news, local-news,

A parliamentary inquiry looking into the outbreak of wild fallow deer across the state has heard that the government does not have a plan to stem the problem. A Legislative Council is looking at the state’s deer population, its environmental impacts on public and private land, impacts upon commercial activities, and its partially protected species’ status. The inquiry, which resumed on Monday, heard evidence from the Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Wildlife and Environment about the population’s impact within the state’s World Heritage Areas. Mark Bryce, from the Parks and Wildlife Service, said the department had approved in December its World Heritage Area Management Plan, which touched on deer hunting zones, particularly within protected areas in the Central Highlands. He said hunting for game species was one of the objectives in the management plan so long as it didn’t clash with other objectives contained within national parks legislation. Mr Bryce said the service had agreed to opening up four areas within national parks to hunting, subject to several assessments including one on public safety. DPIPWE natural heritage director Ben Goodsir said the government was yet to ask for department advice on the wild deer problem and that the department was yet to form a population control policy or do population analysis. He said federal funding for a population control program would rely on hard evidence of a problem. Mr Goodsir said a New South Wales-based study on deer hunting in overpopulated areas of the state found that recreational shooting did not work as a control measure. Wildlife management officer Greg Hocking said the department estimated that there could be up to 100,000 wild deer in Tasmania. “We have to concede that deer numbers are significantly above what the department has been saying for some years which is 30,000,” he said. Rumney independent MLC Tony Mulder pointed to one submission received by the committee which suggested deer should be restricted to a preferred range in the Central Highlands and encircled by a buffer zone to protect the surround World Heritage Areas. He questioned the need for hunters to have to go through a permit process and regulations, including bag limits, to control the pest.

https://nnimgt-a.akamaihd.net/transform/v1/crop/frm/7GTjPNqfZtZ9DDgM7sVkPJ/fa42d39a-a9b1-44c0-959b-520c0e20121c.JPG/r13_0_884_492_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg