Australia Lost One-Third of its Koalas in Last Three Years
2021-09-27
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1The Australian Koala Foundation says Australia has lost about 30 percent of its koalas over the past three years.
2The non-profit group says drought, wildfires and development projects played a part in the drop in the koala population.
3They are urging the government to do more to protect the creature's environment.
4The group estimated the koala population has dropped to less than 58,000 this year from more than 80,000 in 2018.
5The biggest decrease was in the state of New South Wales, where the numbers have dropped by 41 percent.
6Deborah Tabart leads the Australian Koala Foundation.
7She called the drop "quite dramatic."
8Only one area in the study was estimated to have more than 5,000 koalas.
9Some areas were estimated to have as few as five or 10.
10Tabart said the country needs a koala protection law.
11She added, "What we're concerned about is places like western New South Wales where the drought over the last ten years has just had this cumulative effect - river systems completely dry for years, river [red gum plants], which are the lifeblood of koalas, dead."
12The loss in New South Wales likely sped up after large forest areas were destroyed by wildfires in late 2019 and early 2020.
13But some of those areas already had no koalas.
14Land clearing by property developers and road builders has also destroyed the koala's environment.
15"I think everyone gets it, we've got to change. But if those bulldozers keep working, then I really fear for the koalas," Tabart said.
16I'm Jonathan Evans.
1The Australian Koala Foundation says Australia has lost about 30 percent of its koalas over the past three years. The non-profit group says drought, wildfires and development projects played a part in the drop in the koala population. They are urging the government to do more to protect the creature's environment. 2The group estimated the koala population has dropped to less than 58,000 this year from more than 80,000 in 2018. The biggest decrease was in the state of New South Wales, where the numbers have dropped by 41 percent. 3Deborah Tabart leads the Australian Koala Foundation. She called the drop "quite dramatic." 4Only one area in the study was estimated to have more than 5,000 koalas. Some areas were estimated to have as few as five or 10. 5Tabart said the country needs a koala protection law. 6She added, "What we're concerned about is places like western New South Wales where the drought over the last ten years has just had this cumulative effect - river systems completely dry for years, river [red gum plants], which are the lifeblood of koalas, dead." 7The loss in New South Wales likely sped up after large forest areas were destroyed by wildfires in late 2019 and early 2020. But some of those areas already had no koalas. 8Land clearing by property developers and road builders has also destroyed the koala's environment. 9"I think everyone gets it, we've got to change. But if those bulldozers keep working, then I really fear for the koalas," Tabart said. 10I'm Jonathan Evans. 11James Redmayne reported on this story for the Reuters news service. Jonathan Evans adapted this story for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. 12________________________________________________ 13Words in This Story 14drought - n. a long period of time during which there is very little or no rain 15dramatic - adj. sudden and extreme 16cumulative - adj. increasing or becoming better or worse over time through a series of additions 17lifeblood - n. the most important part of something; the part of something that provides its strength and energy 18bulldozer - n. a powerful and heavy vehicle that has a large curved piece of metal at its front and that is used for moving dirt and rocks and pushing over trees and other structures