Regional pest plan under review

The Northland Regional Council is seeking initial public feedback on how invasive plants and animals are managed in Te Taitokerau as part of a review of the Northland Regional Pest and Marine Pathway Management Plan.

Formal submissions on the plan will be able to be made in March and April next year, but in the meantime the council is running a period of early engagement talking to hapū, iwi, kaitiaki, pest control groups and other interested people and organisations.

Councillor Jack Craw, who chairs the council’s Biosecurity and Biodiversity Working Party, says the pest plan is all about how pests can be best managed in Te Taitokerau, to protect te ao tūroa (our natural world), the wellbeing of whānau and communities, and our economy.

“The pest plan aims to get the right management approaches in place for the many species classed as pests in Te Taitokerau, and direct the right balance of resourcing and funding to the right places and people to tackle them.”

“Resources are limited and some hard decisions will need to be made regarding which pests will be able to be managed.”

“We’re really keen to hear people’s thoughts on what’s working well with the current pest plan, and what might need to change.”

Councillor Craw says while the current pest plan still has effect until 2027, the pest management landscape is ever changing.

The current plan covers 143 pest species, but there are many more that could be included.

“It spans animal pests, plant pests, freshwater pests and the microorganism which causes kauri dieback disease.

“It also includes marine pests, and a marine pathway plan to prevent marine pests from being transported to new places.”

Councillor Craw says some pests pose a bigger threat than others, some pests are easier to manage than others, many pests are long-established here and a few have arrived only recently.

He says the council is investigating changes to the rules for turtles (red-eared slider turtle and the snake-neck turtle), lizards (bearded dragon and Eastern water dragon) and parrots (galah, Indian ring-necked parakeet, rainbow lorikeet, and sulphur-crested cockatoo).

“These species are generally not established in the wild in Te Taitokerau but if they were to escape or be released, the impact they would have in the environment could be huge.”

“We are considering whether banning these species from sale or breeding would help reduce that risk.”

Councillor Craw says the council is also investigating options for better management of tench (a freshwater fish) and the Canada goose – species originally introduced for hunting and fishing, but which have outgrown their original spaces and will potentially impact on our environment and ecosystems.

On the exotic palm front, Bangalow palm and Chinese fan palm have already been banned from sale in the neighbouring Auckland region.  “We're considering doing the same here, as they outcompete nikau palms and other native species when invading forest areas.”

Meanwhile, Cr Craw says the council is assessing the effects of a number of new species and looking at whether they should be included in the new plan.

These include:

• Madagascar ragwort – a toxic pasture invader.
• Fall armyworm – the larvae of an invasive moth, which first arrived in Aotearoa in 2022, have been found in Te Taitokerau and are known to feed on plant species from 76 different families.
• Australian winged weta (aka king cricket) – this species was found in Te Taitokerau in 2021. Its environmental impacts in Aotearoa are not yet fully understood.
• Exotic caulerpa – this highly invasive seaweed was first discovered in Te Taitokerau in 2023 (in Te Rawhiti inlet) and poses a significant ecological threat.
• Red sea plume – this seaweed is relatively new to our mainland so impacts aren’t yet clear, but it is known to be invasive in warmer waters.
• Freshwater gold clam – this highly invasive pest was discovered in the Waikato River in 2023, and could devastate our lakes and rivers if it were spread to Te Taitokerau as they breed rapidly and form dense populations that outcompete native species and can clog up electrical generation or irrigation infrastructure. Using a pathway management approach could help prevent new threats like gold glam entering our freshwater lakes.
• Myrtle rust – a serious fungal disease that affects trees and shrubs in the myrtle family. Since its initial discovery in 2017, the fungus has spread throughout Aotearoa.

He says comments on the pest plan can be shared via an online form available at www.nrc.govt.nz/pestplan, by emailing [email protected] or by phoning 0800 002 004.