Roo cull push as rising population calls for action

LOCAL Government planning assessors have given the green light for a property owner at Port MacDonnell to house refrigerated containers to store kangaroo carcasses. The proposal was rubber-stamped by the Grant District Council's Development Assessment Panel earlier this month with a number of conditions. This follows the State Government sweeping in new regulations allowing the eastern grey kangaroo to be commercially harvested in the Limestone Coast. The applicant sought approval to store the refrigerated containers at 50 Jones Road, Port MacDonnell, which is located in a primary production zone. According to the proposal, each container can house about 180 carcasses. No processing of meat will occur on the site and carcasses will be delivered to the site on a utility. "Gutting and skinning of carcasses will occur on site where the kangaroos are shot,'" according to the applicant. "Within two to three days of filling the chillers, a small truck will pick up the carcasses and deliver them to an abattoir for processing." Conditions imposed by the panel include the site must be clean and tidy at all times and noise levels are not to exceed those specified by the Environment Protection Authority. Other conditions relate to ensuring there was no odour, dust, pollution, noise or electrical interference at the site. The two refrigerated containers also must be removed from the property when either the land use or the contract with the meat processor ceases. Under the expanded harvesting zones, more than 7000 eastern grey kangaroos could be potentially harvested across the Limestone Coast this year following the long-standing ban being lifted. The state's harvesting zone was expanded amid high numbers of the native animal across the region. It is hoped the harvest will spearhead the development of a kangaroo meat processing sector and reduce the number of animal vehicle collisions. The Mount Gambier district has been identified as a hotspot for animal collisions.