An Axedale resident is fighting the use of extremely toxic baits on neighbouring properties amid a broader debate on whether the poison should be banned.
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Graham Colling loves sitting outside with the wildlife at his heavily forested home, which includes everything from goannas to native birds, kangaroos and echidnas.
The property is listed with the Victorian government's voluntary conservation program Land for Wildlife.
So Mr Colling was alarmed to learn recently that gold mining company Agnico Eagle - which runs Fosterville Gold Mine - planned to drop 1080 poison baits on unmined land near his home.
"It's outrageously poisonous," he said.
Mr Colling worked for a time for an agricultural chemical company and said 1080 posed a risk to native animals and pets exposed to baits or poisoned fox carrion.
"They don't just drop dead instantly. They suffer," he said.
Agnico Eagle says it follows strict state-imposed rules when it runs 1080 baiting programs and is required to control pests as part of its mining licence.
It also says it is not the only group using such baits in the area.
The baiting program was scheduled to start on Monday, September 12.
Calls to ban 1080 poison in Victoria
Agnico Eagle's assurances have not stopped its latest baiting program being caught up in a broader debate about 1080 after Mr Colling raised concerns with multiple groups including the Animal Justice Party (AJP).
AJP member for Northern Victoria Georgie Purcell said Victoria had been slow to action phasing the poison out.
"We just think there's better solutions to deal with introduced species than this," she said.
Ms Purcell said parliament was still waiting for the government to respond to a 2021 inquiry report hat recommended 1080 be phased out for pest management.
"We are nine months into this parliamentary term now and this was tabled in the last parliament. So the government is really dragging its feet on it," she said.
The inquiry found "mixed" evidence for 1080's effectiveness in controlling pest species and warned the poison could harm or kill native animals.
It urged the government to phase out the poison by the end of 2023 and drive up support and research on more humane pest control methods.
Other pest control options available, AJP says
Ms Purcell did not suggest leaving foxes to harm wildlife.
"What we've been calling for, which is far kinder and effective, is the introduction of 'immunocontraceptives'," she said.
Those types of baits target animals' immune systems and stop them having offspring.
Ms Purcell said years of culling and 1080 baiting had not appeared to have impacted long term fox populations.
"We've been asking the government to trial immunocontraceptives here but there seems to be a great hesitancy," she said.
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The government says it is spending $1 million to look into the extent of 1080 use in Victoria and potential alternatives.
"With no alternative control measures available, phasing out 1080 would likely result in a combination of less effective control of pest animals, increased costs, and adverse impacts to agricultural, environmental and animal welfare outcomes," an Agriculture Victoria spokesperson said.
They said research was still underway into effective ways to use immunoconstraceptives and the jury was still out on effective methods for their use.
The government expects to respond formally to the parliamentary inquiry's report in coming months, the spokesperson said.
For more information on current rules around 1080 click here.
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Tom O'Callaghan
I grew up in Bendigo and I want to tell your stories.
I grew up in Bendigo and I want to tell your stories.
