Killing kangaroos could be banned in metro Melbourne in plan hailed as ‘step in the right direction’

Wildlife Victoria says there has been a 55% rise in the number of eastern grey kangaroos called into its emergency response services since the harvesting program began in 2019. Photograph: tsvibrav/Getty Images/iStockphoto

Hunters would be banned from killing kangaroos in all Melbourne metropolitan areas from 2025, under a proposed overhaul of Victoria’s commercial culling program.

A plan by the state’s Department of Energy, Environment and Climate Action for kangaroo harvesting between 2024 and 2028 proposes excluding 10 council areas across the urban ring of Melbourne due to reduced kangaroo populations and urban sprawl. The proposal was first reported by the Herald Sun.