Native birds, wildlife and pets are at risk from the unregulated use of Second-generation Anticoagulant Rodenticide (SGAR) poisons in Australia. Urge Minister Collins and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry to accept the APVMA’s recommendation to restrict these poisons and protect native birds.
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Protect Aussie birds from dangerous SGAR rat poisons
Native birds, wildlife, and even pets are at risk because of the unregulated use of Second-generation Anticoagulant Rodenticide poisons in Australia.
After massive public pressure and a decade of campaigning by conservation groups, the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) has finally listened to the mounting evidence and strengthened its federal recommendation to classify SGARs as a restricted chemical, removing them from retail sale.
If approved and implemented, this would mark one of the biggest conservation wins for Australian wildlife in recent years.
To make this restriction a reality, Minister Collins and the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry need to accept the reforms urgently.
Give birds a voice by telling the decision makers why you want to see native birds protected from lethal SGAR poisons.
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Help give dying birds a voice by contacting our federal decision makers and helping get silent-killer SGARs under control in Australia!
Together, we can show decision-makers that Australians want action on SGARs. Protect our native wildlife and pets.
Wildlife exposure still occurs even when products are used in compliance with label instructions. The proposed measures ignore the biggest threat: birds like owls dying after eating poisoned rodents. The APVMA assumes that long-lasting rat poisons can be made safe through packaging, placement, and user compliance. They can’t. SGARs persist in the environment, build up in the food web, and continue to kill wildlife long after they are used. The proposed measures further do not currently include ways to monitor non-compliance.
Other countries including the US, Canada and the EU have already restricted these poisons, but Australia is lagging behind. Safer household alternatives exist, yet SGARs are still sold by the bucketload. BirdLife Australia is calling for all SGARs to be removed from public sale and restricted to licensed professionals.
We need the Australian Government and the regulator to act now to protect our birds, wildlife and pets.
Together, we can show decision-makers that Australians want action on SGARs. Protect our native wildlife and pets. Click here to contact our federal decision makers today.
You can learn more about how SGARs threaten non-target wildlife like native owls, quolls, and family pets, and discover ways you can help.
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Second-generation Anticoagulant Rodenticides are powerful poisons that cause internal bleeding, but they have two key drawbacks when compared with other rodenticides:
Australian and international studies have proven SGARs pose lethal risks to birds. Dangerous levels of SGARs have been found in studies on dead Australian birds including: Powerful Owls, Southern Boobooks, Wedge-tailed Eagles, Tawny Frogmouths, and more.
The public retail sale of SGARs has been regulated in the US, Canada and EU for years.But Australian regulations lag behind, and SGARs are available for anyone to purchase from supermarkets, hardware shops, and online throughout Australia.
Safer alternatives for household use already exist, meaning we simply don’t need SGARs available for retail sale in Australia.
Help give dying birds a voice by contacting our federal decision makers, and helping get silent-killer SGARs under control in Australia!
Australia’s native birds, wildlife, and even family pets are being poisoned by Second-generation Anticoagulant Rodenticides (SGARs), a dangerous class of chemicals which are still readily available in supermarkets and online.
