Agricultural production/ Conservation benefits resulting from
commercial use of kangaroos, feral goats and feral pigs in the
Australian rangelands
Under best practice pest management guidelines, commercial
use may improve the economic feasibility of pest management.
Commercial use of pest animals has been suggested as a method of
reducing pest impacts whilst providing an economic gain. However,
this idea has not been tested.
The main issue in considering the use of pest animals is
whether commercial harvesting will reduce numbers to a level at
which pest impact is acceptable. I am testing this idea in regions
where kangaroos, feral goats and feral pigs are commercially
harvested. I am attempting to define the conditions under
which commercial use can successfully be integrated with
conventional pest control activities.
I am combining multiple objective optimisation methods
with bioeconomic models to develop optimised sustainable use of
rangelands for extensive grazing enterprises, whilst achieving the
constraint of promoting conservation values.
