Pigs snouts and fox tails: The cases for and against bounties in NSW

“They’re not going to waste a cartridge on a pig that doesn’t pay”: This throwaway comment from Premier Chris Minns has ignited a bounty debate in NSW.

Pig snouts, fox tails and wild dog scalps.

They’re the unlikely items at the centre of the most drastic overhaul to NSW’s plans to tackle feral animals in more than a decade.

The potential of bounties being introduced in the state has drawn fierce debate across politics – with members of the state’s 230,000 hunters saying it’ll be another step in the fight against an explosion of pigs, feral cats, foxes and goats churning through NSW bush and farmland.

Those against the proposals say such a measure will be a drop in the bucket against the huge number of ferals in NSW, while drawing funding and effort away from schemes like aerial shooting and baiting.

The debate has been triggered by the NSW Shooters, Fishers and Farmers Party tabling a bill which would open up swathes of Crown Land for hunters to target introduced pests in – think goats, deer, pigs, feral cats and foxes.

The bill would also set up a Conservation Hunting Authority – an advisory body which wouldn’t have access to assets or be tasked with regulating hunting, but instead be there to advise the government on feral hunting.

But it was a brief interview on a local Coffs Harbour radio station in June which threw the door open to bounties being introduced, when NSW Premier Chris Minns threw out the potential of the government backing the introduction of such a program.

“We should be open to bounties and other things, because we’ve got a lot of recreational shooters out there that are actually getting rid of a lot of the pests roaming across our native vegetation,” the Premier said, largely unprompted.

Long-time hunter and former Games Council worker Andy Mallen with his hunting dog Ziggy at a property in Silverdale where he goes hunting. Picture: Jonathan Ng

The cheeky throw-forward from Minns has reignited debate over paying hunters to clear out feral animals, as well as fuelling rumours there’ll be cash for a bounty trial in the upcoming NSW budget.

For those in favour, it’s a simple numbers game which would help address the number of ferals flooding the state after several seasons of wet weather helped pump up food sources and a breeding boom.

“We’ve got 230,000 hunters in this state – that’s a lot – if only a quarter of them go out and shoot 10 animals a year, that ends up in giant numbers,” Andy Mallen, a hunter of more than five decades, said.

Mallen sat on the now-defunct NSW Game Council, which was wound down in 2013 amid controversy over a body representing hunters could also regulate the sector.

But he said a new, merely-advisory body was a positive step forward – which, combined with bounties, could seriously dint feral numbers.

“If you’ve got 230,000 hunters, if you can just get 10 per cent of those out there on a regular basis, they’re going to make an impact. Especially with this new bill … more public land will open up … I just think it’s a win-win,” he said.

“Professional roo shooters just drive straight past them (wild pigs) … They’re not going to waste a cartridge on a pig that doesn’t pay.”

“If they can pick up $20 a head or something like that, it’s worthwhile shooting them and cashing them in.”

Australian Pig Doggers and Hunters Association president Ned Makim is another who has heard the argument against bounties, such as that aerial shooting and baiting is more effective in reducing their numbers.

“We’ve got a vast number of authorities and companies and studies essentially repeating what hunters already know – we need far more people and far more action on the ground,” he said.

NSW Premier Chris Minns. Rumours abound there’ll be money for a trial of bounties in the NSW Government budget. Picture: NewsWire / Nikki Short

“There’s never been pigs as widespread as they are now – on one level it’s a function of the seasons, it’s also that we have failed in their management.”

“The argument I’ve heard put against us all the time is ‘it’s not all be about killing pigs’ – my answer is, it must be a little bit about killing pigs.”

He admitted bounties wouldn’t be a game changer, but could entice hunters to take down more ferals outside of those they’re targeting.

“In a small way, it’ll make it slightly more viable for people – it brings down costs, it’s also a show of recognition of what they’re contributing to the community. Australia-wide pig hunting contributes $1m a day to the economy – fuel, tracking collars, tires, every time you move, it costs you,” he said.

“There’s not going to be enough in the bounty for someone to buy a house – but on a Wednesday night and its cold, then maybe they’ll drive up into the mountains (and shoot some ferals).”

The potential of bounties, as well as the legislation potentially opening up new tracts of Crown Land for hunting, has fierce opposition from various groups, including the Invasive Species Council.

Their CEO Jack Gough said the move would “lock in the neglect of state forests as de facto game reserves” and claimed the Minns Government’s suspected support of the bill reeked of a deal for Shooters MPs to support Labor in the NSW Upper House.

Experts remain divided on how to combat the wave of destructive feral pigs sweeping the state.

“(Hunting) is a drop in the bucket – you need to look at the numbers … in over 68,076 days of effort by recreational hunters – they removed 2892 feral pigs,” he said.

“The key thing on bounties is they don’t reduce numbers (due to) the high-breeding rate of invasive species – ground shooting generally isn’t very effective in getting those levels down.”

He also threatened a bounties scheme would be open to rorting.

“I know right now there are hunters in NSW storing pig snouts in the freezer … so as soon as this scheme comes into play, they’ll grab them and cash them in – fraud and double-dealing are synonymous with bounties,” he said.

Animal Justice Party NSW MP Emma Hurst is another vigorously opposed to the legislation.

“There are significant animal welfare concerns, there’s no proper oversight, and anyone walking around public spaces with guns provides an enormous public safety risk,” she said.

“It relaxes NSW gun laws, introduces guns to public spaces – if you’re going to be walking in a state forest for example, you may have a hunter in there too.”

“We really need a strong government which is not going to be making deals with the Shooters party to relax gun laws … rather than buying and selling votes and agreeing to legislation which is going to risk community safety and animal welfare.”

Originally published as Pigs snouts and fox tails: The cases for and against bounties in NSW