Native Bird Hunting

The Hon. T.A. FRANKS (14:44): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before addressing a question to the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, representing the Minister for Climate, Environment and Water, on the topic of compliance of native bird hunting.

Leave granted.

The Hon. T.A. FRANKS: A constituent has provided me with some correspondence that he received from the Chief Executive of the Department for Environment and Water, Mr Ben Bruce, dated 16.4.24. In that correspondence, the chief executive of the department states:

I am advised there was a significant compliance operation undertaken over the 2024 opening weekend. Over those two days, 46 staff were on duty, patrolling across 17 hunting locations within the Riverland, Murraylands and Limestone Coast regions where duck hunting effort is concentrated.

My questions are:

1. What would these 46 Department for Environment and Water staff otherwise have been doing on the opening weekend of the duck hunting season?

2. What is the total cost to the department of employing 46 staff over the opening weekend to monitor duck hunters?

3. How many breaches were identified?

4. What monitoring equipment was used (for example, appropriate long-lens camera equipment)?

5. Is this good use of public money?

6. Does the permit fee paid by the hunters even go halfway to covering the cost of compliance of the duck hunting season?

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector) (14:46): I thank the honourable member for her question. I would be most pleased to refer those to the minister in another place and bring back a reply for her.