Debate ramps up over brumby removal in alpine national parks

The removal and culling of feral brumbies will take place in Victoria’s alpine region despite efforts of conservationists and lobby groups.

Andrew Cox, CEO of the Invasive Species Council, said feral horse numbers had been growing in numbers and had doubled over 5 years to 5000.

“We have a problem in our alpine regions both in Victoria and NSW horses have been released and growing in numbers for many, many years,” he said.

He said the brumbies stripped wetlands of native vegetation and caused “massive environmental impacts”.

He said while they support trapping and re-homing them, the natural rate of increase was too hard to keep up with.

“It’s going to be an embarrassment in Australia if we can’t control the feral horses in our alpine national parks,” he said.

Justine Curatolo, Co-coordinator of the Protect Our Heritage Brumby Campaign, rejected that the claim their population had boomed given drought and recent bushfires.

She said there were options to re-home them.

“It’s unrealistic to be able to catch 400,” she said.

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