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What has Wildlife Queensland been doing for the last 40 years? Find out about some of the big campaigns and major activities that we've been involved with as part of our support for Queensland's wildlife and habitat.
Important places | Habitat | Wildlife | Education | Law and policy
Lake McKenzie,
Fraser Island, Queensland.Important Places
Great Barrier Reef
Wildlife Queensland started its 10-year campaign to protect the whole of the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) in 1967. Led by Wildlife Queensland, this campaign gathered momentum to oppose limestone mining on Ellison Reef near Innisfail. The campaign then also moved to oppose oil drilling in the Reef and the Coral Sea.
When the Reef was declared a World Heritage Area in 1981, Wildlife Queensland helped co-develop the Strategic Plan for the area.
Fraser Island
Wildlife Queensland started campaigning against sand mining on Fraser Island in 1971. Wildlife Queensland and the Fraser Island Defenders Organization (FIDO) made joint submissions until mining was finally banned in 1976.
Wildlife Queensland also surveyed cultural, ecological and economic issues on the island during the 1970s, even after the northern part of the island was declared a national park in 1971. It is now part of the Great Sandy National Park. Fraser Island was declared a World Heritage Area in 1992.
Wildlife Queensland pressured the Queensland Government into holding the Fitzgerald Inquiry into Fraser Island logging and management. We were leaders in the fight to manage tourism on the biggest sand island in the world.
Wildlife Queensland is still campaigning to support the best management of Fraser Island and the rest of the Great Sandy National Park.
Cooloola
Wildlife Queensland lodged objections to sand mining in the Cooloola area. Sand mining was stopped in 1970 and the area was declared a part of Great Sandy National Park in 1991.
Moreton IslandThanks to Wildlife Queensland's campaign, Moreton Island was protected from sand mining by 1992. However, sand mining is still a major campaign issue along the coast of south-east Queensland.
North Queensland
Wildlife Queensland members started campaigning for national parks to protect the North Queensland (NQ) habitat in the early 1960s. The campaign culminated in the Focus on our Northern Heritage conference and subsequent book in 1976.
Wildlife Queensland is still opposing unsuitable developments in NQ: Hinchinbrook Channel, Magnetic Island; and the area north of the Daintree River.
Cape York
Wildlife Queensland campaigned from 1987 to 1992 and successfully opposed the proposed Cape York space base.
Shelburne Bay
Wildlife Queensland challenged mining lease applications in Shelburne Bay in 1985. In association with the Wuthathi People in 1988, Wildlife Queensland used the federal government's foreign investment powers to effectively stop the mining. In 1991 the grazing lease was not renewed and the land reverted to State Government ownership. Finally, in 2003, the mining leases were not renewed. Wildlife Queensland keeps watch on sand mining throughout Queensland.
Lindeman Island
Wildlife Queensland spearheaded a successful national campaign in 1986 to stop the sell-off of national park land to resort developers.
The ocean coast of Moreton
Island, Queensland.Habitat
Coasts
Wildlife Queensland campaigned all through the 1990s to protect coast lands from overdevelopment and inappropriate development. Wildlife Queensland opposed spread of damaging marinas and canal estates until the coast was protected by the Queensland Government in 2001.
Wildlife Queensland continues to campaign to protect Queensland's coasts. We have been involved in campaigns to protect coastline in Airlie Beach, the Hinchinbrook Channel and the Gold Coast.
Brigalow country
Wildlife Queensland unsuccessfully tried in 1963 to protect the brigalow reserves. But, in 1968, the Southwood block in the southern part of the brigalow belt was declared National Park after Wildlife Queensland campaigned for the declaration.
Rainforests
Wildlife Queensland's rainforest campaigning in NQ was successful when the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area was listed in 1988.
Wildlife Queensland continues to campaign for rainforest conservation throughout Queensland, for example in Douglas Shire and the Gold Coast Hinterland.
Native vegetation
Wildlife Queensland opposed woodchipping proposals near Cairns in1973 and Bribie Island in 1979.
We also campaigned for financial incentives for landholders who protected native bushland (1977).
Wildlife Queensland made submissions that shaped the Queensland Government's native vegetation management laws, see Law and Policy.
The Wildlife Land Fund (founded by Wildlife Queensland 2001) purchases and preserves wildlife habitat. The Fund already manages Bukkulla near Marlborough. The Fund currently has 2000 ha under management as conservation park and owns land at Witta in South-east Queensland.
