Portfolio — 16 June 2026

Minister for Environment and Water Murray Watt announced on 15 June that McCoys Creek Wetland on the Gold Coast has been designated Australia's second Conserved Area under the National Other Effective area-based Conservation Measures (OECMs) Framework — and the first such designation managed by a local government authority [TA-260615-climat-82c906f7b626]. The 146-hectare site supports four threatened species (the tusked frog, water mouse, koala and Moreton Bay lily), contains seven distinct regional ecosystems and two federally listed threatened ecological communities, and forms part of the Northern Koala Corridor [TA-260615-climat-82c906f7b626].

The designation was secured through a three-way partnership between the Albanese and Crisafulli Governments and the City of Gold Coast, with Watt framing the OECMs mechanism as a way to formally recognise biodiversity conservation that occurs outside the conventional protected area system [TA-260615-climat-82c906f7b626].

This announcement follows the designation of Mimal Indigenous Protected Area on 13 June, giving the portfolio two Conserved Area milestones within three days. Taken together, the two designations illustrate an explicit strategy to diversify conservation delivery: combining Indigenous land management with local government stewardship alongside traditional protected areas.

Both moves are framed within the national 30-by-2030 target — protecting 30 per cent of Australia's land by the end of the decade. The McCoys Creek designation is notable because it establishes a precedent for council-managed conservation at the federal level, opening a pathway for other local governments to seek formal recognition of biodiversity work they are already undertaking.