Koala Ecosystem Enhancement Program (KEEP)

Program guidelines

The Koala Ecosystem Enhancement Program (KEEP) is a free, non-binding, voluntary program for landholders on Redlands Coast, providing advice and support for koala habitat restoration on private land, including planting of koala food trees and work to enhance wildlife corridor connections.

Registered landholders in KEEP can apply for assistance each financial year to undertake ecosystem restoration works on their property. The amount of assistance is based on the available koala habitat area (KHA) on the property and ranges from a minimum of $450 to a maximum of $1000 (excl GST) as per the table below. Applications for financial assistance are submitted through Council’s online SmartyGrants.

Program eligibility

To qualify for KEEP, your property must:

• Have a minimum of 4000m2 of KHA (the area of your property outside building envelopes).
• Have established koala food trees present, and/or the ability to establish koala habitat.
• Be within a wildlife corridor or core habitat area as per the Wildlife Connections Plan, within State Government mapped koala habitat and/or within a koala safe neighbourhood.

Projects eligible for financial assistance include:

• Revegetation works with a focus on restoring/rehabilitating the KHA and enhancing connectivity with nearby corridors using local native plant species. Note that only plant species listed in the regional ecosystem and vegetation association guide relevant to your property will be approved for revegetation projects.
• Environmental weed control/management in the KHA to support habitat enhancement and improve fauna movement.
• Aged forest mulch from pre-approved suppliers. Note that mulch can only be used for plantings completed through the program. Mulch will not be provided for pre-established garden beds. The amount of mulch requested must match the number of plants at a ratio of at least 10 plants per cubic metre of mulch.
• Contractor engagement to assist you with planting, installing tree guards, preparing a site for revegetation, weed control, or spreading aged forest mulch.
• Contractor engagement to remove barbed wire.
• Tree guards, stakes, wallaby-proof fencing, and materials to protect plantings.
• Engaging a Council approved, Level-5 or higher arborist to assess and perform maintenance pruning/removal of deadwood on koala habitat trees (e.g. Eucalyptus tereticornis, E. racemosa, E. microcorys, E. propinqua). within the KHA that are near infrastructure and housing.
• Koala friendly fencing materials including Koppers logs, construction of an approved koala bridge or escape ladder by a Council approved contractor.
• Exclusionary fencing to keep dogs from the KHA.

Please consult the Koala Sensitive Design Guideline for more information on koala friendly and exclusionary fencing.

Note: The program will only provide up to the allocated funding amount for the property towards projects. Projects that exceed the funding amount will require financial contribution from the landholder.

Projects ineligible for assistance

• Works outside of the registered property boundaries or KHA.
• Works that do not provide a clear environmental benefit.
• Landscaping works for visual/scenic amenity e.g. garden beds and lawn maintenance.
• Planting of non-endemic species e.g. species not included in the property management plan.
• Maintenance of non-koala food trees or koala food trees that are outside of the KHA and/or not posing risk to permanent infrastructure.
• Complete removal of live and/or dead trees of any species.
• Activities that fall within normal landholder responsibilities e.g. maintenance of mown areas and buildings.
• Costs associated with any permit required for funding works.
• Supply of soil, sand or fertiliser.
• Supply of and/or installation of nest boxes.

Landholder contribution

It is expected landholders match the programs funding 1:1. Contributions can be made in two ways; as monetary contributions or in-kind contributions i.e. use of own labour, equipment, resources or materials. In-kind contributions are costed at $43.30/hr. e.g. $450 equates to approximately 10 hours and $1000 equates to approximately 23 hours.

Project monitoring and maintenance requirements

The landholder is required to undertake a minimum of 12 months on-going monitoring and maintenance of Council funded works completed through the KEEP. Monitoring and maintenance may include, but is not limited to:

• watering of newly revegetated areas to ensure plants have the best chance of survival
• environmental weed control e.g. hand weeding and/or treatment to ensure environmental weeds continue to be managed appropriately following works undertaken by Council.

Non-compliance

At Council’s discretion, the following activities may result in deregistration from the program or ineligibility for future financial support:

• Not contributing to projects being funded by Council i.e. via in-kind contributions or monetary contributions.
• Not actively maintaining previous works or managing known threats on the property e.g. environmental weeds.
• Clearing native vegetation (excluding approved fire access tracks) on the property and/or clearing works previously funded by Council.

Contact Information

For more information regarding the Koala Ecosystem Enhancement Program, please contact the Environmental Partnerships Team, email environmentalpartnerships@redland.qld.gov.au or on (07) 3824 8611.