Wild horse numbers keep growing in National Parks

Supplied: Russell Kilbey). An environmental group wants to reintroduce aerial shooting in national parks in NSW, 20 years after the last horse was shot. In October 2000, three professional shooters culled 606 feral horses in the Guy Fawkes River National Park in northern NSW. A blanket ban on aerial culling was put in place after it was confirmed at least one horse did not die straight away. The council was seeking a review of the ban because they said alternative method of trapping and removing feral horses were not working. "The ban is actually a failure," Mr Cox said. "Allowing horse numbers to keep growing is not good for the national parks … and with aerial shooting there are ways to make sure that it is quick and the animal welfare issues are addressed."