Save Kosciuszko Brumbies

Campaigning to end the lethal control of brumby populations in Kosciuszko National Park and push for the adoption of humane, non-lethal alternatives. This group supports parliamentary advocacy, community pressure, and accountability for the treatment of brumbies in NSW.

Brumbies Working Group

Brumbies Working Group Group Status: Needs people to activate

Brumbies, Australia's wild horses, are being targeted in aerial and ground shooting operations in Kosciuszko National Park that cause extreme suffering. Animals are shot from helicopters, often wounded, and left to die slowly. This is mass slaughter of sentient beings.

Humane, non-lethal alternatives exist. Fertility control programs have been used successfully in other contexts and must be properly resourced and implemented in NSW. The Animal Justice Party NSW opposes all lethal control of brumbies and is committed to pushing for a policy shift towards approaches that do not inflict unnecessary suffering.

What this working group does

The Brumbies Working Group campaigns to end lethal control methods in Kosciuszko National Park and hold the NSW Government accountable for its treatment of wild horses.

The group focuses on:

opposing aerial and ground shooting of brumbies
advocating for humane, non-lethal population management including fertility control
supporting our MP Emma Hurst's work in Parliament
community education and public awareness
research, submissions, and accountability efforts

How to get involved

This working group needs people to activate it. If you want to see action on brumbies, be part of making it happen.

If you are interested in this issue and would like to be notified if the group resumes, email [email protected] and include:

Brumbies Working Group
Your name and email address

Campaign History and Highlights

The AJP NSW is a minor party with one MP in the NSW Parliament. We grow stronger with every member, volunteer, and working group participant who joins us.

Animal Justice Party MP Emma Hurst has already taken this fight to Parliament, petitioning, dissenting from government policy, and demanding accountability on the parliamentary record. But one MP can only do so much without community pressure behind her.

The more people who join this campaign, the louder our voice gets. That is how minor parties create change.

Emma Hurst MP Petition: Stop the Shooting and Slaughter of Brumbies. View it here.

Emma Hurst MP formally dissented from government policy on brumby management, placing the Animal Justice Party's opposition to lethal control on the parliamentary record. Read Emma's dissent here.
The AJP NSW raised the issue directly in Parliament, pressuring decision-makers to account for the scale and speed of lethal operations being carried out in Kosciuszko National Park.
The AJP NSW has consistently called on the government to implement humane, non-lethal alternatives, including fertility control, which exist and have proven effective in other contexts but have been repeatedly overlooked.
The AJP NSW continues to push back against a narrative that treats brumbies as pests to be eliminated, centring their status as sentient beings and amplifying the voices of those with direct experience working with them.
Listen to Emma’s ABC interview here (time stamp 2:20:00) from Thursday, 21 May 2026.

Open Letter - Written by Emma Hurst MP

June 11th 2026

Dear Minister,

I write to you regarding the ongoing killing of wild horses in Kosciuszko National Park.

Few issues have generated as much community concern and distress as the mass aerial shooting taking place right now.

The last Government aerial shooting program was horrendous - as many feared it would be. Horses were found with multiple bullet wounds. Foals were killed, while others were left orphaned and vulnerable to starvation or predation.

Many people were concerned we would see a repeat of the Guy Fawkes aerial shooting program. In some ways, what happened may have been even worse.

That's why this second killing program has ignited even more outrage. It has highlighted to the public that these large killing programs do not work. The Government claim to have killed thousands of horses, but now claim the numbers have skyrocketed again. If this is true, what this points out is that aerial shooting is a band aid solution- it is not a long-term solution. The Government cannot justify further aerial shooting - period.

I want to you to take a moment to think about each of the animals this decision effects. The fear, pain, and long-lingering deaths that this aerial kill will undoubtedly cause the horses residing at Kosciuszko National Park.

We both care about the environment and native animals. The protection of Kosciuszko's unique environment is exceptionally important. But animal welfare is important too. We can recognise both truths simultaneously.

As elected representatives, we have a responsibility to seek solutions that ensure both environmental protection and broader compassion are considered. This may not be the easy road- but it is the right road. It involves proper community consultation, opportunities for rehoming, considering the latest science and technology and looking towards humane long-term solutions rather than going down the route of taking action simply for a headline that implies action is being taken, when we know that the action itself will cause great suffering and no long-term solution.

I therefore ask you to immediately cease the current killing program and convene a genuine roundtable involving environmental scientists, animal welfare experts, rescue organisations, brumby advocates, regional communities and other stakeholders to identify a practical and humane way forward.

I have personally been calling for fertility control since I was elected seven years ago. The heartbreaking reality is that if governments had invested in these solutions when they were first proposed, the killing taking place today may have been avoided.

Trials have still not been started- instead a report was released criticising the old outdated technology in this space, and didn't give any proper consideration to the latest technology that overcomes those issues. It suggests either a total lack of interest in humane options, or a lack of understanding around the issue and the latest technology. No decision this great should ever be made in either of those scenarios.

This issue has become unnecessarily polarised. I am hearing rehomers are being blocked out from rescuing some of the horses. This has become an aggressive campaign by the Government - it is heavy handed for no reason, and the victims of this will be the animals.

We must stop 'picking sides' for political purposes, and instead stop and find the best solutions for all involved.

I urge you to show that leadership now. The shooting must stop, and a humane path forward must be found.

Yours sincerely,

Emma Hurst MP
Member of the Legislative Council

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