Plans for a $36 million “exotic and native animal conservation” at Western Sydney's Bungarribee Park have been approved, according to The Daily Telegraph.
The development will be built on over 16 hectares of land overlooking the park, which will feature over 30 exhibitions. Set to open in 2018, the zoo is expected to bring in around 745,00 visitors each year, injecting an estimated $45 million into the NSW economy.
Cage-Free Zoo
So, what can you expect? There will be African safari animals on display, as well as an Aboriginal and natural heritage program, focusing on the local Darug people, which the zoo's managing director Jake Burgess claimed would be unlike any other program in other Aussie zoos. He also said that the zoo would promote natural animal behaviours and welfare: “This will promote awareness and an affinity with animals, improving our educational outcomes and increasing the willingness of people to value and protect them.”
The zoo will reportedly be "cage-free", with elevated walkways allowing viewing access to exotic animals, underwater glass viewing areas revealing hippos, crocs and the like and fences being exchanged for "enclosure devices concealed in the landscape elements", according to Pedestrian.
