The effectiveness of a recent large-scale rabbit control programme at St Bathans will hinge on follow-up work by landowners.
About 700ha of land surrounding the township was covered in the programme, with carrots laced with 1080 poison used on about 500ha and pindone-laced carrots used on 300ha.
Otago Regional Council regional service group manager Jeff Donaldson said the area was rabbit-prone country and numbers had built up in recent years.
During the public forum at an Otago Conservation Board meeting in St Bathans last week, two St Bathans residents raised concerns about the rabbit problem in the area.
Max Polglaze said the poisoning programme had been very effective - "it just about wiped them out."
He was worried about re-infestation because it was a "very busy" rabbit population and said he preferred "organic" methods of control in the future.
Lorraine Bennett said she would prefer to see rabbits controlled by a shooter, rather than using 1080 poison.
She was concerned about 1080 residue.
While discussing the use of 1080 for possum control later on during the meeting, Otago conservator Marian van der Goes said it was an effective tool for large tracts of land.
The negative public perception about 1080 was a challenge, she said.
Board chairman Hoani Langsbury said the board's stance was that it supported the use of 1080 as a tool for pest control in the absence of anything as effective.
Speaking after the meeting, regional council technical adviser Stephen Price, of Alexandra, said St Bathans landowners needed to remain vigilant about controlling rabbit numbers on their properties, to back up the recent poisoning programme.
"It's very rabbit-prone land so all that good work will be undone if all property owners don't keep on top of things."
The St Bathans area was classified as six or seven on the McLean scale of rabbit infestation, with eight being the most infested land.
Night shooting was not suitable for land with that level of infestation, he said.
"Poisoning is the only thing you can do; night shooting will not cut it."
Ms Bennett said rabbit carcasses were in waterways around the town for "up to a month" after the poison drop.
Mr Price said the ORC had received permission from the Otago medical officer of health for the poisoning programme and had avoided laying bait within 50m of any waterway.
Staff had checked there were no poisoned carrots in the water race and also went back later and removed seven rabbit carcasses from the race.
The race had been diverted from the source of drinking water, he said.
No complaints had been received from the public about the rabbit control programme.
