Driving along the Bruxner Highway between Lismore and Casino recently, you may have seen a sign up saying five koalas died in August around the area at the corner of Tatham Road.

What to do about preserving this koala colony, so close to the highway, has been painstakingly debated, and one of the more popular solutions, a Koala Fence, is about to be installed.

“Lismore City Council (LCC) is pleased to announce the appointment of a contractor to manage the installation of a koala exclusion fence on the corner of Tatham Road and the Bruxner Highway at Tatham to reduce the number of deaths and injuries at this roadkill hotspot,” a spokesperson for the Lismore City Council said.

Ecoteam are the contractors who will manage the infrastructure to be put into place.  Lise Bolton from Ecoteam said they, "Are excited to be part of the project that will be beneficial to the community and environment." The first step is community and landholder engagement so they can finalise the design.

LCC says the works will involve the installation of the following key components:

• 1.5km of fencing along both sides of the Bruxner Highway, commencing at the Pelican Creek Bridge and including the intersection and 120m of Tatham Road.
• Safe crossing point under Pelican Creek Bridge
• Koala grids (similar to cattle grids) across three driveways
• A number of one-way escape poles which will allow koalas that accidentally enter the roadside to escape.

Unfortunately, this design does not include dedicated under-road tunnels for koalas to safely cross from one part of their territory to another. 

Angie Brace, Regional Koala Officer at Friends of the Koala, says there is no simple single solution for protecting the koalas, but this is a good start.

"Koala fences prevent koalas from crossing the busiest sections of roads. It is very exciting that the koala fencing on this section of the Bruxner is back on track. But while we wait for construction to start, we are asking for the community's help to save this population of koalas by slowing down. 

"Koalas move around predominantly at night, which makes it hard to see them on rural roads. As it is breeding season, there is more activity than normal, which heightens their threat—especially from June through to the end of December.

 "The koala fence will protect this important hotspot area, but they move around over large home ranges. Two more koalas have been hit in the last 24 hours at McKees Hill and Parrots Nest, highlighting the importance of staying alert and slowing down, especially at dawn and dusk."

Research says that Koalas range as far as they need to, depending predominantly on necessity - habitat, food availability and other colonies. Home ranges range from around 5 hectares up to around 30 hectares for dominant males.

(Taken on Wyrallah Road, approximately 6km from Pelican Creek Bridge)

"The best way to protect them is to keep a close eye out for them, and slow down an hour before dusk and take it easy on the roads until after dawn. 

"That will help while the fence is under construction and at all places, koala colonies and other wildlife are found.

"As the Bruxner is a state road, changing the speed limit is not easy, and threat to wildlife is not a priority for dictating speed, even though it is a threat to drivers if they hit an animal.  

(Heeding these signs is your opportunity to help)

"Not just physically, but emotionally - the knowledge of contributing to the death of an endangered species is unsettling. People understandably get very anxious and upset about it. One of the deaths last month was a mother and her joey. 

“It is very important that if you hit a koala or see one on the side of the road, that you call the Friends of the Koala Rescue hotline on (02) 6622 1233. Save that number in your phone so you have it on hand.”

“Along the fenced section of road, drivers and koalas will definitely have better protection, but consider that the ends of the fence locations may be hot spots for koala crossings.”

Council’s Environmental Strategies Officer, Jack Herington, said, “The project was strongly backed by the community when it went out for public consultation.

“Unfortunately, it was delayed due to the 2022 natural disaster, then by project management constraints and availability.

“However, Council never lost sight of the importance of the project and it is now going ahead and is expected to be completed towards the latter half of next year, weather dependent.”

(An example of Koala Fencing. Image Credit: Lismore City Council)

The project has brought together a range of stakeholders and specialists from Lismore City Council, Friends of the Koala, Transport for NSW and NSW Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) to deliver this important project for conserving our local koala population.

Lismore City Council received funding from the NSW Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW) to deliver this project for the community.