Ms Holcombe-Hartge is currently circulating a petition looking for support to have a current protected area to be extended to include Morgans Gully and a wildlife corridor in the same area.

More than 200 local people have signed the petition, which will be put before council with the hope the sensitive wildlife corridor would be protected, Ms Holcombe-Hartge said.

“This is a sensitive wildlife corridor, rainforest creek and swamp that contain Aboriginal sites and is home to threatened species,” she said.

“It must be preserved for the future biodiversity of this area. Council needs to ensure sensitive areas like this are protected now, before the projected increases in population and development occur.”

Ms Holcombe-Hartge is also trying to secure the future of her wallaby release area, which she said could be jeopardised if any more of the wildlife corridor was lost.

“Animals need stepping stones to access other areas,” she said.

“If they can’t move, they will slowly become extinct in that area.”

Ms Holcombe-Hartge currently cares for wallabies that have been injured by domestic animals, or injured or orphaned on the roads.

The area around Morgans Gully creates a corridor to the nearby national park, Ms Holcombe-Hartge said, and the wallabies could then move on to other areas. It is the only release area currently operating between Repton and Kempsey.

“It is not just wallabies that need it – it is reptiles, bird species, everything,” she said.

“I want to make sure that this area’s biodiversity is protected.”

The Nambucca Shire Council’s new Local Environmental Plan is currently on public exhibition.