BY SARAH JAMES
An investigation by Fairfax has revealed the number of registered firearms in the Hunter has increased from approximately 70,000 in 2012 to almost 100,000 in 2017.
During this same timeframe, the number of people holding a firearm licence doubled to more than 26,000.
In rural suburbs such as Aberdeen, Merriwa and Willow Tree, the number of firearms is higher than the adult population.
The overall increase in gun ownership nationally has raised concerns from Gun Control Australia, who fear the laws will soon reflect those prior to the 1996 Port Arthur massacre.
A spokesperson from Gun Control Australia, Samantha Lee, told 2NURFM a decline in gun laws in NSW has allowed gun ownership to flourish.
"Our gun laws are eroding at a fairly rapid rate...one of those erosions being the ability to accumulate a large cache of firearms per licence holder. This is exactly what the Port Arthur Agreement was meant to prevent to try and reduce gun deaths across Australia."
The second largest single stockpiler of firearms in NSW resides in the Cardiff-Edgeworth postcode 2285, owning 310 firearms.
"Statistics are showing that people are owning on average four to five guns each, and in some communities like the Hunter people are owning around one hundred guns each," she said.
However, owner of Thornton Hunting & Outdoors, Chris Barrett, argues that for many people in the Hunter region, owning a gun is often a necessary part of life.
"If you operate a farm you need a firearm in order to keep your stock alive, to keep your crops growing, it's an absolute necessity," he said.
"There is nothing wrong with legally owning, possessing and using firearms for legal pursuits such as sports target shooting, hunting and the destruction of feral animals that are really decimating our native wildlife."
While Gun Control Australia is pushing for the number of firearms per licence holder to be limited, gun advocates say this would inhibit serious sport shooters, with multiple firearms needed for different disciplines.
"One firearm is not going to cater to every single type of shooting event you want to be involved in," Mr Barrett said. "I would say to someone who wants to play golf 'how about you go out and use one club'. Not going to work. You need a number of clubs to get around the course. Firearms are the same."
While nearly 10,000 guns were handed over to NSW police during the 2017 National Firearms Amnesty, there are still concerns about the number of illegal firearms in the region.
"The illegal market is fed by the legal market. So the more guns that are available in the general community the more likely they are to be stolen and end up in the illegal market," said Ms Lee.
Mr Barrett echoed this sentiment, saying the real issue governments need to focus on is illegal firearms in illegal hands.
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| Source: ABC |
