Kangaroo cull: an insult to public’s intelligence

THIS YEAR THE ACT government intends to cull more kangaroos than ever before. Previously the ACT government would have softened the community up with propaganda and misinformation, but not this time. The shock and awe will start immediately!

The same old, unconvincing, excuses are trotted out, as if the general public’s intelligence level is equivalent to a goldfish.

The kangaroos are apparently about to starve to death because of the drought (they’ve used that excuse before) and yet they have survived over the centuries, including the Millenium drought; there’s insufficient vegetation, rainfall and “other factors” that determine the numbers to be culled — forget the ACT Kangaroo Management Plan; and didn’t the ACT government deploy cattle to keep the grass down, mow and back-burn this year?

The ACT Parks and Conservation director, Daniel Iglesias, may want to claim his actions are ‘evidence-based’, but where is the proof? Over the last ten years of culling, his department has failed to do the adaptive management research to justify ongoing kangaroo culling and many experts, CSIRO included, believe it may actually have a detrimental impact.

This is the same ACT government spokesperson who recently claimed the death of 67 vulnerable Eastern Betongs, by foxes, in a failed ACT government trial costing $3.5 million — was a huge success (Canberra Times, 14 April 2019, p5).

What confidence can anyone have in an ACT government, which hides behind dubious rhetoric and misinformation? And all this at a time when an Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services announces the grave impact the world is having on our environment with nature declining at an unprecedented rate.

If we don’t act locally, and look after our flora and fauna in a more sensible manner, future generations will ask, “why did you do that?” But those responsible for the carnage will be long gone, won’t they.

— Philip Machin, Wamboin, NSW

IMAGE: District Bulletin archives