By Linda Groom and Don Fletcher
Counting horses in Kosciuzsko National Park has become a hot political issue. People on both sides of the debate sometimes say that the numbers themselves are not the issue – the real question is the extent of environmental damage.
Some brumby supporters confidently make that statement because they believe that there is no environmental damage caused by horses in the park. Some conservationists make the same statement because they believe that even a small number of horses in a national park can cause unacceptable environmental damage.
But population numbers will remain an important practical measure for Park managers, for as long as the Kosciuszko Wild Horse Heritage Act Act continues to refer to ‘sustainable number’. In particular, methods of calculating numbers are important.