We love good news, and just now, us people of NSW have received some of the best. A brand-new (huge) national park has just been created in our humble state, and we are pretty excited about it.
The NSW government has just purchased 437,400 hectares of land in an area 250 kilometres north-west of Bourke, making this new national park the third-largest in the state. Located on the traditional lands of the Karenggapa and Parundji people in the red, rolling hills of Corner Country in Outback NSW, this gigantic land mass has been strategically purchased to protect loads of endangered native animals, plants and eco-systems.
This new area will safeguard 50 critically threatened species, as well as a number of complex water systems, rivers and lakes. Plus, it will be carefully maintained in collaboration with local Indigenous community members, ensuring that ancient artefacts and priceless heritage remain protected.
Tucked away near the South Australian border in a far corner of NSW, this new park is located right next to the existing Sturt National Park and Narrieara-Caryapundy National Park. Together, the three of these protected areas equate to one super mass of national park that will rival the size of many others around the world, including Yosemite in the United States.
The NSW government bought the land from a farmer, Peter Hughes, whose land has been used as a sheep and cattle station known as Thurloo Downs, with his expansive property containing a critical eco-system for a large number of waterbirds from all over the country. The land in question will have $4 million injected into it to create visitor and park infrastructure, and the NSW Parks and Wildlife Service will spend the next two years undertaking a feral animal and weed control program to further protect it for future generations. It’s a big yes from us.
This news means that 10.2 per cent of the entirety of NSW is covered by national parks, putting us on track to (hopefully) meet the goal of protecting 30 per cent of Australian land by 2030.
Here’s hoping.
The park will open to visitors in 2025.