Protecting koalas through habitat restoration

Local Land Services partnered with landholders and traditional owners to protect koalas and improve their habitat on the North Coast of NSW, safeguarding their future and benefitting a range of other native species. The Protecting Koalas through habitat restoration project supported koalas by: 

• focusing on recovery actions to support populations
• restoring and improving habitat on private land.

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Video transcript

Protecting Koalas on the North Coast, NSW

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small and large they are part of

the ecosystem so therefore they are part

of me

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[Music]

[Applause]

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the best part about the local Land

Services koala project has been working

with the amazing land holders

contractors and traditional owners on

this beautiful country between Coffs

Harbor and Port Macquarie on gumbangia

dungari and beer pie country

okay

so the ball let him know that we're

working

and let him know what job we're on today

thanks

koala

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this is indication to me that you found

something

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Wallace like to take the path of police

resistance so if there's a nice open

pathway they'll walk along that and

they'll also drop a lot of Scat as they

walk to

so the best way to find koalas is to

look for their poo and with help from

the dogs as well you can help identify

koala scat by this lovely shape they're

very rarely Jelly Bean shaped so they're

often this

uh straight pallet they're very dense

and you can see here very fine material

so there's no bugs or any other seed

material

[Music]

s

my wife and I purchased this property

about two years ago with the idea of

re-vegetating and regenerating a couple

of different forms of forest one is

lowland subtropical rainforest which

we're sitting in right now on floodplain

it's a endangered ecological community

so it's worthy of some protection some

pretty urgent protection but also we're

very keen to facilitate the restoration

of some wet and dry chlorophyll Forest

which we have on the back of the

property and some Rolling Hills to the

south of where we are at the moment and

the idea behind that was to re-establish

some koala habitat this area was once

what's known as primary koala habitat

which is the best of koala habitats but

unfortunately it's become over time very

fragmented due to agricultural practices

so it's called progression progress

progress progress progress so much for

progress you know so in the process of

progress we destroy and lose the Laura

the land we lose a lot of the spaces

lose a lot of tree cutting down the poem

let alone we climb up there don't get

watercolor the leaf see that's where you

get his water no we don't get the water

on the ground we get the water from me

leave yeah

and that's how he survives

for the impact of

progression you know so

the koalas evolved on this country over

the last 40 million years perhaps 60

million years

the white fell has been here for only

250 years and in that time we've

probably lost between 50 and 80 percent

of the habitat for the koala

for me at the heart of the issue is a

moral dilemma

what right do we have to sit on our

hands and watch this beautiful iconic

species known all around the world

slowly fade away to Extinction

we have an obligation

to not allow this to happen but to

actually reverse it

to repair country so the great thing

about the project is that it provides an

alternative opportunity for people who

want to do that a little bit for nature

who want to improve habitat quality

across the landscape if you want to

improve water quality and stability of

riparian zones it provides them with

that opportunity to get assistance from

the government to re-vegetate provide

quality habitat for koalas and other

keystone species and to basically feel

good about doing their bit to Nature I

know that may sound cheesy but it's come

coming from me it feels very very

satisfying in my own situation I find it

extremely worthwhile one of the most

worthwhile things that I've ever done

some people have said Martin you're

obsessed with koalas but I like the

koala as much as I like every other

native animal I'm responsible for

there's a wide range of native animals

that will benefit from habitat creation

we Embark upon for the benefit of the

koala the beauty of working in private

land conservation is that we are

supporting not only diverse vegetation

types but also diverse land holder needs

and aspirations for their patch yeah

within the first night that we set traps

we picked up two foxes a male and a

female and then on the second night we

picked up another two foxes and we've

seen a few cat tracks as well so

see how this one goes

as much as they're a beautiful animal

they're just not meant to be here

they're just doing too much damage not

only to koalas but every other small

species okay so these traps are actually

rubber jawed lined so if you get

non-target animals whether domestic or

even native we can release these animals

and you just yeah give their foot a

little bit of a rub and massage they

will have a solid foot for a couple of

days but there's no breakages and

we've recently done a a fire management

Workshop local Land Services or part of

the program bought an indigenous Ranger

who also spoke about cultural burning so

that was really interesting and

something that we can look at

in the future if if needed because the

whole idea is is protecting these

pockets of of rainforest and Euclid

forests that I've got here to to give

refuge for the animals

at the end of the day it is so inspiring

to watch Land holders be supported to

take the next step in koala conservation

and to realize by looking after koala

you're not only helping biodiversity on

your block but you're also increasing

the productivity of your land for future

Generations yeah

so the reason we um we engaged with

local Land Services is that after the

fires have happened a lot of koalas are

now frequented in our area and are

spotted throughout the whole of

Southwest rocks I feel like they've come

here because it's there you know they

wanted to find a safe home and so now

they call you know this place their home

so it's really special that we get to

share our home here it's such a

beautiful part of dungari country with

our yashi koalas yeah and that's a part

you know we say that's a part of our

dreaming not just as dungari people but

that's a part of our dreaming as the

whole of Southwest rocks now like

they've come back here so now it's time

for us to protect their home

and we sing a song about dungi himself

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that's the song we got in goombanga so

we're gonna put that into a

lingo language

so

anyway so we've got a lot of contention

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it's incredibly enriching to my life in

a spiritual sense I'm an Australian I

have a deep connection to Country I

think anyone that is lucky enough to be

in this country and is open to Wild

Spaces and spends time in World spaces

is imbued with that core element that

makes the nation's character a

connection to Country

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[Applause]

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Project objectives

Local Land Services’ Koala Habitat Restoration projects aimed to improve the future of the Endangered Koala through restoring habitat on private lands.

