Tragic end to disputes over illegal land clearing

Police block off the road at Talga Lane on the Newell Highway at Croppa Creek after Tuesday's fatal shooting. Photo: Cady Anderson, Moree Champion

It was a storm that had been brewing for years, and many feared it would one day end in violence.

Tragically for Glen Turner, that day came on Tuesday when tensions over illegal vegetation clearing in north-west NSW allegedly came to a devastating head.

The 51 year-old Environment and Heritage compliance officer, a loving father-of-two from Tamworth, was allegedly shot in the back as he served a notice on 79 year-old farmer Ian Turnbull for illegally clearing vegetation on his Croppa Creek property, 55 kilometres north of Moree.

Glendon Turner was shot dead on a property near Moree. Photo: Supplied

Mr Turner and a colleague arrived around 5.40pm. They informed Mr Turnbull there would be a formal inspection the next day but, as they left the property, Mr Turnbull allegedly fired his rifle several times, one shot hitting Mr Turner in the back.

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Mr Turnbull was arrested five hours later after a stand-off on a neighbouring family property. He appeared emotional when he was refused bail in Moree Local Court on Wednesday, charged with murder.

In 2010, talkback host Alan Jones made an ominous prediction regarding the growing stoush between NSW farmers, who were defending their right to remove vegetation on their own property, and environmentalists, who believed significant clearing was doing irreversible damage.

Croppa Creek.

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Tragic end to disputes over illegal land clearing