Sand mining company Unimin is seeking to expand a national park area at Stradbroke Island near Brisbane.

The mining company currently has mining leases of about 45 per cent of the island, which is out of Brisbane.

Paul Smith, a Unimin representative, said the new national parks would benefit residents and traditional owners within the areas. Some owners still have unresolved issues pertaining to native title claim on the island.

Mr. Smith said the company is facing problems and conflicting issues on how the land should be utilized.

"We're saying that you can actually turn large amounts of it over to national parks now and still maintain a dialogue and working out what we're going to do with the remainder of the island," Mr, Smith explained.

"National park in the island is presently only two per cent so even increasing that tenfold is not going to be a significant issue on the island."

On the other hand, Dr. Jan Aldenhoven of Stradbroke Island Management Organization is concerned the project may fail to protect several of its pristine parts of the island. She argued that mining will not stop despite the government's declaration of some parts of the islands as a national park.

"I'm very wary of any announcement of national park which is a sort of half measure," she said.

"If that's going to be an announcement that disguises the fact that mining will continue on in some of the really important high dune country on the island then I'm extremely wary."