Aerial shooting of feral horses could be 'option' in Kosciuszko park
Feral horses in the Kosciusko national park could soon be culled in an aerial shooting program. The state government is considering the option which is something the previous government ruled-out.
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00:00 They're uniquely Australian scenes, but these wild brumbies are tearing up the Kosciuszko
00:07 National Park.
00:08 We just can't ignore this problem anymore.
00:11 The population has surged to more than 20,000 in the past two years, turning once vegetated
00:17 areas into paddocks and trampling the homes of endangered species.
00:22 For at least 12 native species, feral horses in Kosciuszko National Park could be the final
00:28 nail in the coffin for them sending them extinct.
00:31 By law, the population must be reduced to 3,000 by 2027.
00:36 Labor says trapping and ground shooting is too slow.
00:40 It's proposing to shoot the animals from helicopters in an attempt to remove 6,500 horses a year.
00:48 I love horses too, but the numbers are too high and we need to find the most humane and
00:53 sustainable way to get those numbers down.
00:55 Brumby advocates will oppose the plan.
00:58 They have no respect for the heritage value of the horses.
01:01 They have no respect for the pioneers.
01:05 Brumby culling has been a vexed issue in New South Wales.
01:08 The previous government dealt not only with some community backlash, but opposition from
01:13 the Nationals leader, John Barilaro, who for years blocked the introduction of a brumby
01:19 management plan.
01:21 Where aerial shoots occur, it can be difficult to actually deal with animals in a proper
01:26 way.
01:27 The chances you get far worse and far more acute and destructive than it should have
01:32 been.
01:33 The government will take feedback on its plan for aerial shooting until mid-September.
01:37 [BLANK_AUDIO]