Council defends record on animal removal in Loch Sport

Wellington Shire Council has defended its service to Loch Sport following a report in a local newspaper about apparent lack of action on roadkill reports.

The article in the Gippsland Times quoted a Loch Sport resident saying that Council was slow to act when residents reported animal carcasses on roadsides in the town.

Wellington Shire Council General Manager Built and Natural Environment, Chris Hastie, said Council had received 12 reports of dead kangaroos on roadsides in Loch Sport during the past 12 months.

“Our records show that all of these reports were responded to promptly, within a few days,” Mr Hastie said.

“To suggest that Council has been slow to act on any of these reports is simply inaccurate, in fact, there have been five dead kangaroos in Loch Sport picked up this month, three of those were not reported through our Customer Action Request System.”

The article also stated that Council declined to comment on the story.

Council’s response to the enquiry from the Gippsland Times was to provide information about how members of the public can report incidences of dead animals to Council, and an explanation of how reports are actioned. This information was not included in the story.

Council couldn’t provide information about this particular incidence, because we were not provided specific details.

Mr Hastie encouraged residents of Wellington to report any sightings of road deceased animals on the sides of roads in township areas to Council through its customer service number 1300 366 244 or by completing a Customer Action Request.

Council would then action the request and have it dealt with appropriately.

“We do rely on residents to let us know if there is something that needs attention,” Mr Hastie said.

“Residents should work with Council to ensure that these animals aren’t left to decompose and cause an unsightly and smelly mess, especially coming into the warmer months.”