Decade-long campaign sees Munga-Thirri-Simpson Desert declared Australia's largest national park

Following a decade-long campaign to protect the area from exploration by fossil fuel companies, the Munga-Thirri-Simpson desert has been declared Australia’s largest ever national park.

Although the desert stretches into Queensland and the Northern Territory, the area covered by the new national park lies within the Lake Eyre Basin in South Australia covering 3.6 million hectares - double the size of Kakadu – the next biggest national park in Australia – and four times the size of Yellowstone national park in the United States.

The Munga-Thirri / Simpson Desert is a vast, globally significant wilderness within the Lake Eyre Basin, in the very heart of Australia. It’s home to the world’s longest parallel sand dunes, more than 900 species of plants and animals including dingoes, thorny devils and wedge-tailed eagles and has continuous First Nations custodianship stretching back thousands of years.

South Australian Minister for Environment and Water David Speirs noted “It is truly exciting that South Australia is now home to Australia’s largest national park and along with our other changes this provides a significant boost to conservation as well as enhance our reputation as a world-class eco-tourism destination.”

Wilderness Society South Australia Director Peter Owen welcomed the creation of the Munga-Thirri-Simpson Desert National Park and noted "we commend Minister Speirs and the South Australian Government for creating Australia's largest ever national park in the Munga-Thirri-Simpson Desert.

“For over a decade the Wilderness Society has been advocating for a conservation corridor in the heart of Australia, allowing endangered animals and plants to move and adapt to a rapidly changing climate. This grand initiative is a significant step.

"Conservation measures like this are critically important, allowing endangered animals and plants to move and adapt to a rapidly changing climate.

“When rain transforms this remarkable landscape into temporary wetlands, thousands of birds from across Australia flock here to feed and breed. Then native flowers burst into colour across the burnt orange sand, a beautiful garden that seems to stretch into infinity.”

However, the Wilderness Society highlights that all this could be lost if the fossil fuel industry expands into the region.

Owen shares “proclaiming a national park sends a strong signal that an area is too precious to put at risk. We hope fossil fuel company Tri-Star recognises this and withdraws their exploration proposal for the region, following the lead of BP, Chevron and Equinor who recently withdrew their drilling plans for the Great Australian Bight."

The new national park for the Simpson Desert has been made through changing the legal status of the existing Munga-Thirri–Simpson Desert Regional Reserve and Conservation Park, which will strengthen the park’s conservation and biodiversity values.

South Australia is now home to Australia’s largest national park as well as four other new national parks  - Wapma Thura - Southern Flinders Ranges National Park, Lake Frome National Park and the upgrade of Cleland and Deep Creek to national parks.

The new changes mark the biggest expansion of national parks in the state’s history backed up by the largest ever government investment in parks. The announcement means the total area protected under national parks legislation in South Australia has doubled to 7.9million hectares.

Minister Speirs highlights “National parks are essential spaces to enjoy nature in all its forms, and provide South Australians with a wide range of environmental, social and economic benefits and these protected areas conserve vitally important ecosystems, habitats, plants and animals, unique land formations, and culturally significant places.”

Image: Munga Thirri Simpson Desert in bloom. Courtesy Wilderness Society.Credit: Bill Doyle