Australia- Koalas face extinction in New South Wales within 30 years, report warns

Koalas in the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW) could become extinct by 2050 if the government doesn’t quickly intervene to preserve them and their environment, a parliamentary inquiry concluded after a year-long inquiry.

Land clearing for agriculture, urban development, mining and forestry had been the most significant determinant in the fragmentation and destruction of habitat for the animals in NSW, the country’s most populous state, over several decades.

“The evidence could not be more stark,” the inquiry’s 311-page final report said on Tuesday.

Committee Chairwoman Cate Faehrmann announced it was assessed that at least 5,000 koalas died in the recent bushfires. The Greens MP stated the conclusions of the year-long inquiry should be a game-changer for the State Government.

“What became crystal clear during this inquiry was that, without urgent government intervention, the koala will become extinct in New South Wales before 2050,” she said.