National Carp Control Plan

The National Carp Control Plan (NCCP) has been publicly released, along with 9 supporting technical papers.

The NCCP was funded by the Australian Government and led by the Fisheries Research and Development Corporation (FRDC), to assess the use of Cyprinid herpes virus 3 (the carp virus) as a biological control agent for reducing the impacts of carp.

Carp are a significant pest impacting freshwater ecosystems in Australia, the NCCP explored one approach to help reduce their impacts.

The South Australian Government, along with all other Australian jurisdictions and several national committees, will carefully consider and review the plan and technical papers before deciding whether to progress with the biological control program.

The papers accompanying the NCCP cover a range of topics, including understanding whether the carp virus could impact on other species, understanding how effective the virus could be, and social implications and views on releasing the virus.

As an established pest species, the complete eradication of carp is unlikely. The purpose of the NCCP is to assess how effective the carp virus could be in controlling carp populations.

No decision has been made to release the carp virus. Before any potential release, further research, specific regulatory approvals, significant planning for implementation and extensive community consultation would be needed.

Background

Native to Europe and Asia, carp were introduced to Australia numerous times over the last 180 years. They are now present in every state and territory in Australia, except for the Northern Territory.

Carp is considered the worst freshwater aquatic pest in south-eastern Australia, particularly within the Murray Darling Basin.

Research indicates that carp make up 80 percent of fish biomass in many waterways, often displacing native species.

Already present in over 30 countries, the carp virus has the potential to reduce carp numbers in Australia by over 70%. Such a reduction would have dramatic benefits for:

  • water quality
  • aquatic vegetation
  • native fish
  • fishing
  • irrigation.

More information

Watch the Clearer Waters trailer.

View more information about the National Carp Control Plan from the Australian Government's Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.

Page last reviewed: 14 Nov 2022

 


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