Location and size
In 1986, the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia was inscribed as a World Heritage site. At first, the listing only included the remnant patches of rainforest in New South Wales. In 1994, it was extended to the Queensland section. It comprises several properties in eight separate groups of reserves, containing 41parts, ranging in size from small to very large.
The entire site has an area of 366,507 hectares, with 59,223 hectares in Queensland, including Lamington, Springbrook, Mount Barney and Main Range National Parks.
World Heritage value
The Gondwana Rainforests of Australia represent outstanding examples of:
- major stages of the Earth’s evolutionary history (criterion xiii)
- ongoing geological and biological processes (criterion ix)
- significant natural habitats for in-situ conservation of biological diversity (criterion x).
The Gondwana Rainforests of Australia are the major remaining rainforest areas in southeast Queensland and northeast New South Wales. These areas are remnants of the once-vast rainforests that covered Australia when the climate was cooler and wetter.
There is a wide range of plant and animal lineages and communities, some with ancient origins linking to the southern supercontinent, Gondwana, 180 million years ago. Many of these relict and primitive taxa. survive only within this site.
The Gondwana Rainforests also provide the principal habitat for many threatened species of plants and animals, including more than 270 threatened species
In addition to the World Heritage natural criteria, the Gondwana Rainforests have cultural value for First Nations peoples. The Queensland section of Gondwana Rainforests includes the Country of these peoples:
- Githabul Yuggera
- Ugarapul
- Yugambeh.
