Cockie cable crisis

By Tania Martin
KALLISTA’S cockatoo plague has reached new heights after the birds chewed through powerlines.
The latest incident occurred at the Kallista Mechanics Institute last month.
The chewed powerline was presented to a council meeting last Tuesday, 14 July.
Shire of Yarra Ranges councillor Samantha Dunn, whose Lyster Ward covers Kallista, said the cockatoo problem had now become a serious public safety issue.
The issue has escalated over the past four weeks following attacks on buildings and houses in Kallista.
Tourists who feed the cockatoos at Grants Picnic Ground have been blamed for giving the well-fed and bored birds leisure time in which to get up to mischief.
Parks Victoria has also asked residents not the put out food for the birds although it has a lease with the operators of Grants Picnic Ground which allows bird feeding.
Cr Dunn said she was shocked when she was given the chewed power line by the Kallista Mechanics Institute Hall committee.
“We thought we had a little bit of an issue with them chewing through window frames and bollards but it much more serious than that,” Cr Dunn said.
She said what was most concerning is that the powerlines were in the vicinity of the community house, local kindergarten and could have been a danger to anyone walking past.
Mechanic Institute’s secretary Venbita Barnard said she first noticed one cockatoo attacking the powerlines on 18 June and chased it away.
But the next day a group of cockatoos returned to finish the job.
Ms Barnard said it was only lucky the power to the hall wasn’t connected at the time.
This latest issue comes just weeks after Cr Dunn met with the Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) and Monbulk MP James Merlino to discuss the ongoing damage.
Cr Dunn said DSE had confirmed there was a definite link between feeding the cockatoos and the damage and that an education campaign was needed.
But she said this would be sending a mixed message as tourists would still be able to feed cockatoos at Grants Picnic Ground.
“We are more than happy to support an education program but there is a broader issue the government needs to tackle in relation to Grants,” Cr Dunn said.
SpAusnet said animals often chew its lines and that it was gradually upgrading to less susceptible cables.