Program failures to blame for rehomed brumby deaths
The death of more than 250 brumbies at an alleged illegal knackery has been blamed on failures in a government program to rehome the wild horses. Photo: AAP
Significant gaps have been highlighted in a NSW brumby rehoming program after the discovery of more hundreds of dead horses at an alleged illegal slaughterhouse.
The program was suspended after more than 500 horses appeared to have been killed at a 20-acre property near Wagga Wagga in the state’s Riverina in April.
Racing NSW told the RSPCA about dead horses on the property in September 2023.
But the knackery was not uncovered during visits by the animal welfare group either that month or in January 2024.
Some of the horses were believed to have been brumbies, rehomed by the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) and part of government efforts to reduce wild horse numbers in Kosciuszko National Park.
The Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water – responsible for the NPWS – launched an investigation into the program and found the agency failed to properly review or perform due diligence on the rehomer’s application.
The report also found the person behind the alleged knackery received 28 per cent of all the horses rehomed under the program since 2021.
In a series of recommendations, investigators said NPWS needed to better communicate with other agencies and improve its application process.
The Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water accepted the recommendations.
NSW Environment Minister Penny Sharpe said the review shows improvements to the program were needed.
“I want the public to be able to trust this program and for good rehoming organisations to continue to participate,” she said in a statement on Wednesday.
“I have asked that rehoming restart as soon as possible (and) I am advised this will be in approximately four weeks.”
The NSW upper house is soon expected to hand down a report as part of its inquiry into aerial shooting of brumbies in Kosciuszko National Park.
Around 5000 horses are estimated to have been killed since aerial culling in the park began in March.
The government hopes to reduce a population of around 18,000 horses to 3000 by June 2027.
– AAP
