Border town residents decry Victorian bird-flu response as scandal compared with South Australia

In the border town of Nelson, Victorian residents have described the state’s handling of an H5N1 bird-flu outbreak as a scandal, pointing out that dead birds are left to accumulate in the Glenelg Estuary while South Australian crews are actively removing carcasses only three kilometres across the border. Retired environmental lawyer Warwick Biggs, who watches the shoreline daily, says the beach is covered in hundreds of pelicans, magpies, ravens and other species.

Ecologist Cassie Hlava estimates at least 400 bird bodies, mainly crested terns, and fears the buildup will heighten transmission to migratory and endangered birds. She notes South Australia has dedicated teams, humane euthanasia protocols and a composting bin in Robe, and urges Victoria to follow suit, especially before the town’s annual bream fishing competition draws hundreds of visitors. Victorian chief biodiversity officer James Todd acknowledged the distress and said the government is focusing on new positive cases, but emphasized that cleaning up carcasses could disperse the virus further. The Glenelg Shire Council has raised the community’s concerns with the Victorian environment department but no concrete action has been announced.