Project background

Koalas are an iconic Australian species, but their populations are under increasing pressure. Habitat loss and degradation, climate change, pest animals and disease have all contributed to Koalas being listed as Endangered in NSW.

Across the North Coast, Koala habitat has been impacted by a range of ongoing challenges. In many areas, invasive weeds such as lantana, privet and vine weeds have reduced habitat quality and limited the ability of Koalas to move safely through the landscape. Habitat fragmentation has also made it harder for Koalas to access food trees and shelter.

Land management practices have further contributed to these pressures. Unrestricted livestock access can damage native vegetation through grazing and trampling, while also posing a direct risk to Koalas. Pest animals, including feral pigs, foxes and feral cats, continue to degrade habitat and increase predation risks.

At the same time, increasing wildfire risk has highlighted the vulnerability of Koalas and their habitat to large-scale disturbance events. Recovery from these events requires coordinated, long-term restoration efforts.

There was also a recognised need to support landholders to better understand and manage Koala habitat on their properties. This includes working across a diverse range of landholders - including Aboriginal groups, conservation-focused land managers and primary producers - to build knowledge, capability and confidence in delivering effective environmental works.

In response, a coordinated approach was needed to restore and protect Koala habitat across key Areas of Regional Koala Significance, while supporting landholders and communities to play an active role in long-term conservation outcomes. 

Project delivery

Local Land Services worked with private landholders who are interested in restoring and maintaining natural assets on their land. Project delivery included:

• technical native vegetation restoration advice
• site assessment and management planning
• funding of restoration works to improve koala habitat on property
• partnering with Yurruungga Aboriginal Corporation to lead a cultural burn and working with the NSW Rural Fire Service to support planning and safe delivery of burn
• supported knowledge sharing between Aboriginal practitioners, agencies and landholders during the burn
• linking two important habitat areas - Orara West State Forest and Boambee State Forest - while restoring riparian zones and improving habitat condition across private land. 

Project outcomes

This project:

• supported 75 landholders to undertake koala habitat restoration across private properties
• removed 41 species of weeds to improve the quality of 560 ha of koala habitat
• revegetated 114 ha of cleared Koala habitat
• reduced the threat of wildfires across 97 ha, including three cool burns implemented by Cultural Fire Practitioners
• built fences that stopped cattle and other livestock from entering 183 ha of Koala habitat
• controlled pest species across 370 ha.  

Cultural burn at Narlu

The Narlu site, a former cow paddock, was dominated by setaria grasses, with early signs of natural regeneration including wattle and scattered eucalypts. There was an opportunity to use cultural burning to ‘reset’ the site, reduce the dominance of exotic grasses and support the recovery of native vegetation.

The project also provided an opportunity to support Aboriginal-led land management and strengthen collaboration between cultural practitioners, landholders and fire agencies. The low-intensity burn helped ‘reset’ the site, creating conditions for native vegetation to regenerate while maintaining soil health and protecting the existing seedbank. 

The cultural burn:

• reduced the dominance of setaria and other invasive pasture grasses
• supported natural regeneration of native vegetation, including wattles and eucalypts
• improved conditions for biodiversity and habitat recovery
• strengthened Aboriginal-led land management practices on Country
• built stronger partnerships between Aboriginal groups, agencies and landholders
• increased understanding of cultural burning as a land management tool. 

Future burns will continue to support this process, helping to restore the landscape over time.

Read more about how landholders restored habitat for koalas and in this case study at Narlu.

Improving koala habitat connectivity in the Orara Valley

A total of 7 neighbouring properties participated in the project, with a further 6 nearby properties also involved, creating a coordinated approach to habitat restoration across the landscape.

By linking existing bushland to waterways such as Fridays Creek and the Orara River, the project has helped create a more connected and resilient habitat network, providing a safe haven for koalas and other species. The outcomes included:

• improved connectivity between Orara West State Forest and Boambee State Forest
• strengthened riparian habitat, providing refuge for koalas during dry and hot conditions
• supported fencing to exclude livestock from sensitive riparian areas
• improved vegetation condition along waterways through targeted restoration
• increased habitat availability across private land
• improved water quality, erosion control and instream habitat through riparian restoration
• supported habitat for other threatened species, including platypus and eastern freshwater cod. 

Reviving umbudyi (koala) habitat on Yaegl Country

The work done on Yaegl Country:

• improved habitat condition and connectivity for koalas
• reduced weed pressure and increased native vegetation regeneration  
• increased use of cultural burning to support land management outcomes  
• strengthened skills and collaboration across Aboriginal Ranger groups
• demonstrated ongoing koala presence and activity within the project area  
• re-established native vegetation, including high-use koala food trees such as tallowwood, grey gum and cabbage gum. 

Read more about the work done by Local Aboriginal Land Councils in this case study to revive ubudyi (koala) habitat.

Funding and partnerships

We acknowledge the Bundjalung, Yaegl, Gumbaynggirr, Dunghutti, and Biripi people as the traditional owners of the lands where our Koala projects were undertaken. This project is funded by the Australian Government’s Saving Koalas Fund.  

North Coast Local Land Services are working with:  

• NSW Department of Planning and Environment’s Koala Strategy
• NSW Biodiversity Conservation Trust  
• City of Coffs Harbour  
• Bellingen Shire Council
• Traditional Owner Groups
• Local Aboriginal Land Councils
• Bellinger and Coffs Harbour Regional Landcare
• Jaliigirr Biodiversity Alliance
• CSIRO
• and others.