MEDIA RELEASE 22 April 2026

North East Forest Alliance is calling for the NSW Government to stop logging State Forests and protect them as National Parks in light of the latest visitation statistics which show that national parks attract millions of visitors to regional areas, injecting billions of dollars into regional economies and generating thousands of jobs.

The Government identifies that the 65.6m visits to NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) parks last year injected $19.5 billion into the state’s economy and supported 62,000 jobs.

National parks in north-east NSW, north from Gosford, attracted 14.9 million visits last year. With 22.8% of NSW’s visitation, on a pro-rata basis, national parks in north-east NSW are responsible for injecting around $4.4 billion into the regional economy and supporting some 14,100 regional jobs.

“Conservation groups have fought hard over many decades to create most of our national parks, so it is reassuring to see that our efforts have been good for the environment and regional economies” North East Forest Alliance spokesperson Dailan Pugh said.

“Visitation to National Parks is rapidly increasing, over the past decade growing 25% in north east NSW. Creating new parks will increase future recreational opportunities.

“Because of their outstanding biodiversity, State Forests in north-east NSW have been identified by the Commonwealth as the highest national priorities for addition to the reserve system to satisfy the Global Biodiversity Framework target to protect 30% of Australia by 2030.

“Last year we lost $32 million logging our public native forests to prop-up a declining industry being out competed by cheaper plantation timber.

“Its time we stopped logging and degrading our public native forests as it is in the community’s best interests to protect them and allow them to recover.

“Recovering native forests will provide improved visitor experiences, while restoring animal habitats, sequestering and storing CO₂ out of harm’s way, reducing fire risk, increasing stream flows, and reducing flood peaks” Mr.Pugh said.

NSW Parks Visitation Survey FY24-25 Annual Report, identifies

• 6m visits to NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) parks by domestic residents during FY24-25, a 24% increase since 2022 (16.4% interstate)
• 72% of international visitors to NSW visited a NPWS park in FY24-25 (2.8m visitors). Multiple parks = an additional 4.6m visits.
• 3 in 5 visitors reported that their last NPWS park visit was the only or main reason for that trip
• Walking is the most common activity in NPWS parks, then touring and sightseeing, picnicking and dining, rest and relaxation, water-based recreation, nature appreciation and camping and accommodation.
• North East NSW north from Gosford (Hunter Central Coast and North Coast NPWS Branches), 14,919,303 visits, up 25% from 2014. 22.8% of NSW visitation. Park visit only or major reason for 63% of visits.
  • Hunter Central Coast NPWS Branch (north from Gosford to Taree) 8,104,462 visits, up 38% from 2022, 29% from 2014. Park visit only or major reason for 72% of visits, one of main reasons 8%.
  • North Coast NPWS Branch (north of Taree) 6,814,841 visits, up 9.2% from 2022, 20% from 2014. Park visit only or major reason for 52% of visits, one of main reasons 8%.