The Koala colony west of Sydney must survive. Already listed as endangered, Koalas need intact habitat and linking corridors.  Mallaty Creek is currently a connected, intact, and active East West Koala Corridor but the government plans to terminate by fencing it off to koalas, and by design other wildlife as part of urban development plans. Mallaty Creek is:

1. The most direct corridor from the Georges River to the Nepean River
2. Mapped by the NSW Government as a Biodiversity Corridor of Regional Significance
3. Feeds directly into the new Georges River Koala National Park
4. Is habitat critical to the survival of Koalas
5. Was recognised by the Chief Scientist

This is also at odds with the Final Cumberland Plain Assessment Report (Biosis 2021) which states: “Habitat within the corridors (C&D) will be protected as avoided land and will provide insurance habitat which may be expanded through revegetation to support Koalas in the future” (pg.1260). The Chief Scientist’s advice (2020) also advised Mallaty Creek should be kept: “this corridor (D) is suitable for koala movement and should be protected with exclusion fencing and additional buffer zones” (pg 53) also noting on page 39 of the 2021 advice the vital need for riparian refugia for koalas as the impacts of urban heat, bushfire, and climate change increase. 

Figure 1: An over/underpass at Mallaty Creek would provide better connectivity for koalas and link directly to the Georges River National Park - currently Beulah and Brian Road underpasses are 4km apart (SBKN, 2024).

The government should act now to rectify this error while there are no confirmed development proposals and the land is still zoned rural, in accordance with the landscape/ecological processes and priorities in the CPCP modification criteria. This criteria prioritises “important local habitat corridors for key species, including koala & land identified as Bio Map regional corridors” OR “areas that provide significant opportunities to support important local habitat corridors for key species, including koala”. Mallaty Creek is both. Mallaty is already an average width of 335m wide, it is a modest proposal to make it fully comply with Chief Scientist recommendations, however it will significantly safeguard the koala population.

An additional over/underpass across Appin Road would also vastly improve outcomes for koalas and be closer to best practice advice for the distance between underpasses. Current plans for underpasses along Appin Road are 4km apart (figure 3) which is a huge departure from best practice, which recommends over/underpasses every 500m (RMS 2015).

Figure 2: A cluster of recent sightings and road strikes at Appin Road show Mallaty Creek is still an active koala corridor, with the koala tree index showing direct links with the GRNP (Bionet/Seed 2024).

Mallaty Creek was intended to be kept in the draft CPCP and was also flagged as an important corridor during community consultation. The government can and should save Mallaty Creek koala corridor as an additional action to greatly improve outcomes for koalas and thier safe passage directly into the new Georges River National Park. 

Figure 3: Connectivity Map showing Mallaty as most direct and connected corridor in Campbelltown/Wollondilly (Biolink 2018)

Tell NSW Environment Minister Penny Sharpe to save Mallaty Creek!

• Sign the Petition at tec.do.gooder/savemallatycreek
• Email [email protected] and tell the Minister we need Koalas in South West Sydney safeguarded by restoring Mallaty Creek and adding an underpass at Appin Road to directly link Koalas to the new Georges River National Park.