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KOALA's TO BE SHOT ON KANGAROO ISLAND |
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Update 18 juni 2004 Lots of reactions followed the news of the proposed killing 20.000 koala's on Kangaroo Island. Particularly response from the US, following a CNN report of the recent call for the cull on Kangaroo Island, resulted in the State Government holding back on their policy to execute the plan. As a means of placing pressure on the State Government, the Australian Democrats are calling on Kangaroo Island farmers to apply to the Department of Environment and Heritage for permits to cull koalas on their properties. Without these permits the cullings will be illegal. In addition the discussion on the ecological breakdowns are ongoing with parties fingerpointing at each other. At least for the time being no date has been set to carry out this horrific plan. ___________________________________ What is going on? Several news bulletins mention the culling of 20.000 koala's on Kangaroo Island. The discussion of culling has been going on for several years and keeps being cranked up by The Australian Democrates, Australia's third political party. They feel the koala's ought to be shot because there are too many of them and they destroy the vegetation of Kangaroo Island. The Australian Koala Foundation is standing firm in its stance against the culling of thousands of Koalas on Kangaroo Island in South Australia. Instead, it points to broad-scale tree clearing and the island's 200-year track record of poor land management as the real issue. Our stance against culling is unashamedly philosophical, realistic and scientific, says Executive Director of AKF, Deborah Tabart. History Kangaroo Island is a large island off the Australia's southern coast. Europeans settled there more than 200 years ago, at which time there were no Koalas on the island. In the early 1900s, millions of Koalas were slaughtered in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria and mainland South Australia to satisfy the fur trade. The species was driven to extinction in South Australia within 20 years. Koalas were later introduced to Kangaroo Island from French Island in Victoria. You only have to visit Kangaroo Island to see that over half the land has been stripped of its vegetation - not by Koalas, but from clearing for agriculture. The killing of wild Koalas represents a 'bandaid' approach at best. At worst, it may claim the lives of animals not at all responsible for tree deaths on Kangaroo Island. Other causes Disease, habitat fragmentation, poor fire management, salinity, grazing, logging, farming and edge effects have all contributed to the deaths of trees on Kangaroo Island; actions instigated by people, not Koalas. Much of the island is cleared farmland used for crops and sheep grazing. Most remnants are not fenced, allowing livestock to destroy emergent native saplings and impair the forests' capacity for regeneratation. Feral pigs and weeds wreak further havoc, while feral bees oust native birds and other pollinators from their tree hollow homes. Then there is a tree-killing fungus that was first identified on Kangaroo Island in 1994 Although the fact that trees are dying on Kangaroo Island is not refuted, it is only too easy to blame one single species for complex ecological breakdowns and imbalances resulting from centuries of unsustainable land use. Koalas deserve our respect and understanding, not our anger and scapegoating, says the AKF. What can we do? Do you agree that the other causes of the ecological breakdowns on Kangaroo Island should be closely examined, and are you against the killing of 20.000 koala's, then send an e-mail to the Minister of Environment at Canberra, Dr. David Kemp. The Australian Koala Foundation has issued the letter below which you are free to copy into your e-mail. Please do not forget to add your name and country at the bottom of the message. In addition if you know any other people who would like to support the koalas, please draw their attention to this web page. Dear Minister Kemp, Re: Objection to koala culling on Kangaroo Island I wish to advise you that I whole-heartedly object to the recent proposals to cull Koalas on Kangaroo Island and applaud the South Australian Government's stance against it. I am in agreement with the views of the leading independent koala and conservation organisation, the Australian Koala Foundation, who instead point to broad-scale tree clearing and the island's 200 year track record of poor land management as the real issue. They describe their stance against culling as unashamedly philosophical, realistic and scientific and are aware of the global outrage ignited by proposals to cull. Koalas deserve our respect and understanding, not our anger and to be used as a scapegoat. The Australian Koala Foundation, who for 18 years has provided an independent and unbiased voice for the koala, has declared that it will never condone the culling of Koalas. It sees the core issue as habitat protection and restoration. Disease, habitat fragmentation, poor fire management, salinity, grazing, logging, farming and edge effects have all contributed to the deaths of trees on Kangaroo Island; actions instigated by people, not koalas. Much of the island is cleared farmland used for crops and sheep grazing. Most remnants are not fenced, allowing livestock to destroy emergent native saplings and impair the forests' capacity for regeneration. Feral pigs and weeds wreak further havoc, while feral bees oust native birds and other pollinators from their tree hollow homes. I am aware that the tree-killing fungus, Phytophthera, was first identified on Kangaroo Island in 1994. The same mysterious fungus destroys patches of forest in parts of the United States. Although the fact that trees are dying on Kangaroo Island is not disputed, the causes, which are likely to include Phytophthera, are by no means clear. To complicate the matter, sick trees produce more sugars and become more attractive to koalas. I fear that the koala may be 'the last man standing' in a severely degraded landscape. We need to move away from ad hoc, short-term management actions that only treat superficial symptoms and not the causes. We seek leadership and guidance from the Government to initiate a new way for change, rather than using koalas as a cover for the real environmental problems. I agree with the Australian Koala Foundation that this debate needs to be elevated beyond killing native wildlife to managing the land properly. The koala does not just deserve to be protected in its own right, but is a flagship for conservation of all native species on all land. I would appreciate your written response regarding my concerns. Yours sincerely, copyright informatie |