Engaging the Pastoral Industry in the Australian Feral Camel Management Project (AFCMP)
Donna Digby A H , Liz Bird B , Lyndee Severin C , Paul O’Leary D E , Mac Jensen F , Robin Mills G and Glenn Edwards A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations
A Department of Land Resource Management, PO Box 1120, Alice Springs, NT 0871, Australia.
B Indiana Station, PO Box 8045, Alice Springs, NT 0871, Australia.
C Curtin Springs Station, via Alice Springs, NT 0871, Australia.
D Department of Primary Industries and Research South Australia, GPO Box 822, Clare, SA 5453, Australia.
E Present address: Heli Farm, PO Box 110, Watervale, SA 5453, Australia.
F Department of Agriculture and Food, PO Box 417, Kalgoorlie, WA 6430, Australia.
G Warrawagine Station, PO Box 419, Port Hedland, WA 6721, Australia.
H Corresponding author. Email: donna.digby@nt.gov.au
The Rangeland Journal 38(2) 135-142 https://doi.org/10.1071/RJ15082
Submitted: 18 August 2015 Accepted: 5 February 2016 Published: 12 April 2016
Abstract
Feral camels occur over almost 3.3 million km2 of the Australian rangelands, including parts of the Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia and Western Australia. Within this range, pastoral land encompasses an area of 1.39 million km2 (1189 properties). The pastoral industry was identified as one of the key stakeholder groups to work with under the Australian Feral Camel Management Project. The impacts of feral camels fall into three main categories: economic, environmental and social/cultural. It should be noted that not all pastoralists were impacted by feral camels. Under the Australian Feral Camel Management Project, multiple approaches were used to engage the pastoral industry through their involvement in developing partnerships, operational planning, implementation and communication. Critical to the success of the project was the commitment to effectively consult with landholders, build partnerships, respect landholder values, establish effective project governance and adopt a flexible management approach.
Additional keywords: governance, land management, sustainable livelihoods and social-ecological systems.
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