Chorus over bird noises

By Tania Martin
A WANDIN man has called for The Shire of Yarra Ranges to investigate the use of sonic bird scaring devices.
Bob O’Neil last week told the council the sonic birds scarers, which were used by his neighbour during the cherry season, had affected his quality of life.
Mr O’Neil said during the cherry season between December and late January, the noise from the bird-scaring device impacted heavily on him and his wife.
He said the devices were only located 200 metres away from his bedroom window, which made it difficult to get any sleep.
Mr O’Neil’s call for the council to look further into the issues comes three months after his neighbour John Caccaviello called for assurances that the devises wouldn’t be outlawed.
In March the Mail reported that Mr Caccaviello feared complaints over the use of the bird scarers would see them banned.
At the time Mr Caccaviello called for council assurances that the boundaries on the use of the devices wouldn’t be changed.
In 2002 the use of gas-powered bird scaring guns were outlawed under new local law regulations.
Mr Caccaviello told the Mail that every time farmers found a way to protect their crops new regulations are adopted.
He said for many years the use of gas powered guns were an approved method of protecting crops until neighbours started complaining.
Mr O’Neil said that the noise from the sonic bird scarers had impacted on his life and wants the matter investigated.
“I have an internationally recognised garden and want to be able to enjoy it without being interrupted by the noise from the scarers.
“There is just nowhere to escape from these noises in the summer.”
But shire manager of community relations James Martin said environmental health officers have taken noise readings and are currently in discussions with both parties to resolve the issues.
Mr Martin said the sonic bird scarers don’t come under the EPA guidelines, which makes it difficult for the council to police.
“There are guidelines around the use of traditional scare guns, which the council has included in a local law relation to noise, however this type falls outside that scope,” he said.
Mr Martin said the council is mindful of the needs of both the fruit growers and the neighbour residents.
He said the council wants to strike a balance for allowing farmers to protect their crops from birds and at the same time enable non-farming residents to have a quality of life without being affected by the noise from the bird scarers.
Mr O’Neil said despite his call for the investigation into the use of the sonic bird scarers, he was not calling for them to be outlawed.
“I am not calling for them to be banned – I just want some sort of control to be exercised over the noise level,” he said.