Agriculture Minister Ros Spence was unable to give farmers a guarantee last week that dingoes won't be reintroduced in the foothills of the Grampians.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Ms Spence said it would be a matter for the Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action (DEECA) and not one for Agriculture Victoria.
She was speaking during a hearing with the Victorian Parliament's Public Accounts and Estimates Committee on Friday.
During proceedings, Liberal Party MP for Western Victorian Bev McArthur asked the minister about the policy regarding dingoes within the Greater Gariwerd Landscape Management Plan.
The plan, aimed at restoring and protecting the area of the Grampians foothills, does not currently contain plans to re-introduce dingoes to the area.
However, it noted that such a move could happen in future.
Ms McArthur said the area was one of the best prime wool producing regions in the country and called on Ms Spence to guarantee to farmers that there would be no reintroduction of dingoes there.
"It won't be a decision for me to make," the minister said.
Minister Spence also ruled out any collaboration with the South Australian (SA) government regarding a fence to control wild dogs at the border.
Sheep producers in SA had called for such a measure given Victoria's removal of a dingo unprotection order northwest of the state.
As the landscape flowed across state lines, SA farmers felt they would be affected by the lack of control of wild dogs across the border.
However, Ms Spence ruled out any such action.
"That's not something that we're considering," she said.
During the hearing, Agriculture Victoria officials sought to highlight the non-lethal means to control wild dogs in agricultural areas.
Nationals Victoria MP Danny O'Brien asked what the $550,000 allocated to northwest Victoria for such measures would be used for?
He asked if the fund could be used for farmers to install fences.
While ruling out fence grants, Minister Spence said the fund would be used to build a "demonstration pilot fence" so that farmers could "ascertain what would be appropriate for their particular sites and see how effective it is in various terrain."
She suggested that farmers could learn from this pilot fence before investing in their own on-farm protection.
Mr O'Brien was critical of the lack of action and asked if the $550,000 would go for anything other than a few training days and round table discussions.
DEECA executive director Trevor Pisciotta said it would be used on working with landowners to help them understand other non-lethal pest and dingo management options.