The South West’s forests and woodlands have been significantly degraded and fragmented by more than a century of logging; continued clearing for mining, agriculture and development; and inappropriate fire regimes and other unsustainable management activities.
Now, climate change is accelerating their decline.
We must act to remove destructive threats, like forest mining, protect our South West forest, and improve ecosystem resilience.
Ending forest mining expansions requires long-term, transformative change.
To protect WA's unique forests and woodlands, we are calling on the State Government to:
- Deliver an expanded network of protected areas in the Northern Jarrah Forests, by March 2029*
- The WA Environmental Protection Authority to conduct strategic advice on the state of the Northern Jarrah Forests bioregion, to guide conservation efforts
- Increase funding for early detection and rapid suppression technology to quickly extinguish bushfire
- A permanent ban on mining in all water Reservoir Protection Zones
- Update and implement a Biodiversity Strategy for WA to protect and restore WA’s ecosystems
- Limit the use of environmental offsets in WA and stringent criteria for offsets to ensure absolute gains in habitat and biodiversity
- Improve government consultation standards to ensure meaningful and ongoing public participation in environmental decision-making.
We are also calling on the Cook Government to deliver on the promise to protect over 700,000ha of South West forests by 2033, with comprehensive and well-funded engagement from Noongar peoples, ensuring their subsequent participation in stewardship activities.
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*This includes comprehensive engagement with and participation of Noongar peoples in protection and management of the forests and the immediate exclusion of high conservation values areas from existing and future mining tenements