Abbott brings greenies to heel

Mr Abbott, speaking to the media at a function to mark the 25th anniversary of the Australian Stockman's Hall of Fame at Longreach, said the Coalition wouldn't allow greenies and others to dictate policy on wild dogs.

"When you've got a situation where these ferocious feral dogs are devastating our sheep flocks, obviously you've got to take action," he said.

"We won't allow state and local boundaries to prevent a strong campaign to much better control these dogs, which are doing such damage."

Barcoo Shire councillor Mike Pratt said wild dogs were a national problem and needed a national solution but he would prefer it if control started from the grassroots and worked its way up rather than from the top down.

"Our current structure should be ample if everyone pulls their weight," he said.

"There are just a few who don't consider it a priority."

Mr Pratt did concede that federal funding assistance with a new check fence would be welcome, describing it as a long-term measure rather than a "bandaid" such as 1080 poison.

"It's about helping create safe havens for improved stock productivity where wild dogs can't be controlled," he said.

"It's already happening through Caring for our Country projects in the south-west."

AgForce Sheep and Wool president Richard Pietsch congratulated Mr Abbott for recognising there was a problem and said if it wasn't addressed at a national level soon, Queensland's sheep industry would continue its decline.

The key as far as he was concerned was coordination.

"Lots of people are putting money up but it needs national coordination - that's already been proven," he said.

"If federal governments are prepared to put money in, that's great, but if they want to set up another bureaucracy, that's not so great."

Mr Pietsch urged Mr Abbott to heed Woolproducers Australia president Geoff Power who recently announced the wool industry was facing a crisis not seen before in its history.

Mr Power was responding to a major new scientific study published in the Australian Veterinary Journal, which found that rangeland production of sheep in Australia was likely to disappear in 30 to 40 years due to the predation of wild dogs.

"It is clear from this study that the wool industry may not survive unless something is done nationally," Mr Power said.

He urged national industry organisations and governments to support WPA's National Wild Dog Action Plan, which should have its first draft out for public consultation in August or September.

The plan seeks to improve national and state coordination and promote best practice standards across the varying state and regional approaches now in place.

It already has support from the national Vertebrate Pests Committee, National Wild Dog Management Advisory Group, governments, peak industry grazing organisations and researchers.