Koalas
The site is located adjacent to the Venman Bushland National Park and is within Koala Conservation Area as specified in the SEQ Regional Plan Interim Guideline: Koalas and Development (see Documentation), which emphasizes the importance of preserving koala habitat at this site. The operation of the quarry provides an opportunity to substantially improve conditions for koalas and other animals at the site.
Improved Safety
Although it may seem unlikely, koalas and quarries co-exist very well at a number of quarries in South East Queensland, including the existing Mount Cotton Quarry.
Allocating this land for use by the quarry over the next 60 years ensures that it will not be used for residential development, and the buffer lands will be secure from external use. Two primary threats to the koala are dogs and vehicles at night, which is why koalas are in considerably greater danger in residential communities. Dogs are not permitted on the site and the quarry’s trucks are not driven at night, so these dangers are eliminated.
Also, usage of the land for rural or residential purposes would have involved considerable removal of habitat, and almost certainly no rehabilitation of cleared areas.
Increased Habitat and Food Supplies
As discussed in the Project Plan, part of this project includes rehabilitation of some of the previously cleared land. This component of the project is not postponed until the quarry is complete, but actually begins before the quarry extension is started and continues throughout its lifetime. The result is a large increase in the amount of habitat and food available for koalas at the site.
Apart from food and habitat, the rehabilitated land will form a wildlife corridor through the southern section of the site, providing a safe means of crossing between habitat regions in the east, west, north and south.
Koala at Mount Cotton
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