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OTH-35 ACT Bird Flu Action Email MP TS - Website
OTH-35 ACT Bird Flu Action Email MP TS - Website
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We must protect our marine wildlife from bird flu
We must protect our marine wildlife from bird flu
We must protect our marine wildlife from bird flu
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I am concerned about bird flu; what’s your plan?
Dear Environment Minister Watt and Agriculture Minister Collins, I am writing to thank you for the work done to date including funding for bird flu preparedness, wild bird surveillance and protective actions for threatened species and priority biodiversity. I am deeply concerned about the impacts on Australian wildlife when the deadly new H5N1 strain of bird flu reaches our shores. The virus has now been detected on Heard Island, in Australia’s sub-Antarctic territory. Observed mortalities of elephant seal pups are a grave reminder that our unique marine life is incredibly vulnerable to this deadly virus, which is now one step closer to reaching mainland Australia. We know that bird flu’s arrival is inevitable. When the virus does eventually spread to the mainland, Australia could face a potential wildlife disaster on the scale of the black summer bushfires. When H5N1 arrived in South America in 2023, it killed 40 per cent of Peru’s pelicans, over 30,000 sea lions, and 17,000 elephant seal pups. Millions of wild birds have died worldwide, and research suggests our black swans and other endemic bird species - along with marine mammals such as Australian sea lions - could face local extinctions. Australia urgently needs to identify and prioritise at-risk species and high-value sites, develop detailed response plans and work closely with relevant stakeholders to ensure effective delivery of these plans. Options to reduce wildlife deaths and prevent extinctions include preventing disturbance of affected wildlife colonies, swiftly removing carcasses and possibly vaccination. I am therefore asking that you: 1. Continue prioritising investment into a broad national wildlife preparedness taskforce, co-led by the Agriculture and Environment departments, together with non-government participants, to drive collaborative preparedness. 2. Ensure that H5 HPAI preparedness and response remains a priority issue for Agriculture Ministers, and that this is demonstrated by close engagement with all key stakeholders, including the conservation and wildlife rescue and rehabilitation sectors. 3. Scale up public communication, including working with non-government partners to achieve this effectively. We must remain vigilant and continue to prioritise preparation and mitigation plans. Time is running out to take meaningful action to prepare for the potentially devastating impacts of deadly bird flu. I look forward to your response and swift action on this issue.
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