2019-12-16
A new aerial study revealing that feral horse numbers in Kosciuszko National Park has reached a staggering 25,318 horses demands an urgent intervention by the Premier to stop her Deputy and National Party Leader John Barilaro single-handedly wrecking Australia’s most loved National Park, says Greens MP Cate Faehrmann and environment spokesperson.
“These numbers took my breath away. They are worse than all the experts were predicting. Many of our most endangered plants and animals don’t stand a chance with the hooves and mouths of 26,000 horses bearing down upon them every day,” said Ms Faehrmann.
“The Premier must take over the reins now. Her Deputy Premier is dangerously out of control and couldn’t care less about wiping threatened species off the face of this earth to please a few National Party mates in his electorate.
“I’ve recently visited Kosciuszko National Park to witness the damage that these horses have done. It was incredibly distressing. Horses trample upon and eat fragile sphagnum moss which is home to the Northern Corroboree frog, a threatened species which exists nowhere else on earth.
“Horses also trample grasses where the very cute broad-toothed rat build their tunnels and burrows, another threatened species. They have no hope with the numbers of feral horses now in the park.
“Horses aren’t threatened and have many other areas they can call home. John Barilaro and his National Party mates can have their horses, but just out of national parks.
“The most humane and sustainable response to these numbers is to immediately undertake a large-scale cull.
“Trapping and re-homing has proven to be incredibly distressing to these horses. Only a very small fraction are captured with the majority of animals ending up at the abattoir because there just aren’t the homes available. I’m sure even the most passionate animal lovers don’t want to see this,” said Ms Faehrmann.