 300 hectares of land in the Gympie region to offset environmental impacts,” Mr Bailey said.

“The council-owned sites form one part of this offset package. “A range of other control measures will be delivered to protect koalas and other species during and after construction of the new highway.”

Councillor Daryl Dodt said that this is a great outcome for the Gympie region. “We all understand that upgrading a highway will have some environmental impacts, so it’s great news for Gympie that C2CD is planning to set aside land as a way of supporting impacted native animals and vegetation.”

The agreement means that TMR will also undertake weed management and pest control across all five sites to support koala habitat. Management and maintenance of the sites will be ongoing for as long as is required to ensure all five sites comply with Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act approval conditions.