Around 30 eastern grey kangaroos have been removed from the race campground along College Road in preparation for campers.

Bathurst Kangaroo Project’s Helen Bergen said it was a long process and undertaken early one morning.

“There were about 30 stranded in the orchard camping area, but we’ve managed to get them all into the orchard,” she said.

Meanwhile, plans to permanently relocate 150 kangaroos, around 15 per cent of the Mount’s total population, from the same orchard area remain postponed.

The relocation, originally planned for last Friday, was put on hold due to wet weather and remains delayed waiting on a licence from the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

For the rest of Mount Panorama’s kangaroo population, Ms Bergen said there was an easy way to ensure these marsupials do not move onto the race track during events, and she claims Bathurst Regional Council are yet to fully adopt the idea.

Bathurst ecologist Ray Mjadwesch agreed and said the plan would protect both the kangaroos and drivers during races on the Mount.

He told the Western Advocate in March that council must complete installing fences and gates around the already-identified areas that kangaroos are known to inhabit around the Mount.

The fences stay up permanently and in the lead-up to races any kangaroos outside the fences are herded back in and the gates shut.

“Council struggles with something that’s really quite easy to look after,” Mr Mjadwesch said at the time.

Ms Bergen agreed and said the kangaroos do find their way in through the gates back to their mob.

“This could happen all the way around the track, but council hasn’t asked us to do it,” she said.

But, in a statement council general manager David Sherley said “council’s management of kangaroos on the mountain in the lead up to and during the Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000 is in line with all racing events”.

“Council has installed permanent fencing around sections of the circuit and this year has re-fenced the section of the track from McPhillamy Park down to Forest Elbow,” Mr Sherley said.

“Additional temporary fencing is also installed on sections of the circuit in a bid to stop kangaroos entering the track.

“The fencing is one of a number of methods council employs to manage kangaroos on the Mount, others include closing of gates and an extensive program of monitoring animal movements on the Mount during events.”