A new report calling for sweeping nature law reforms in Western Australia to avoid further threatened species extinctions will be released by the Conservation Council of WA (CCWA) today, on the eve of World Environment Day. 

Back from the Brink: A Protection Agenda for Nature, includes 36 recommendations asking the State Government to commit to protecting WA’s unique biodiversity following the release of new data revealing a shocking surge in the amount of habitat approved for clearing in 2026. 

CCWA Executive Director Matt Roberts said that in the first five months of 2026, the WA Government has already approved the clearing of 51,000 ha of native vegetation with a further 128,000 ha in new applications for native vegetation clearing. 

“We cannot continue to clear habitat at this rate and scale if we hope to prevent further extinctions in WA. In 2025 the state government approved the clearing of 77,000 ha of native vegetation, much of which supports species recognised as being on track to extinction, including our iconic black cockatoo,” Mr Roberts said.  

“From 2024-2026 in the Pilbara alone, we estimate that at least 110,000 hectares was approved for clearing, including areas that provide critical habitat from threatened species like the Northern Quoll, Olive Python and Ghost Bat. 

“Back from the Brink includes real-life examples of where policy is failing nature right now, with recommendations for urgent change from experts across the environment movement. 

“It outlines the core environmental policies required to start seriously addressing the protection and restoration of nature, as opposed to fast-tracking the removal and destruction of critical habitat and areas of incredible natural value. 

“Quite simply, environmental policy is continuing to fail and government ambition on reforms to protect threatened species has been too low for too long. 

“We have seen unprecedented engagement from the community around projects like Alcoa's bauxite mine expansion in the world’s only jarrah forest – with more than 59,000 public submissions to the Environmental Protection Authority in 2025. West Australians are saying enough is enough when it comes to clearing critical habitat for places we love that provide safe havens for threatened species. 

“We need the State Government to respond to the biodiversity crisis and ensure there can be no further extinctions - Back from the Brink provides a framework to make that aspiration a reality. 

“We’ve been encouraged by the Labor government’s initial response to the report - but it has some important choices to make on its environmental legacy. The reforms needed to meet the scale of the biodiversity crisis simply have to be far more substantial than the drop in the ocean we’ve seen to date. 

“To bring WA’s unique and threatened species back from the brink, we must increase funding for restoration and protection of threatened species, develop and implement a biodiversity strategy, create no go zones for critical habitat, strengthen our institutions and improve transparency and accountability. 

“We’re talking about complex ecosystems that once removed, are incredibly difficult to restore and recover. These critical ecosystems must be protected by no-go zones, with greater investment in protection, restoration, and recovery.” 

Quotes

Professor Kingsley Dixon AO, 2026 WA Senior Australian of the Year: 

“In the words of Njadu Elder Les Schultz, ‘We are the Kings of extinction’. We see it daily in our skies above Perth as the Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo struggles to survive. Similar is happening in almost every corner of the southwest of WA. 

"Back from the Brink brings together scientists and community in a common call that we are a minute to midnight for so much of the extraordinary nature that has survived for tens of millions of years. We are more biodiverse than 98% of other countries, but our nature is unravelling before our eyes. This Agenda for Nature is that last minute call to action.” 

Professor Rachel Standish, Research and Teaching Academic and Associate Dean Research and Innovation at Murdoch University: 

“Ecologists are acutely aware of biodiversity loss and impacts of climate change - the work can be disheartening. Significant transformation across society is needed for nature and people, and yet optimism is key to inspiring future generations of environmental stewards. ‘Back from the Brink’ offers a hopeful manifesto for biodiversity conservation. And not just for ecologists; there is a role for everyone.” 

Ruby Hamilton, Special Counsel with the Environmental Defenders Office: 

“The law can be a very powerful protective force for nature if legislation is carefully designed and diligently enforced. But for too long, our laws have failed to protect nature – in the courtroom, in ministers’ offices, in boardrooms and in the outside world.  

“The community deserves laws that deliver environmental justice, and that requires political will and an appetite for real reform.”  

Heidi Hardisty, Deputy-Chairperson, Urban Bushland Council: 

“We must stop urban sprawl in Perth. It’s time to protect our threatened native vegetation that is found nowhere else on earth.   

“By conserving our remaining banksia woodlands – we can bring the endangered Carnaby’s Black Cockatoos back from the brink.”   

Overview of key threatened species figures: 

• There are 450 plants and 250 animals listed as threatened in WA - every year the number of species on the critically endangered list continues to rise.  

• In WA there are three Threatened Ecological Communities (TECs) that have already collapsed, with 46 critically endangered at risk of collapse, eight more that are endangered, 10 vulnerable and 391 on the priority list - none of which have a recovery plan. 

ENDS 

Media contact: John Cooke – 0433 679 780