TAMWORTH locals will push for a change in legislation to allow people and councils to “non-lethally” shift flying foxes from urban areas.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Flying Fox Action Committee Tamworth (FFACT) spokesperson Craig Cox said a motion would be moved at the NSW Nationals conference in June.
“It’s about giving residents and councils the ability, through non-lethal means, to move flying foxes away from human-populated areas,” Mr Cox said.
Read more:
Mr Cox said flying foxes have been making a mark in a wide range of regional areas in recent years, including Tamworth, Singleton, Inverell and Bathurst, and expected the move to be supported.
He didn’t elaborate on what the non-lethal means could include, but said the mammals were “adverse to noise and light”.
He wasn’t concerned with blow-back from pro-flying fox groups as a result of the motion.
“We’re more concerned with the health and well-being of the Tamworth community and the people living in infested areas,” he said.
Mr Cox iterated the Tamworth action group was not in favour of culling the mammals.
“We’ve never said kill or cull,” he said.
“We want the furry little fellas to live anywhere, just not in backyards.”
A motion was passed by the Country Women’s Association (CWA) of NSW in Armidale on Tuesday addressing the concerns of flying fox affected communities.
The CWA will now urgently advocate for “the creation and implementation of a strategic management plan to protect the health and sustainability of communities and environments affected by the feeding and roosting of the Grey Headed Flying Fox”, on the back of a submission from the Bingara branch.
The National Party’s flying fox motion will be pushed at the its annual conference, which will be hosted in Cowra on June 15 and 16.