Fencing keeps feral animals on the outer

The problem

Trying to land a plane on a bush strip overrun with kangaroos, wild dogs, foxes, rabbits or the occasional pig is far from ideal.

That’s why wildlife with a fondness for darting onto the runway at Moura Aerodrome are now firmly fenced out thanks to materials specially designed to deal with feral animals.

The fence has resolved a long-running safety issue for pilots and passengers at the aerodrome in Banana Shire, south west of Gladstone, which receives about 10 mostly-private flights a week.

Fencing contractor Jesse Rowe, of Coopers Downs, was employed to erect around 4.5 kilometres of fencing around the aerodrome.

“There had been a problem of pests and wildlife on the runway for a while and it was a real safety hazard for landing planes,” Mr Rowe said.

“Fortunately the worst never happened.”

Banana Shire recognised the problem and employed Mr Rowe and his team to complete the project. The fencing was specifically designed to address the problem of feral animals and required input from experts.

The solution

“The bulk of our work before this was in the Central Highlands, stock fencing the rail corridor for Queensland Rail,” Mr Rowe said.

“Being our first pest project I made sure I got expert advice, working closely with Waratah to make sure we got the best result."

“We could have used chain-link and concrete fencing but this can be slow to erect and it’s really not designed for purpose."

“The Waratah Stocksafe-T pre-fab mesh was specifically designed to tackle feral animal problems and was a better option. We used it with eight-foot MaxY Posts, which are taller than usual and provided stability in the sandy soils.”

Mr Rowe said now the fence is in place, pilots can be much more confident when landing in Moura.

“This was a project that needed to be completed and, with a bit of maintenance, this fence should last 50 years,” Mr Rowe said.

Image source - courier mail