Page 3809 - Week 10 - Wednesday, 19 September 2018
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reach. However, perhaps a little less sentiment and a little more fact might be useful in this debate.
For a start, the motion talks of the Namadgi National Park crossing into New South Wales. It does, but then, of course, it is no longer Namadgi National Park and it becomes the responsibility and jurisdiction of the New South Wales government, just as legislation addressing an animal management issue in New South Wales is the business of the New South Wales government, not the ACT Labor backbench.
It may also come as a surprise to Ms Cheyne that even before we start worrying about rabbits, dogs, pigs, foxes and goats coming across the border from New South Wales—all as a consequence of the New South Wales government’s approach to brumbies—we have our own rabbits, foxes, pigs, dogs, goats and deer already in sufficiently large numbers to keep our own rangers busy. And this does not even touch on our kangaroos.
I agree with Ms Cheyne insofar as the first section of her motion acknowledges Namadgi National Park and the work of the ACT Parks and Conservation Service in their protection of our environment. It is important that they continue to do this important work and receive the support of this chamber, as it has such a positive impact on our natural environment. Further, Namadgi National Park is a beautiful space that all Canberrans can enjoy, and the Cotter catchment area is a significant source of drinking water for our city.
The motion notes that yes, there may be additional pressures on the territory from feral horses. However, it seems to lack confidence in the ability of the ACT Parks and Conservation Service in dealing with the issue. Despite differences in legislation between the two jurisdictions, the ACT is able to look after itself, a concept that Ms Cheyne herself advocated strongly for only a few weeks ago. There are traps that have prevented brumbies from entering the territory for many years. Horse yards on the ACT side of the border are used to trap brumbies, with a surveillance system used to alert rangers when a horse is trapped. Over the past five years there have been no incidents, and no feral horses have been put down since 2007.
It is, however, a reasonable concern and a topic worthy of a line of questioning, which is exactly what I did during the estimates hearings in June. Mr Daniel Iglesias, Director of the ACT Parks and Conservation Service, assured the select committee that we are lucky in the ACT that we do not have feral horses because we have a really good program for spotting them. He also said:
… when we see activity across the border in Kosciuszko, we have a really good relationship with our colleagues in New South Wales National Parks and we say, “They’re getting close,” and they respond.
In that same hearing, in a response to a question from Ms Cheyne herself, Mr Iglesias said:
New South Wales have not said that they will not do control; it is just that they will not do lethal control.
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