“No assessment needed” for habitat destruction in NT

“No assessment needed” adds insult to injury as destruction of threatened bird habitat is approved in the NT

BirdLife Australia says federal approval of the destruction of Red Goshawk and Gouldian Finch habitat without requiring an environmental assessment makes a mockery of Australia’s updated nature laws and puts threatened species at risk. Nearly 3000 hectares of tropical savanna in the Northern Territory will be cleared for crops by the Top End Pastoral Company on Claravale farm and station in the Daly River region, despite numerous threatened species being present in the area.

Both the Red Goshawk and the colourful Gouldian Finch are listed as Endangered species under the EPBC act and are only found in Australia. BirdLife Australia scientists say habitat destruction is pushing both species toward extinction. 11 other potentially impacted threatened species have been identified by the Environment Centre of the NT. The NT is particularly reliant on national laws as it is the only jurisdiction in Australia without specific native vegetation laws or an overarching biodiversity conservation strategy.

The destruction of the tropical savanna habitat was given the go-ahead by the federal environment department on the same day that US resources giant Alcoa was granted permission to continue clearing the world’s only Jarrah Forests near Perth, despite being ordered to pay $55 million for illegal clearing.

BirdLife Australia is working with traditional owner ranger groups in the Northern Territory to urgently locate and document Red Goshawk nests. New nests discovered as part of this project have been significant for the conservation prospects of this species.

Gouldian Finches are one of Australia’s most cherished birds. The destruction of Gouldian Finch habitat at Lee Point (Binybara) caused outrage in 2024 when the local community and Larrakia traditional owners brought attention to habitat being cleared by Defence Housing Australia.

BirdLife Australia CEO Kate Millar said:

“The Red Goshawk has become Australia’s rarest bird of prey because its habitat has routinely been bulldozed. More than 30% of its habitat has been lost, leading to the collapse of populations along the east coast.

“To greenlight more destruction, without even assessing how threatened species like the Red Goshawk and Gouldian Finch will be affected is yet another example of how the extinction process looks like in Australia today.

“Declaring that no assessment is needed before destroying threatened species habitat adds insult to injury. It’s not just a failure of oversight, it’s a deliberate absence of it.

“If this is how Australia’s new nature laws will continue to operate, we’re on a terrifying trajectory toward extinctions of the species our laws are supposed to protect.”

Mitch Rose, Co-convenor, BirdLife Top End said:

“We hoped recent EPBC reforms would be a lifeline for the Northern Territory’s inadequately protected environment, and yet, this proposal was approved by Environment Minister Murray Watt without comprehensive ground surveys.

“BirdLife Top End is concerned that decisions affecting important habitats have been made without the baseline data required for evidence-based decision-making.

“Robust assessment is essential to ensure matters of national environmental significance, including EPBC listed bird species and the habitat they rely on, are properly considered before irreversible habitat destruction occurs. Without appropriate safeguards informed by robust science, we risk significant impacts to bird populations.”

BirdLife Australia Media Enquiries
Please contact James Johnson on 0423 659 324 or at media@birdlife.org.au.