Hi folks,
These stories are typical of experiences I've had and will continue to have in
the foreseeable future. What is to be done?
Of course, much is being done by various levels of government and other groups
to wrestle with the complexities of competing and conflictive human leisure
practices, and their impacts on other organisms and ecologies. But so much of
this unfortunately is windowdressing: this is perhaps to be expected given that
so many of these institutions/organisations claim to have insufficient
resources to enforce regulations and provide effective control and monitoring
of areas. Potential remedies must be examined, and I would suggest agitation
in line with the "user-pays" principle that is now the dominant mode of
governmental operation in this country (for some users at least...). So what
about some sort of levy on registered dog owners in addition to the peanuts
they are already paying which is specifically marked for use in the management
of sensitive areas. Or a levy on pet/companion animal products - dog food, cat
food, etc - combined with a concerted effort to fully and comprehensively
establish the importance of ethical and equitable animal ownership philosophies
and practices? Councils are loathe to chase these matters in legal contexts
for all the obvious reasons, but overall the evidence indicates that current
systems of fines are not working.
Dog and cat owners incresingly have strong representation in local government
contexts in Australia: so much so that in many cases local councils have chosen
to operate on the populist pretence that giving ground, literally, to pet
owners is good democratic administration. In many instances the decisions
taken are likely to lead to breaches of environmental legislation. This sort
of practice may keep some groups in power in local government, but much more
work needs to be done on our part in generating a sharper and very public
understanding of the statutory obligations of local and state government when
it comes to policies on companion animals and the connection with state and
federal legislation.
Yes, I know there are many good, ethical, caring pet owners out there. Only
wish them to have more power and influence over some of their peers. Or
something along those lines!
cw
>>> Ricki Coughlan <> 07/04/04 18:25 PM >>>
Re: [BIRDING-AUS] Dogs at Lake Francis?!?There are many activities which the
Lesser-brained Ignoramus seems to enjoy and walking (unleashed) dogs in
inappropriate areas appears to be one of them. This is probably because, like
many members of the Godwit genus, LBI's just simply cannot control themselves.
|
