(From left) GM3 sustainability director Gary Brassington, Symbio managing director Matt Radnidge, Minister Ryan Park, GM3 Dendrobium general manager Simon Thomas, Symbio conservation manager Jarrad Prangell, Minister Paul Scully, and GM3 environmental superintendent Matt Anderton. Photos: Keeli Dyson.
A mining organisation and a conservation foundation have come together to better discover and protect the threatened animal species that call the Illawarra escarpment home, with Symbio and GM3 extending their partnership to deliver new programs.
A mission to protect and preserve the creatures that inhabit the bushland around Mount Kembla has received a $450,000 boost with major Illawarra organisations joining forces to continue a vital conservation program in the area.
The investment by GM3 will allow the Symbio Conservation Foundation and Symbio Wildlife Park to conduct important projects on the mine operator’s land to better discover the wildlife there and how it can be better protected.
“We have quite an awesome group of threatened species here in the Illawarra, from koalas to greater gliders to the smallest microbats,” Symbio conservation manager Jarrad Prangell said.
“Some of them are threatened, some of them are not. We don’t really know what we have here, so we’ve got a lot of fundamental research that we need to develop.”
The three-year Mount Kembla Integrated Threatened Species and Habitat Recovery Program will include the creation of habitats for threatened wildlife, vital research and monitoring of the animals that inhabit our escarpment, and even the reintroduction of a locally extinct frog species.
Habitat-creation tools help to provide more long-term solutions for protecting wildlife.
“GM3 is very proud to operate in the Illawarra area and we think it’s quite important that, as businesses in the local area, we’re supporting the local habitat and the long-term viability of the escarpment and the habitat around that,” GM3 Dendrobium general manager Simon Thomas said.
“So, using our land to be able to track these threatened species and show how they can grow and how vibrant that local area can be is really important to us to be able to contribute and help Symbio with that conservation.”
The partnership has been renewed after years of collaboration to better understand the species in the area, including embracing evolving technology such as thermal drones.
“Three years ago, we started a Mount Kembla conservation program and we’ve discovered quite a lot,” Jarrad said.
“Science was in its early stages when it came to drones, and we were able to start and carry on a three-year drone program in this region which is going to carry on for another three years.
“With that program, we’re able to actually work out the numbers of koalas and greater gliders up here in Mount Kembla in the Illawarra.”
Planning Minister and Wollongong MP Paul Scully said: “Outside of the government, GM3 is one of the bigger landholders in the escarpment and plateau in and around the Illawarra.
“The continuation of the partnership between Symbio Conservation Foundation and GM3 allows us to better understand not only what happens in the habitat now, but what interventions there might need to be in the future to maintain, improve that habitat.”
The program will also invest in shared conservation infrastructure, monitoring technology, research equipment and specialised habitat-creation tools, to ensure the capacity for further impact and potential beyond the current agreement.
“It’s a pretty fundamental step,” Jarrad said.
“It’s going to give us a lot of infrastructure. It’s going to allow us to build a team that can carry on the conservation programs for a lot longer than three years.”
Thermal drone technology assists conservationists with surveying and tracking animals.
The initiatives and investment are part of the mining company’s bid to operate responsibly and sustainably in the region, with the partnership proof that industry does not have to be a direct conflict with environmental preservation.
“I think it’s vitally important that mines can operate sustainably in their area, and conservation outcomes are a contributing part of that,” Simon said.
“We have strict regulatory frameworks that we have to operate under, and this is a key part of what we do: looking after the habitats that are in the mining areas that we have, so that we can mine sustainably.”
Minister for the Illawarra and Keira MP Ryan Park said: “We know that for many years, we are one of the largest and oldest coal-mining communities in the country. What we’re doing now is leading the way with a world-class organisation like Symbio, partnering with them for better conservation outcomes.
“And that is an absolutely clear example of how industry and conservation can work together for the betterment of our local community. We’re not saying it’s got to be one or the other, we’re actually saying here is an example of where the two can work well together.
“I do believe that this is an example that can be used across our country to make sure that we better understand and protect our threatened species.”
To find out more about Symbio’s conservation efforts and the foundation, visit the Symbio website.
