The Chief Minister, Treasury and Economic Development Directorate (CMTEDD) has announced that the 2020 conservation cull of Grey Kangaroos in the Territory began this week with some nature reserves and adjacent land closed until tomorrow (18 June).
Service Director at ACT Parks and Conservation, Justin Foley said nine of the 37 Canberra Nature Park nature reserves were closed in the evenings to allow for the safe delivery of the conservation cull.
“We aim to remove 1,958 Eastern Grey Kangaroos from nine priority reserves,” Mr Foley said.
“There will be no cull in the fire-affected Namadgi National Park or Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve and none of the reserves where culling will take place have been impacted by bushfires,” he said.
“We have modified the 2020 program to ensure it complies with COVID-19 protocols and to reflect that more people are currently using our reserves due to pandemic restrictions.”
“We are confident this number will let us achieve high animal welfare and priority conservation outcomes while maintaining public, staff and contractor safety,” he said.
Mr Foley said research had demonstrated that overgrazing by kangaroos, particularly in critical conservation areas, could threaten the survival of local grassland sites and species.
“Kangaroos are an integral part of the ecosystems around Canberra and we hope the community will understand that the conservation cull is vital for the wellbeing of the environment and the many plants and animals that call our reserves home,” he said.
“Nobody likes shooting kangaroos, however we accept it’s the most humane method of kangaroo population management available to the ACT Government as a responsible land manager.”
He said all shooters would strictly adhere to the National Code of Practice for the Humane Shooting of Kangaroos and Wallabies for Non-Commercial Purposes.
