Sunday, February 2, 2020

Portland Koala 'Massacre'



By Marlowe Richmond



Controversy over the latest Koala deaths discovery.

From a small coastal town in South-west Victoria 




(A little disclaimer: I am not a journalist. I have not studied journalism nor am I paid for it. I am trying to find the truth behind the koala devastation in Southwest Victoria, the information gathered is from locals and firsthand.)


It has come to light in the last 5 days of a concerning discovery of live koalas being trapped inside a local block of land recently bulldozed, 15km west of Portland, Victoria. Social media has taken off, sharing photos and reports, however not all of it is true. We need to identify the correct information from people who witnessed and know exactly what happened. As a local to Portland, I watched the development of the failed plantation be removed over the past 5 months. The vegetation housed many species of local wildlife (reptiles, birds, echidnas, kangaroo’s, wallabies and koalas ) so it was assumed that when a fence went up that the animals would be removed and would stop any further ones from entering. The images shown are a comparison taken from the 31st of August to the 5th of October looking back towards the land in question, as you can clearly see the vegetation untouched on the left and then the cleared rows on the right. This is before and during the bulldozing taking place, we don’t know for sure when this clearing officially commenced... 



(31st August 2019, picture: MARLOWE RICHMOND)     (5th October 2019, picture: MARLOWE RICHMOND)           

On the 30th of January the town became aware of the distressed Koalas in the heat after local, Helen Oakley, discovered this disturbing situation the night before. We believe the animals were trapped and could not get access to resources, however we can’t be 100% sure they weren’t able to leave; as there have been reported sightings that they can climb over the fence. Regardless we do know that it is confirmed that dozens of koalas have been killed and some euthanized because they were so badly injured. Volunteers are still assessing the devastation and rescuing what is believed to be well over 100 Koalas, while vets have been working over the weekend trying to help what remains of this koala population. Photos have arisen across the internet of deceased animals wedged in the piles of demolished plantation, resident Helen Oakley shared a distressing video on the property which has gone viral. I don’t feel the need to share these grim images, but I’m sure you can see them posted elsewhere. There is a chance this could go global, all eyes focused on Portland but sadly not for the right reasons. There is no doubt there is more than koalas that have died due to these conditions, it is so disappointing to know that this state of affairs could have been avoided.  








(Photo Facebook: Helen Oakley and Janice Tonkin 30th January 2020)


                                                     
The State Government is now investigating further to find out who is responsible for the death of wildlife, South West Fibre has come out with a statement claiming they are not responsible, so who is? I have so many questions left unanswered on this whole situation; what is going to happen to the piles of trees? If they are to be burnt isn’t that a waste of resources?   
The chances of council members driving past in the last 5 months is practically certain, did they not see what was going on and question this themselves? Surely they would have to give permission to the owner/company and be watching to see if they follow protocols? Surely someone with status in this situation would have seen and passed this plan of destruction? Could this all have been avoided?


I do not want to take sides and cause any more outrage then what has already occurred, but I am guttered to know that in the current state of our country that this sort of immoral practices have happened and are most likely occurring elsewhere. It is absolutely appalling. I live in a blue gum plantation, does that mean the same fate will occur to the animals like that of which has befell these poor creatures?  We need to protect our country. All we can do now is wait for updates on ways we can help and stop this from happening in the future.

Please leave your comments below for a further discussion...

If you have any more information please email me at faceofthesouthwest@gmail.com

(Koala, Cape Bridgewater photo: MARLOWE RICHMOND)


links: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-02-02/koala-deaths-in-victorias-south-west-to-be-investigated/11922088?fbclid=IwAR2HNPWF2xH7xG5wxvbRO9AfK_XquXve5T5GDpAABxGi1BhCycc4V68hH9M

https://10play.com.au/theproject/news/2019/scores-of-koalas-have-died-from-logging-in-victoria/tpv200202gjsfo

https://www.midwaylimited.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/MR-re-koalas_2Feb2020_Final.pdf?fbclid=IwAR2AJHWvNP137ws_jkbjErzAN5A22HZy_Q6fFLdo0PkNht4En6659c_nZrQ

                                                      
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              
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