WWF conservation scientist Stuart Blanch, who has visited the site and studied the plans, said no such habitat should be destroyed.

“That number has come down, but that number should be zero. Nobody should be clearing high-quality koala habitat when they’ve got a lot of cleared country,” Blanch said.

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A spokeswoman for Lendlease said protecting koala habitat had been the developer’s key environmental consideration during planning.

“Our proposed koala conservation corridors will regenerate and protect 220 hectares of koala habitat in perpetuity, providing an opportunity to transition away from the continuation of native vegetation and habitat decline under multiple generations of rural management.”

Lendlease said the planned commercial zone could reduce danger to koalas as residents were less likely to need to drive from the estate for shopping.

NSW Environment Minister James Griffin has launched the state’s koala protection strategy, aimed at helping the government double koala numbers after it was listed as endangered in NSW, Queensland and the ACT in February.

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The koala population has fallen by 41 per cent between 2018 and 2021 in NSW, according to the Australian Koala Foundation, with habitat destruction, disease, climate change and associated bushfires being the main threats.

The Lendlease development lies close to the 150-hectare 19th century Mt Gilead estate, which the state government announced in 2020 would be protected on heritage grounds and as a koala habitat.

“The way we treat our koalas is a reflection on how we respect the environment,” said then-environment minister Matt Kean at the time.

Kean and Griffin declined to comment for this story.

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