South West conservation groups are outraged as to why an `experimental fire’ got out of control at the Benger Nature Reserve near Brunswick in the South West on 16 April 2011. The fire, lit by the Department of Environment and Conservation, killed hundreds of native animals including some on DEC’s own threatened species list.
Members of the South West Environment Centre, Global Warming Forest Group and Preston Environment Group combed the area last week looking for injured animals, only to find the charred remains. “We found several dead Southern Brown Bandicoots (Quenda), snakes, birds, along with creatures so badly incinerated; they couldn’t be identified".
When questioned in Parliament on the 9 August 2011, Environment Minister Bill Marmion explained that suppression of the fire had cost $106,195.00 and that the cost of replacing fencing destroyed in the fire would be in the order of $100,000.00. Other related expenses are still to be determined.
