In the report to Council seeking endorsement of the draft Eurobodalla Flying-fox Management Plan 2018 to be placed on public exhibition for twenty eight (28) days Council staff advise that Flying-foxes will continue to return to Eurobodalla while favourable habitat and food resources in the area mean that camps may also establish in new locations, including urban areas. The report states that "It is very difficult to predict how many flying-foxes will return each season or where they will go, and impacts may occur anywhere across the Eurobodalla in the future." Council engaged consultants with experience in flying-fox management and community engagement to help prepare a draft Flying-fox Management Plan to assist Council more readily respond to and help residents who may be impacted by roosting flying-foxes within legislative requirements. Staff suggest that the Plan provides a framework to reduce impacts of flying-foxes on people within the Eurobodalla, whilst conserving flying-foxes and the ecosystem services they provide. Attached under separate cover to Tuesday's Meeting Agenda is the draft Eurobodalla Flying-fox Management Plan 2018. Council staff offer in their report that the draft Plan "would provide some level of certainty to the community as to how current and future camps are likely to be managed. Council would take a risk-based approach to management, where camp intervention is generally only considered where there is actual risk that cannot be otherwise managed." The draft Plan includes a decision support tool to assist Council in determining the appropriate management actions (when and how to respond to community concerns regarding flying-foxes) based on this risk. Council advise that extensive effort was made to engage with the community and key stakeholders during the draft Plan’s development to ensure the values of the community were considered and the concerns of people directly impacted addressed. As part of the engagement process, the report seeks endorsement of the draft Eurobodalla Flying-fox Management Plan 2018 to be placed on public exhibition for twenty eight (28) days. It is offered that a further report would be provided to Council following exhibition.
Above: The cover of the Eurobodalla Flying-fox Management Plan FINAL DRAFT September 2018
