Humane pest animal control - Foreword

In Australia, pest animals cause enormous damage and risks to the environment, native biodiversity, agricultural industries, and public health. The community has for a long time demanded that they be effectively controlled. Past approaches to pest animal control focussed primarily on killing the pest as cheaply as possible. However, community expectations regarding animal welfare, even for pest animals, have changed markedly in recent decades. Ignoring these animal welfare concerns would jeopardise the transparency, public acceptance and long-term implementation of effective pest animal control programs.

This publication meets the pressing need for pest animal control methods which are humane, target specific, cost-effective and safe for humans to use. Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) discuss animal welfare impacts for target and non-target species and describe techniques and their application, as well as covering health and safety aspects. A Code of Practice (COP) for each of the key pest animal species provides general information on best practice management, control strategies, species biology and impact, and the humaneness of current control methods.

These procedures are intended for anyone engaged in pest animal control, from land managers through to pest animal control officers and researchers. They have been produced after extensive consultation with a wide range of stakeholders throughout Australia including government and non-government organisations, animal welfare groups and technical specialists. They will allow uniform implementation of techniques and training for proficiency in pest animal control, and will address community expectations and regulatory requirements. At the same time, the procedures reflect common sense and can be applied across the many diverse situations and environments where they are needed.

NSW Department of Primary Industries, through its Vertebrate Pest Research Unit, obtained Natural Heritage Trust funding from the Commonwealth Department of Environment and Heritage to write these pest animal control COPs and SOPs. The documents have already been adopted by the Commonwealth Government for lands under its control, particularly defence estate and national parks, and have been endorsed by NSW Pest Animal Council. They serve as a useful adjunct to the NSW Vertebrate Pest Control Manual, and have been written to be applicable across the whole of Australia.

Return to humane pest animal control guide.