Stage one of Port Stephens Koala Sanctuary unveiled

BY JARROD MELMETH

The first stage of a proposed $3 million Koala Sanctuary was unveiled this morning at a ceremony at Treescape, One Mile.

Stage one of the sanctuary involves the construction of koala rehabilitation pens, which will allow local volunteers to care for koalas locally, rather than having to transport them to Port Macquarie Koala Hospital.

Port Stephens Koalas project manager, Ron Land, said previously, the group have had to either release sick or injured koalas prematurely, transport them to Port Macquarie for further care, or in some cases, euthanise them.

"It gives us now a range of options that we have never had before. Just the transferring of an ill or injured koala to Port Macquarie is very stressful for the koala and did not always have a happy outcome.

"We are able to now, and it is very important for local koalas that they continue to eat the leaf from their local area because their digestive system is very highly tuned and obviously any koala transferred outside of the area is fed the leaf from the Mid-North Coast which is not the same as the leaf they have been reared on here," Mr Land said.

Former NSW Premier Mike Baird announced $124,000 allocated from the Community Building Program for stage one of the project.

Mr Land said together with Council, Port Stephens Koalas have applied to the State Government for an additional $3 million in funding which, if secured will see stage two commence.

"This will include the construction of the hospital buildings as well as a state-of-the-art eco-tourism facility where people will be able to come and see the koalas in their natural environment whilst we carry on our work within the hospital and various parts of the facility," Mr Land said.

Port Stephens Mayor Ryan Palmer says the region is home to one of the last remaining koala populations on the east coast, so it is important to protect them.

Photo: Jarrod Melmeth

Horror weekend for Port Stephen's koalas

BY DECLAN PAYNE and JESSICA ROUSE

Port Stephen's koala population have had a horror weekend with at least five hit by cars.

Sadly one koala has died, and another is reported to have a fractured leg.

The warmer weather is said to be to blame for the increasing number of koalas on the move and being put in harms way.

Port Stephens MP Kate Washington believes the government could be doing a lot more to stop this devastation to the species.

"What it could be doing and should have done last year is not sell the Mambo Wetlands which is core koala habitat. The other thing the government could be doing is helping support a great initiative which is the development of a koala hospital here in Port Stephens."

She said it's also the responsibility of the community to be more aware on the road.

"We must all take some responsibility and keep a good eye out because our koalas in Port Stephens are under threat. They're under threat from over-development and we must all stay very alert of that fact."

Koala hospital for One Mile Beach

BY ARIANA GATTI and JESSICA ROUSE

Port Stephens Council has backed a plan to build a Koala hospital and tourism facility at Treescape Holiday Park at One Mile Beach.

The hospital is set to cost about $3 million, and will treat sick and injured koalas from the local area in a bid to protect the dwindling population.

The long-term sustainability of the koala population is key and Secretary for Port Stephens Koalas Ron Land believes the hospital could be the answer they've been looking for.

"It'll give us a chance to conduct emergency treatment and also long term care. The facilities that we currently operate are all home based and whilst they're very high quality we just can't sustain that model. We have to centralise our facilities and our long term benefits for our carers and our koala population."

One Mile Beach is the ideal place for the hospital, with 2.5 acres of natural bushland where there's already a colony of koalas.

The tourism aspect of the hospital is very important in bringing in revenue to keep the hospital sustainable for years to come.

"Port Stephens council has done a magnificent job in developing the business model and really without them, this project wouldn't have seen daylight," said Ron Land.

Labor Promises to Save our Koalas

BY TYLER FARDELL

Opposition Leader Luke Foley says the dwindling Koala population on the State's North coast would be protected in newly created national parks to help stop the very real prospect of the species becoming extinct in NSW.

Koala numbers in NSW represent just ten percent of the nation's Koalas, with that figure dropping lower each year.

Our beloved Koala is internationally recognisable and generates more than 2 billion dollars in tourism each year.

The opposition's plan would see Eucalyptus forests that are home to significant Koala populations, assessed for priority additions.

In addition to protecting the remaining Koala population, the proposed national parks would become major tourism hubs and attract thousands of tourists both national and international.

Luke Foley has called on the government to adopt this policy to save the national icon.

"We face the real prospect of Koalas becoming extinct in the wild in our state within the next couple of years".

"My challenge to Mr Baird is to adopt Labor's policy to save the Koalas."