A re-elected Albanese Labor Government will deliver $800,000 to better protect native animals and their homes in Campbelltown.

Labor Member for Macarthur, Mike Freelander, welcomed the Member for Sydney, Tanya Plibersek, to Campbelltown on Thursday to announce funding for two vital local projects.

This election commitment will invest $500,000 to boost waterway health and restore critical platypus habitat on the Nepean River. The project will include establishing river snags for platypus, weed removal, and planting 5,000 plants over 7.3 hectares in Castlereagh Ironbark Forest.

Labor is also committing $300,000 to safeguard the future of koalas in Southwest Sydney. The funding will be used to restore 100 hectares of key koala habitat in the Georges River Corridor, through activities like planting and weed treatment. This would be the largest project of its kind in Sydney.

This builds on the Albanese Labor Government’s other investments to better protect our environment, including over $550 million to better protect threatened plants and animals and tackle invasive pests. We’ve also invested $200 million in over 100 projects to clean up rivers and waterways in urban areas.

Consistent with past practice, election commitments will be delivered in line with Commonwealth Grants Rules and Principles. 

Quotes attributable to Member for Sydney, Tanya Plibersek:

“No-one wants to imagine an Australia without our iconic Aussie animals like platypus and koalas. I want to make sure that our kids and grandkids will still be able to see them in the wild.

“That’s why the Albanese Labor Government has protected an extra 100 million hectares of Australian ocean and bush, approved enough renewable energy to power more than 10 million homes and increased recycling capacity by more than 1 million tonnes a year.

“We’ve also doubled funding for our neglected national parks, we’re investing a record $1.2 billion to protect and restore the Great Barrier Reef, we’ve established more Indigenous Protected Areas, and funded world-leading environmental science – from the Great Barrier Reef to Antarctica. We’re also investing more than half a billion dollars to save our native plants and animals from extinction, including more than $76 million for koalas.

‘Labor knows that communities across Australia play a crucial role in protecting and conserving this beloved animal. This funding will enable locals in the Campbelltown area to do what they do best – getting communities involved in looking after nature.

“The choice at the election couldn’t be clearer. Labor who will protect nature, fund essential science, invest in threatened species, and act on climate change. Or the climate deniers and wreckers of the Liberal and National parties who haven’t made a single commitment that would help improve nature.”

Quotes attributable to Member for Macarthur, Mike Freelander:

"I'm delighted that a re-elected Albanese Labor Government will back this project to help preserve and protect our local platypus and koala habitats.

Macarthur is home to incredible flora and fauna, and I am committed to protecting and bolstering our environment, and with this announcement, I’m proud that our government is doing just that”