<?xml version="1.0" encoding="ISO-8859-1"?> <docID>328681</docID> <postdate>2024-09-09 15:46:30</postdate> <headline>Invasive species breeding billion-dollar pest threat</headline> <body><p><img class="size-full wp-image-232016" src="https://citynews.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/05/gang-cats-Alaksa-e1686265600109.jpg" alt="" width="891" height="591" /></p> <caption>Domestic cats in residential areas can be far more destructive to wildlife than feral cats.</caption> <p><span class="kicker-line">By <strong>Luke Costin</strong> in Sydney</span></p> <p><strong>NSW's "buck-passing approach" to the handling of invasive species cannot continue as a blistering assessment warns pests could become a $30 billion problem within six years.</strong></p> <p>A government-commissioned review revealed on Monday that invasive species, including cats, foxes and 340 weeds, have spread across the state but the response remains fractured, often ad-hoc, ineffective and incomplete.</p> <p>Calls for curbing pet cats' freedoms and an end to sporadic, fragmented cash splashes are among more than 70 recommendations.</p> <p>Invasive Species Council spokesman Jack Gough said the report needed to be the catalyst for genuine reform.</p> <p>"We simply can't afford to continue an unenforced, buck-passing approach to the handling of invasive species," he said.</p> <p>Other states should also take heed of the report, given underfunded and non-strategic pest programs and poor government coordination were "sadly the norm" across the country, Mr Gough said.</p> <p>Highlighting issues in recent feral pig control measures, the NSW Natural Resource Commission's <a href="https://www.nrc.nsw.gov.au/invasive#report">interim report</a> noted a $22.7 million program centred around population reduction did not publicly report whether this was achieved.</p> <p>Internal figures showed culling in the farming-rich Northern Tablelands barely met half the target.</p> <p>A subsequent, snap $13 million culling spree during a rainy season was panned by stakeholders, had "questionable" outcomes and coincided with higher pig numbers, the report said.</p> <p>The commission also found pet laws ineffective at managing the biosecurity risks posed by cats, including predation and disease transmission.</p> <p>Unsupervised cats entering private property cannot lawfully be seized and taken to a council pound, while a person can only grab a cat in a designated wildlife protection area "for the cat's own protection".</p> <p>The commission calls for councils to be allowed to set up cat containment and desexing policies.</p> <p>It also criticised enforcement measures for invasive species, noting only two biosecurity directions had been issued for pest animal management since laws were overhauled in 2015.</p> <p>Invasive species costs have risen sharply in recent decades to at least $1.9 billion a year, while changes in urban areas, trade, agriculture and climate could increase the future severity of invasive species.</p> <p>In the worst-case scenario, the annual cost could hit $29.7 billion by 2030.</p> <p>Nationals leader Dugald Saunders dubbed the report "a wake up call" for the Minns Labor government and demanded funding for the five-year invasive species program.</p> <p>Greens MP Sue Higginson said the incursion of fire ants into northern NSW underlined the risk invasive species posed.</p> <p>"Once these species become established, and without proper care for the whole-of-system needs, NSW is already on a trajectory of seeing our environment and primary production decimated," she said.</p> <p>The government said it was already making investments in line with the recommendations, highlighting a record $946 million for biosecurity measures.</p> <p>Measures include expanding the targeting of feral pigs, helping landholders halt invasive species spreading from public land and creating an independent biosecurity commissioner.</p> <p>"We are committed to responding to the report comprehensively and we are already reviewing the current compliance settings to make sure they are fit for purpose," Agriculture Minister Tara Moriarty said.</p> <p>A final report from the commission is due by year-end.</p> <p><strong>THE MOST WIDESPREAD PESTS IN NSW</strong></p> <p><strong>Weeds (by spatial extent)</strong></p> <ul> <li>Nine per cent - Paterson's curse</p> </li> <li> <p>Five per cent - sweet briar, saffron thistle, lantana, horehound, prickly pear</p> </li> <li> <p>Four per cent - blackberry, African boxthorn, fireweed</p> </li> </ul> <p><strong>Pest animals (by spatial extent)</strong></p> <ul> <li> <p>99 per cent - red fox</p> </li> <li> <p>98 per cent - feral cat</p> </li> <li> <p>82 per cent - rabbit</p> </li> <li> <p>70 per cent - feral pig</p> </li> </ul> </body>