So, what are the chances it will pass this time? This latest attempt is a concerted and well planned effort supported by the safari hunting industry in Australia and international conservation groups. A number of people have been working on the reopening of Aussie crocodiles for years, including John J. Jackson, III, of Conservation Force, in concert with the IUCN Croc Specialist Group. The current proposal seems to follow what the Group previously has recommended. Jackson says the plan's approval would be a major breakthrough. "But we have gotten close before," he warns. "And each time it has been killed at the national level because of distaste for tourist hunting by wealthy nonresidents for recreation rather than livelihoods and food."
Indeed that seems to be at the crux of internal disagreements in Australia's hunting community, where local hunters would like to hunt crocodiles as well and would not be able to under the proposed scheme because the government is considering a permit fee of $5,000 to $10,000. The high cost of the permit puts crocodile hunting out of most residents' reach and makes it available only to well-heeled hunters. Including the costs of offering the hunt, speculation is that the hunts would have to go........(continued)
