12th Jun 2023
Media Release from Victoria’s Minister for Environment
The Andrews Labor Government is taking action to protect Victoria’s unique native flora and fauna and Aboriginal cultural heritage, with new East and West Deer Control Plans now in place.
Minister for Environment Ingrid Stitt today launched the East and West Victoria Deer Control Plans, which are regional strategies aiming to reduce the threat deer pose to Victoria’s natural environment, Aboriginal cultural heritage and farming.
The East and West Deer Control Plans are five-year plans that focus on preventing new populations from establishing, along with measures on how to effectively protect native species, waterways, national parks and reserves from deer.
The Plans will provide public land managers and the community with a suite of practical tools for targeted deer action, including on-ground shooting programs, fencing to protect threatened plants and animals, and monitoring tactics to ensure the actions put in place are effective.
The Plans were developed in collaboration with Traditional Owners, land managers, local government and conservation organisations, as well as with hunting groups and community representatives.
The new Plans are part of the Labor Government’s $19.25 million investment over four years to reduce the impacts of deer across the state, along with an ongoing $4.4 million to implement the Victorian Deer Control Strategy.
The strategy includes $6.5 million which is currently supporting 26 projects to deliver urgent deer control in priority locations including Wilsons Promontory and the Alpine and Budj Bim National Parks.
The strategy will also provide $250,000 grant packages to eight community-led projects to help manage the impact of deer in Melbourne’s outer suburbs, including community education and engagement activities, exclusion fencing and surveillance.
To access the East and West Deer Control Plans, visit environment.vic.gov.au/regional-deer-control-plans.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Environment Ingrid Stitt
“We’re making sure we manage deer in a safe and targeted way across Victoria and these plans have been developed using expert advice and information from communities, Traditional Owners and land managers.”
“Deer can cause significant damage to our unique flora and fauna and areas of Aboriginal cultural significance and are increasingly encroaching on urban areas – that’s why it’s important we manage them effectively.”
