THREATENED SPECIES GROW AT A RECORD RATE
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* 144 species and ecological communities were added to the national list of threatened species last year
* That's double the previous record high in 2009
* The spike is due to a mix of things including unsustainable habitat destruction but also efforts to clear a backlog of recommended listings
* A total of 2212 Australian plants, animals and ecosystems are now listed under federal laws as threatened with extinction
* 11 species were reclassified into a higher category of concern, meaning they've slipped further towards extinction
* 10,426 hectares of habitat destruction for 44 projects was approved last year under national environment laws - roughly 5000 Melbourne Cricket Grounds
* While far lower than the average during the past decade it remains unsustainable and is likely a fraction of the true picture given the scale of illegal land clearing
* Four new gas projects and four new cola projects were approved last year under national environment laws but only one was blocked - a thermal and coking coal project in central Queensland
Source: Extinction Wrapped 2023, a report by the Australian Conservation Foundation
Australian Associated Press
