CANBERRA, July 11 (Xinhua) — The Australian government has been urged to stop approving the destruction of koala habitats to save the iconic species from extinction.
The government of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) on Tuesday said it is seeking thoughts from the community on a draft plan to protect Canberra’s koalas after the marsupial was listed as endangered in the territory as well as Queensland and New South Wales in 2022.
Launching the plan, ACT Environment Minister Rebecca Vassarotti said it reflected the urgent need to support koalas across the country and criticized the federal government for failing to act.
“Unless the country takes urgent action to protect our koalas, they will be extinct. The only way to protect koalas is to protect all remaining koala habitat wherever it is,” she said in a statement.
This Native Species Conservation Plan is a crucial step towards protecting and conserving koalas in ACT. Despite this, the Federal Government can still do more to coordinate preservation efforts across the country, she added.
