A citizen scientist has taken direct action in an effort to protect habitat critical to the endangered Greater Glider, amid growing tensions over native forest logging in northern New South Wales.
Early Thursday morning, volunteer activist Micah ‘Bullet’ Weekes attached himself to logging machinery in the Styx River State Forest, east of Armidale, in protest against ongoing harvesting operations that conservationists claim are threatening glider habitat.
“I am putting myself on the line because I just can’t stand by and watch endangered species habitat being destroyed,” Mr Weekes said. “We find more glider den trees every night and know there are many more that will be destroyed because Forestry Corporation simply doesn’t look for them.”
Mr Weekes, who has been involved in citizen-led nocturnal surveys, alleged that official exclusion zones fail to adequately protect the Greater Glider’s territory.
“The exclusion zones are pathetic. They are only about a quarter of a Greater Glider’s actual home range. So it’s just more piecemeal bandaids that won’t save this species from extinction,” he said. “It’s a race between citizen scientists finding den trees and Forestry Corporation destroying the glider habitat before it can be identified.”
The Greater Glider, listed as endangered under both federal and state conservation laws, relies on large, mature eucalypts with tree hollows to shelter and breed. The species has experienced severe declines across its range due to habitat loss, with logging cited by scientists as a primary threat.
Susie Russell, a spokesperson for the North East Forest Alliance, claimed that logging operations are proceeding in areas where key glider habitat has not been adequately identified or protected.
“Logging continues despite key habitat having not been identified for protection, that the Forestry Corporation are bound by law to protect,” Ms Russell said. “Forestry Corporation has found less than 1% of vital glider habitat trees compared to volunteer citizen scientists. Time is running out to find more of their homes. The machines are not just knocking at the door, they are smashing it to smithereens.”
Ms Russell also called for accountability from government agencies and officials involved in approving or overseeing logging activities in public forests.
“All those responsible for continuing to drive this amazing animal towards extinction should be prosecuted. That includes all the Forestry and EPA bureaucrats as well as the Government Ministers. But instead, those defending our natural heritage for future generations are those who will be punished. The system stinks,” she said.
The Styx River State Forest lies within an area considered a key stronghold for the Greater Glider, whose remaining populations are now largely confined to higher-altitude forests where industrial logging has been less intensive. According to Ms Russell, citizen scientists have documented 375 Greater Glider den trees over the past two years through nocturnal spotlighting surveys.
In comparison, she said, Forestry Corporation of NSW (FCNSW) has surveyed approximately 5 per cent of the proposed harvest area and recorded only nine den trees. The disparity has raised concerns among conservation groups and is now the subject of legal proceedings.
“Finding less than a few per cent of a key habitat feature cannot possibly be considered adequate,” Ms Russell said, referring to the current court case challenging FCNSW’s interpretation of what constitutes a den tree under environmental regulations.
“Remember, glider trees with suitable hollows are usually well over 100 years old, so they haven’t been ‘grown’ by the Forestry Corporation. They are mining these trees. It will be at least a hundred years before there are trees to replace them, and in the current climate, it’s more likely to be never.”
The NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) has confirmed it is conducting several investigations into alleged breaches by Forestry Corporation in the Styx River State Forest.
Ms Russell urged Environment Minister Penny Sharpe and Agriculture Minister Tara Moriarty to intervene.
“The responsible ministers, Penny Sharpe and Tara Moriarty, must halt all logging in these forests that continue to be strongholds for Greater Gliders and other endangered species. These glider den trees are irreplaceable,” she said.
Don’t miss any of the important stories from around the region. Subscribe to our email list.