Koala Habitat Program
About the program
The Koala Habitat Program is part of a range of actions being taken by the Queensland Government to address the declining koala population in Queensland.
Up to $22.5 million will be invested between 2012 and 2015 to strategically acquire land in South East Queensland to:
- create new koala habitat
- increase the connectivity of South East Queensland’s mature koala habitat
- provide additional recreational opportunities for the community wherever possible.
Allocated funding will be distributed over the life of the project. Expressions of interest (EOI) will be sought from the public each year to identify suitable properties.
EOIs for round one closed on 31 October 2012. Details of further rounds will be available in 2013.
Property eligibility
A property is eligible for consideration if it:
- is located within one of the 10 eligible local government areas:
- Sunshine Coast Regional Council
- Moreton Bay Regional Council
- Brisbane City Council
- Redland City Council
- Logan City Council
- Gold Coast City Council
- Lockyer Valley Regional Council
- Scenic Rim Regional Council
- Ipswich City Council
- Somerset Regional Council
- is located outside the Urban Footprint area according to the South East Queensland Regional Plan
- contains 10 or more hectares of land suitable for rehabilitation according to the South East Queensland Koala Protection Area Koala Habitat Values
The EOI form contains detailed instructions on how to determine if your property is eligible
Assessing property suitability
After receiving an EOI, the department will confirm whether the property meets the eligibility criteria. A competitive assessment process will ensure cost-effective properties with the highest koala benefit will receive funding for that year.
The assessment process will consider factors such as:
- the contribution to connectivity or consolidation of koala habitat
- whether existing protected bushland is nearby
- the koala rehabilitation value
- the cost of rehabilitating the land
- ongoing land management
- potential community recreational opportunities.
Properties shortlisted through the assessment process will require a valuation and property inspection. Property owners will be contacted prior to valuation to discuss any concerns and identify inspection and valuation times. Reasonable market prices will be offered for properties as determined by a valuation.
Purchased properties will be revegetated for koala habitat and transferred to a suitable land manager once established. Properties may also be gazetted as national park, nature refuge or a reserve for community use.