NORTHERN Tablelands Local Land Services has welcomed the appointment of Todd Spencer as the new biosecurity support officer for the Tenterfield region.
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Originally from Roma, Todd is a graduate of the University of Queensland at Gatton, where he studied biosecurity and animal science. He has a keen interest in agriculture and the environment, and prior to joining Local Land Services he spent a year working on the Wild Dog Barrier Fence in Queensland.
“Northern Tablelands has beautiful scenery and friendly people and I feel very privileged to be given this opportunity,” Todd said.
Northern Tablelands Local Land Services helps farmers protect their asset against the impacts of invasive species in the region. These can be managed if a number of control methods are integrated and implemented in coordination with neighbours.
As part of the Local Land Services biosecurity team, Todd has recently been working on the annual wild dog aerial baiting campaign on the Northern Tablelands.
“We’re working with landholders to reduce the impact of vertebrate pests like dogs, pigs, rabbits and foxes. Definitely around the Tenterfield area wild dogs are a huge problem facing farmers, particularly sheep producers, and we get a lot of reports of attacks on livestock,” Todd said.
“We are seeing wild dog attacks in areas where they haven’t been reported in recent history, and some farmers are suggesting the dogs are as bad now as they were back in the 60s, so they’re a serious problem.
“We can supply 1080 baits through Local Land Services to individual farmers wanting to bait vertebrate pests, as well as to large groups of landholders as part of coordinated strategic baiting programs.”
Todd Spencer said he’s passionate about biosecurity.
“Managing dogs and other pests is a key part of biosecurity, and that’s extremely important in terms of keeping agricultural industries in business so that communities like Tenterfield can continue to thrive.”
For more information about baiting programs and vertebrate pest control in the Tenterfield area, and particularly the management of wild dogs, contact Todd Spencer or Peter Petrie at the Northern Tablelands Local Land Services office in Tenterfield on (02) 6739 1400.
