Readily available poisons used to control feral pig numbers could soon be banned in Queensland. The state government announced a plan this month to amend the Animal Care and Protection Act 2001 to ban the use of poisons that included carbon disulphide and phosphorus, marketed as CSSP, ABC Rural News reports.
According to Biosecurity Queensland, there are more human control techniques available.
But as the feral pig population in Australia nears outnumbering its human population, feral animal managers are concerned about eliminating an effective control technique. The risk of foreign animal diseases such as foot-and-mouth disease and African swine fever continue to increase, placing more concern around the possibility of feral pigs spreading viruses.
Feral animal management expert Darren Marshall told ABC Rural News it would be virtually impossible to spread the disease if control methods such as CSSP become limited. Although a number of methods are used to control feral pig numbers such as aerial shooting and trapping, poisons appear to be the most effective, the article said.
Losing access to CSSP creates a growing gap in options for controlling feral pig numbers. Marshall said in order to effectively control pig numbers, at least 75% of the population had to be culled over a three-month period – no easy feat.
The proposed ban comes from the desire of some stakeholders to use more “humane control techniques.”
Large amounts of CSSP can cause pigs to die within six or 12 hours, a statement said. But if the dose is lower, animals could survive for days or even up to three weeks before death.
Still, supporters of CSSP believe the ban is coming into place too quickly, making it especially hard for primary producers to control feral animals.
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Feral Swine: USDA Monitors World’s Worst Invasive Alien Species
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