THE drought has hit yet another sector, with low numbers forcing NSW authorities to stop shooters harvesting grey kangaroos.
The ban, in the Griffith Kangaroo Management Zone, is a further blow to Riverina shooters as they already struggle to find numbers to fill a diminishing market.
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A few years ago, many chillers operated in the Riverina with as many as 30 people employed in some western Riverina towns shooting kangaroos.
But with the suspension of the Russian market earlier this year due to contamination fears, demand has stalled.
The lack of demand is reflected in the number of tags issued by the NSW Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water, which said the use of tags this year had been low.
Despite the smaller numbers of tags issued, shooters have been stopped from harvesting eastern grey and western grey kangaroos in the Griffith zone, a 100,000 sq km area, which covers much of the Riverina.
DECCW kangaroo management program manager Nicole Payne said populations of grey kangaroos in the zone had "fallen substantially".
The sole remaining full-time kangaroo shooter in the Hillston area, Bob Brittle, said it would take all his skills to fill even the relatively small requirement of 100 kangaroos for his buyer each week.
"It will be frustrating as we will have to drive by grey kangaroos and only shoot the reds," he said.
The latest restrictions add to the hardship in the industry already caused by the suspension of the Russian market for roo meat, which the Kangaroo Industry Association of Australia says has resulted in the loss of 2500 jobs in regional areas.
