A farmer described the emotional toll it takes on him watching the impact of fallow deer on his livelihood as he gave evidence at a parliamentary hearing that examined changes made to the Nature Conservation Act.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The hearing, which was chaired by McIntyre MLC Tania Rattray, and had members of both the upper and lower house on the panel, is the latest in a string of political inquiries, hearings and investigations to cover the increasing insurgence of wild fallow deer.
Farmer Simon Cameron, who has been fighting for more tools for farmers to protect their properties from wild fallow deer for 15 years, said not enough notice was given to the emotional toll landowners face each day fighting wild fallow deer.
"I am a farmer, my dwelling is in the middle of my property, and I see the impact of wild fallow deer every single day. And it's wearing," Mr Cameron told the panel.
A Northern Midlands farmer, Mr Cameron said he is the custodian of grasslands on his property that are home to threatened and endangered species of grasses and he was watching it be threatened by the movements of browsing wild fallow deer.
"Deer control has become a much bigger problem than just a problem for just some farmers, it's a problem for all of Tasmania," he said.
Meanwhile, representatives from Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania, formerly DPIPWE, have defended the partially protected status of deer, declaring there was room in the regulations for any permit holder to shoot deer 365 days of the year.
Game Services Tasmania manager Robin Thompson said deer management was "a juggling act" because there were so many people who had a stake in the game.
"It's a juggling act to make sure all stakeholders get some of what they want, but it's not possible to give everyone everything they want," he said.
"There is provision under the regulations as they stand to take deer every single day of the year if they get the right permits."
Mr Cameron said he felt the regulations around wild fallow deer did not align with the intentions and goals of the Act and urged the committee to consider a report or review into whether those regulations do legally align.
However that statement was challenged by Montgomery MLC Leonie Hiscutt, who said she thought there had been enough reports on the topic. It's been seven years since a report showed ballooning wild fallow deer populations, and there's been numerous reports and management plans, an aerial survey and a federal Senate inquiry.
Mr Cameron said a legally robust report that could examine whether the regulations aligned with the Act would allow the committee and policymakers a clearer vision about removing some protections afforded wild fallow deer and remove red tape.
Committee chair Ms Rattray asked Mr Thompson if NRE Tasmania had ever considered going in to cull the deer in large numbers, to reduce the population to a more manageable level.
However, Mr Thompson said the responsibility for that fell to landowners.
"Most of the deer are on private land. Their fate is in the hands of the landowners," he said.
"If an individual property owner wanted to have zero deer on their property they can under the current arrangements."
The hearing aimed to examine the changes made to the Nature Conservation Act but was dominated by the issues surrounding the increasing population of wild fallow deer.
What do you think? Send us a letter to the editor: