Public notice: Council seeks landholders for feral pig control program

Plagued by pesky pigs? 

The Central Highlands Regional Council is calling on local landholders to express their interest in participating in a pioneering Landscape-Scale Feral Pig Integrated Control Program.  

This project aims to tackle the significant challenge of feral pig management through a combination of innovative techniques and collaborative efforts.  

Feral pigs are a major pest, inflicting severe damage on agricultural lands, native ecosystems, and cultural sites. The scale of the Central Highlands region, which is just shy of the size of Tasmania, has made it nearly impossible to undertake eradication programs of feral animals especially feral pigs.    

The proposed control program will focus on 4 geographically dispersed areas of the region to ensure as much coverage as practical:   

The project will work as a catalyst to engage and motivate the community to unite and collaborate to address the feral pig issue in the Central Highlands.  

The program is a 3-year initiative focused on:  

Drone-Based Monitoring: Utilising drones to identify pig hotspots and gather critical data.   Collaring: Fitting feral pigs with collars to track their behaviour, movements and interactions.   Skilled Capacity-Building Workshops: Offering advanced training in feral pig management techniques to enhance local expertise.   Surveillance, Trapping, and Baiting: Implementing targeted actions to control and reduce pig populations effectively.  

If you are a landholder in Springsure, Capella, Duaringa or Bauhinia and want to participate in this program or would like to find out more please contact council on 1300 242 686.  

This project received grant funding from the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority’s Reef Guardian Grant Program.