Over the winter months Parklands staff have been protecting native fauna by removing redundant internal fences and replacing the top two barbed wires with plain wire. Trailer loads of barbed wire have been recycled through the Sims Metal Recyclers in South Albury.  

Many different species of wildlife fall victim to entanglement in barbed wire fences, with nocturnal species like bats, gliders and owls at particular risk. Most entanglements occur on the top one or two strands of a barbed wire fence, and sadly most animals that become entangled die. 

Significant sections of old fencing across the regional parklands including Bears Hill, McFarlanes Hill, Padman Park, Red Light Hill, Eastern Hill and other Albury Environmental Lands in Thurgoona have now been entirely removed or retrofitted to eliminate hazardous barbed wire.

This is perhaps one of the few upsides to a pandemic situation! While volunteers have been unable to participate due to COVID19 restrictions, Parklands staff have turned their focus to the “hard slog” jobs that we would not normally ask volunteers to do. The result is being able to tick off a list of jobs that had been put aside for the right opportunity.

We are most grateful for the Recycling Plant’s mega-magnet that empties these trailer loads and weeks of work in mere minutes, meaning we don’t have to re-handle these numerous rolls of barb-wire.