2022-02-22
Greens MPs and environment spokesperson Cate Faehrmann is urging swift, decisive and urgent action to reduce feral horse numbers in Kosciuszko National Park before it’s too late for the 11 native animal species and 23 plant species threatened by the animals.
ABC’s 4Corners’ Feral program aired last night revealing the shocking damage that at least 14,000 feral horses are wreaking on a once pristine alpine ecosystem.
“Kosciuszko National Park has always felt like one of the most special places in the country to me, maybe even the world,” said Greens MP and environment and wildlife spokesperson Cate Faehrmann.
“But if you’ve visited recently you’ll have noticed an alarming change in the once pristine alpine ecosystems of Kosci. Piles of horse manure, the banks of Currango Creek trampled with its once clear water a murky brown, and grassy fields destroyed by the hard-hooves of animals that this landscape has never evolved to withstand.
“For the threatened species that call Kosci home, like the broad-toothed rat and the northern corroboree frog, this ongoing destruction of their habitat can only mean one thing: extinction.
“Horse numbers in Kosci have exploded in recent years, ever since the National Party’s John Barilaro introduced his outrageous law to protect a feral animal in a national park.
“Now that he’s gone it's time for the government to show some leadership and act in the best interests of the national park and the threatened species it is supposed to protect.
“To protect Kosci, its precious ecosystems and wildlife we need urgent action. That means removing feral horses from Kosciuszko National Park fast and working to heal divisions in three local community.” said Ms Faehrmann.