Campaigning to end the recreational
shooting of duck and quail
was successful in 2005.Wildlife
Urban wildlife
Wildlife Queensland inspired and organised the 2003 Urban Wildlife Forum, which led to the formation of the Urban Biodiversity Advisory Consortium. This organisation aims to be a central source for consistent information on research about urban biodiversity.
Duck & Quail
In 1990, Wildlife Queensland alone lobbied the state government successfully to ban the use of lead shot for hunting ducks and quails.
In 2004, Wildlife Queensland actively campaigned in an alliance of animal and conservation organisations to end the shooting of duck and quail for sport in Queensland. As a result, the Queensland Government suspended the 2005 hunting season.
Wildlife Queensland is still campaigning to permanently ban duck and quail hunting
Marine turtles
Wildlife Queensland campaigned from 1968 to protect the famous Mon Repos turtle rookery near Bundaberg. This campaign included a successful court battle to stop a controversial subdivision near the rookery in 1983.
Platypus
Wildlife Queensland is currently running a project to monitor and protect platypuses through Platypus Care program.
Bilbies
In 1993, Wildlife Queensland began campaigning to save the bilby from extinction, including supporting Coles in its fundraising sales of chocolate Easter bilbies. From 1999 we campaigned for more protection for bilbies and by Easter 2001 the bilby fence enclosed a reserve in Currawinya National Park.
Gliders
Wildlife Queensland is planning a new statewide program of research and education around Queensland's glider species, working in collaboration with Griffith University and Queensland Museum.
Dugongs
Wildlife Queensland's campaign to protect dugongs along Queensland's coast began successfully with the banning of gill nets in Shoalwater Bay. We also campaigned for the Interim Dugong Protection Areas along the coast. Northern Wildlife Queensland branches have a long-term commitment to the dugong protection including Bayside Branch's Seagrass Watch.
Curlews
Bayside Branch produced a curlew management plan for public comment in 2005. The campaign to protect the curlew was covered on national television.
Education
Wildlife Australia Magazine
WAM was first published in 1963. It is now a popular colour wildlife magazine published every quarter and distributed to subscribers around the country and overseas.
Conferences and publishing
Wildlife Queensland has organised conferences on northern conservation heritage, and agriculture and conservation; workshops on neighbourhood environment activities, and land-use planning; Australian frogs and urban wildlife.
Our conferences and activities often turned into books. Wildlife Queensland produces brochures full of handy wildife information.
Wildlife Queensland's website runs constantly updated conservation information for the wider public. We also distribute our newsletter to members.
Batty Boat Cruises
For more than 20 years, Wildlife Queensland's Brisbane Branch has organised Batty Boat Cruises on the Brisbane River to see the Indooroopilly colony of flying foxes on their evening fly out. Batty Boat Cruises.
Wildlife Queensland is
consulted on government
plans that affect wildlife
and its habitat across
Queensland.Law and Policy
Wildlife Queensland is consulted on proposed legislation and regulations, both at state and federal levels. Recent submissions.
Adapting our role
The nature of conservation activism changed in the 1990s, away from confrontation towards cooperation. Wildlife Queensland evolved too. We are still involved in big campaigns, and we have expanded our work with environmental policymakers. Now we do a lot of our work through policy committees and by making submissions. We work with government and law-making bodies to consolidate the system of environmental protection that we have campaigned for from 1962.
Native vegetation management
Wildlife Queensland was the only conservation group that was in consultation with the Queensland Government to broker the Vegetation Management Amendment Act of 2004.
From 1999 to 2004, Wildlife Queensland worked with the government to map native vegetation and recommend changes to improve the Act's protection of native vegetation. Vegetation management in Queensland: Change don't chop.Policies are a voice for wildlife
Wildlife Queensland develops policy positions on significant issues of conservation and the environment.
These policies are based on research papers, accumulated knowledge, and cooperation and consultation with Society members, expert bodies or individuals specialising in that field.
Established policies form the basis for the Society's activities, submissions, responses and campaigns. Wildlife Queensland can proactively promote the cause of conservation in a sustained manner based on policy guidelines rather than reacting to individual issues as they arise.
These policies also allow members and interested community participants to appreciate the basis that guides any position the Society adopts on an issue. By inviting members' comment, the policies ensure that the Society's views are presented rather than the personal views of the spokesperson.
