I'm a nature campaigner and I've spent the last few months working with ACF's Investigations team to identify instances where protected ecosystems have been bulldozed on farmland.
Here's what I've learned from speaking with the farmers doing the bulldozing and what needs to change.
But first - why is ACF detecting bulldozing on farmland?
In December 2025, the Australian Parliament passed changes to the country's federal nature protection laws.
One of the changes which took immediate effect was tightening a loophole that previously allowed the agricultural sector to bulldoze protected ecosystems without the same checks and balances as other industries.
As of December 2025, the law is clear. Destroying vegetation that is over 15 years old or within 50 metres of a waterway that drains into the Great Barrier Reef is no longer exempt from the law.
Previously, this kind of bulldozing could have been covered by a loophole called the 'continuous use exemption' which means it was routinely bulldozed without being referred for assessment under Australia's nature protection law.
Now, if bulldozing bushland that's over 15 years old is likely to have a 'significant impact' on a protected species like koalas, quolls or black cockatoos or on protected plants and ecosystems, it is no longer covered by the old 'continuous use' exemption. It must be assessed and given the tick of approval by the federal government before it can happen.
While these changes are welcome, this bulldozing is still happening without the federal OK being sought first.
What have we found?
ACF's Investigations team has been scouring the satellites and uncovered more than a dozen examples of bulldozing on farmland, mainly cattle properties,that we believe should have first been referred to the federal government for assessment but wasn't.
This includes critically endangered grassy woodlands in Queensland, important koala trees, subtropical rainforest in New South Wales and areas mapped as being homes for threatened animals like quolls and regent honeyeaters.
All of this bulldozing occurred after the nature protection laws were tightened and, while some it had State approval, none of it had been assessed let alone approved at the federal level.
This destruction is a big problem for wildlife, farmers and everyday Aussies like you and me.
Here's just a few reasons why:
The homes of threatened animals are being flattened. Threatened species like koalas, quolls and black cockatoos cannot afford to be pushed closer toward extinction.
It impacts soil and water quality. Forests and woodlands provide countless benefits like healthy soil, clean water, cooling and rainfall.
It harms the climate. Deforestation currently emits around 55 million tonnes of CO2e per year in Australia, that's almost as much as all the passenger cars in Australia.
The damage can reach our oceans. Deforestation damages the Great Barrier Reef and other coastal ecosystems by increasing nutrient and sediment runoff that harms coral.
It put farmers at legal risk. When the proper approvals aren't sought out, bulldozing puts farmers at risk of breaching the federal nature protection law.
