Biosecurity - Nil tenure

October 2018

Kylie Challen, Biosecurity Coordinator

If you are interested in biosecurity management, you may have come across the term ‘nil tenure’. But what does this actually mean?...

Nil tenure is when we all work together, private and public land mangers alike, to manage a specific pest or disease. Group control gives a far greater impact on the target species than individual, uncoordinated efforts.

A nil tenure approach means that responsibility, control activity and cost for pest animal management is shared across the community, with everyone required to play their part.

The benefits of a nil tenure approach are clear. A nil tenure approach addresses a common problem, eases stress levels for land managers and reduces pest animal impacts.

A fantastic example of nil tenure in the South East is the Feral Fighter groups. Here, communities come together to target foxes/wild dogs through coordinated baiting campaigns, supported by Local Land Services.

Pest animal campaigns are planned around seasonal conditions and involve operations including ground baiting and/or aerial baiting, trapping or shooting on private and/or public land.

Everyone has a role to play in pest management, so please report all pest sightings, evidence of pest activity or stock losses to your nearest Local Land Services office.

Regular and accurate reporting of this information will ensure that we have the best available information to help us continue to plan and coordinate nil tenure operations in your local area.

For more information on priority pests in the South East, please refer to the South East Regional Strategic Pest Animal Management Plan https://www.lls.nsw.gov.au/pestplan

For more information about our Feral Fighters Program or the 13 Wild Dog Management Groups we support, contact the biosecurity team at your nearest Local Land Services office.