MEDIA RELEASE 24 November 2021

NEFA say they have confirmed that that Cherry Tree State Forest is core Koala habitat and are calling on the Minister Kean to stop logging their homes if his claims of saving Koalas from extinction and doubling populations are to have any credibility.

A NEFA assessment on Sunday has confirmed that Koalas and their habitat are widespread in Cherry Tree State Forest, making it core Koala habitat that would have logging excluded if it was on private land, said NEFA spokesperson Dailan Pugh.

“There is no doubt that Koalas are widespread in compartments 3 and 4 of Cherry Tree State Forest, and have been for at least the past 23 years, and it appears they are using most suitable feed trees.

“The forest in the logging area is dominated by Koala use tree species, and thus is highly suitable Koala habitat and qualifies as core Koala habitat as defined in State Environmental Planning Policy (Koala Habitat Protection) 2021.