Tag Archives: koalas

Emergency Wildlife Bush Fire Relief- Surf Coast Animal Rescue Services

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Surf Coast Animal Rescue Services is urgently raising funds (generously auspiced by Winged Horse Equine Inc) to attend to the needs of wildlife affected by the Christmas Day Lorne/Wye River bushfires in Victoria, Australia, which has hit hardest in one of the most densely populated wildlife areas in the Otway Ranges, also home to one of few Victorian koala populations.

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Millions of native animals have perished, with many thousands more injured and needing immediate attention. The worst of the fires are now contained, but emergency services have warned these fires could last for weeks and flare up again over what is forecast to be a hot, dry summer with record breaking temperatures.

As the centre of the bushfire zone is opened up in coming days, hundreds of native animals will require rescuing and we anticipate that the rescue efforts will continue for weeks, perhaps months. We are seeking assistance for the purchase of medical equipment, fire-suitable rescue gear, transportation costs, professional veterinary costs, species-specific burn creams and bandages. These items are required urgently and all donations, no matter the size, are most welcome. We are also hoping to provide wildlife rescue kits to all our active volunteers so that no animal is left without the immediate care they require.

We are a volunteer organisation with volunteers who have been rescuing wildlife in the Surf Coast region for 25 years.

By supporting us, you help us to:

– provide immediate veterinary care to injured wildlife

– transport wildlife out of the fire zones

– provide ongoing rehabilitation of wildlife until they are ready to be returned to the wild

– place orphaned wildlife in long-term foster care

– supply wildlife rescuers with efficient wildlife rescue kits

– supply wildlife carers with ongoing medical supplies

– provide public awareness and educational programs specific to the rescue of wildlife in the region.

Donate generously and thank you for your support

GIVE NOW- CLICK HERE

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IFAW- Action Alert for Victoria’s koalas

You were probably deeply saddened at the news recently that nearly 700 koalas had been euthanased in Cape Otway, by the previous Victorian government.

Ask the new Victorian government to improve its approach to protecting koalas!

The tragic end for these koalas could have been avoided by better management. The high number of koalas in Cape Otway is a direct result of a long series of well-intentioned but ultimately misguided earlier translocations from small islands.

Sadly, this is just one example of how we’re letting down our national icon.

Another koala catastrophe is unfolding in the south west of the state. If not addressed now, it could result in a far worse situation on a much larger scale. Many thousands of koalas inhabit timber plantations there and many are killed or suffer horrific injuries in logging operations.

When the plantations are harvested, these koalas are then left hungry and homeless with nowhere to go.

We need a new approach to koalas in Victoria and across the nation. It’s not just about ensuring that each plantation is logged carefully to protect wildlife.

We desperately need to build a system of secure koala habitats and connectivity between habitats, so that animals can move between areas as logging happens so that they don’t end up marooned.

The new Victorian government is promising a new more transparent approach and a special koala management plan.

Let’s hold them to that promise. We need urgent action to help our national icon.

Thank you so much for your support.

Best wishes,

Isabel McCrea
Director, IFAW Oceania

Take Action Now

(featured image: “Phascolarctos cinereus (Koala resting in tree fork)”.jpg Licensed under GFDL via Wikimedia Commons)

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Shenhua Watermark coal mine will destroy farmland and koala habitat

Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce, said “It is ridiculous that you would have a major mine in the midst of Australia’s best agricultural land,” Shenhua’s open cut coal mine on the Liverpool Plains in north-western NSW, which is one of Australia’s most productive farming areas.

The Liverpool Plains generally produce winter and summer crops, yielding about 40% above the national average of food per hectare and contributes approximately $332 million to GDP annually.

The mine’s owners have earmarked offsets to compensate for the wildlife losses, as if our native animals species were merely collateral damage. Most of the mine will eventually be “rehabilitated”, a spokesman for Shenhua said. The NSW Government approval failed to properly consider whether the mine was likely to significantly affect Koalas. If the mine goes ahead it will clear 847 hectares of koala habitat. Expecting them to “rehabilitate” is simply a throw-away line!

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Australia, the land infamous for native mammal extinctions, continues to ignore our natural heritage and the welfare of our indigenous species. Australians are losing control of our sovereignty by the betrayal of greedy politicians, overwhelmed by short-term monetary gain at the cost of our long term future.

Coal mines are not energy investment of the future.

Show us you care about our country, our people, our farmers, earth and climate change.

Petition: Revert the decision to sell to China the Watermark coal mine

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