How a team of hungry GOATS is helping to fight fires
After the devastating bushfires that ravaged Australia in 2019 and 2020, the RFS is looking to unusual method to prevent history from repeating.
A new tactic adopted by the Rural Fire Service has been to put some furry friends to good use by doing what they do best: eating!
Hungry goats have been given the job of protecting towns that have been identified as an extreme bushfire risk this summer by grazing on all the grass and shrubs.
A herd of bucks and billies have been placed at Clandulla village near Mudgee in NSW's Central West, after being loaned to the area by two local farmers.
They will be grazing on the land in Clandulla for the next two months, eating their way through the foliage that poses a fire risk.
"Goats will eat up shrubs, small tree saplings and eat woody weeds some of your other animals won't," farmer Michael Blewitt said.
While this unique method of containing fires is a first for Australia, the tactic has been used and proven to work in the US, Spain and Portugal.
These goats are expected to clear more than two hectares over the next three weeks, creating a buffer zone to the village of 200 people.
While back burning is an efficient way of clearing fire hazards, it is often dependant on weather conditions, where goats are happy to clear away grass, shrubs and bushes in rain, hail or shine.
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