SYDNEY — After more than a decade of campaigning, Australian conservation and community groups celebrated a historic win on Oct. 23 after legislation was passed to create the Great Koala National Park in New South Wales (NSW). The campaigners’ success came 10 days after NSW Premier and Labor politician Chris Minns tabled a bill proposing the creation of the park in the Mid North Coast region of the state. The park was a key 2023 election promise made by Australia’s Labor Party. “This park will protect our precious Australian wildlife and boost tourism for the region for generations,” Minns wrote on Facebook after the result of the vote. The park, slated to open before the end of 2026, will incorporate 178,000 hectares (440,000 acres) of state forests, primarily earmarked for native timber harvesting, and other government land into the existing national park estate. It will create a protected area spanning 475,000 hectares (1.2 million acres) for 12,000 koalas (Phascolarctos cinereus) and more than 100 other threatened fauna and flora species, including southern greater gliders (Petauroides volans), glossy black cockatoos (Calyptorhynchus lathami) and rare spider orchids. The park, slated to open before the end of 2026, will incorporate 178,000 hectares (440,000 acres) of state forests. Image courtesy of NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service. The Gumbaynggirr and Dunghutti people, who have helped shape the national park, “will continue to guide its management,” according to the NSW government. “Eight Aboriginal rangers will be employed through community-controlled organisations and some park roles will…This article was originally published on Mongabay

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