Fears Kangaroo Island tourism industry will pay price for koala carnage in logging scandal

Kangaroo Island’s blue chip tourism sector could be facing a severe backlash over a scandal sparked by video of loggers ripping through trees as koalas cling on.

Koalas injured and killed on Kangaroo Island during logging. Picture: Supplied

There are fears tourists could soon be cutting Kangaroo Island from their travel plans amid an angry backlash over shocking footage of loggers felling gum trees as koalas cling on for dear life.

Confronting footage was broadcast on 7NEWS on Monday evening, sparking claims of death threats from Kangaroo Island’s mayor Michael Pengilly, who defended the blue gum logging practices, and fears tourist bookings could be cancelled.

And the backlash may already be starting.

Sydney traveller Nabil Antonios took to social media on Monday to say he has cancelled his stopover at KI on his upcoming trip after learning about the “koala culling”.

“They will not be seeing any of my tourist money,” Mr Antonios posted on his Facebook Monday evening.

Koalas injured and killed on Kangaroo Island during logging. Picture: Supplied

Mr Antonios urged others to do the same to send “a clear message against their disgusting behaviour”.

Mr Antonios comments come after opposition leader David Speirs warned a travel backlash could hammer the island’s lifeblood industry.

Mr Speirs labelled the issue one of the “most significant animal welfare scandals” in recent times.

“It has been a catastrophic thing to see … just seeing the mismanagement of our wildlife at Kangaroo Island, it’s just heart-wrenching,” Mr Speirs said on Tuesday.

“It’s a terrible animal welfare issue; koalas sitting up trees while those trees are felled, those koalas are felled to the ground and koalas are crushed under the branches.

“Equally frustrating and worrying is the impact this will have on our state and possibly national tourism industry.”

Mr Speirs said he believes this will be a “major hit on our tourism economy in the nation”.

“I am certain that people are logging onto their travel website across the world and cancelling trip to South Australia, cancelling trips to Kangaroo Island,” he said.

The state government has now confirmed more wildlife experts will be dispatched to Kangaroo Island within days to investigate the allegations that koalas are being killed negligently during logging operations.

It comes after environment minister Susan Close earlier on Tuesday denied any koala deaths were the result of “negligent” action based on their prior planned visits to the plantation on May 11, 2023 and an unannounced inspection October 30, 2023.

Environment minister Susan Elizabeth Close admitted strategies to mitigate damage wildlife were failing. Picture: Ben Clark

Opposition leader David Speirs said he expected Kangaroo Island’s profitable tourist industry to pay the price for the logging scandal. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Morgan Sette

She said: “The (previous) inspections found no evidence of koalas being injured as a result of wilful or negligent actions or breaches of the National Parks and Wildlife Act.”

However, during Question Time in parliament on Tuesday Ms Close conceded mitigation strategies were failing.

“(Under the guidelines we) make sure that there are koala spotters, there are tags put on the tree where a koala is, and then eight trees around are not to be cleared in order to keep that koala protected,” she said.

“That was a very reasonable approach – that footage suggests that that has not worked – it was extremely serious footage.

“This could be regarded as cruelty to those animals.”

All reports of animal welfare issues associated with the Tasmanian blue gum clearance will be investigated by the Department of Environment, in conjunction with Kiland and possibly the RSPCA.

National Parks and Wildlife Service staff is scheduled to visit the plantation site again this week to inspect operations.

The Kangaroo Island Mayor Michael Pengilly said despite the devastating bushfires in December 2019, in which 15,000 koalas were killed, they were still abundant on the island.

“They are an introduced native species that are over abundant on the island,” he said.

Mr Pengilly also told Adelaide’s FIVEaa radio station he and other local councillors had been flooded with death threats in the wake of 7NEWS footage airing.

Originally published as Fears Kangaroo Island tourism industry will pay price for koala carnage in logging scandal