Regional services group manager Jeff Donaldson told the Otago Daily Times yesterday there was a "likelihood that there will be a recommendation for prosecution go up on a couple of people who have failed to carry out [rabbit control] work this winter."
Mr Donaldson said the council had taken one previous prosecution, two years ago.
The council has required the owners of more than 50 properties to institute a rabbit management plan.
Council staff were in the process of auditing each management plan to ensure work identified as needing to be done had actually been carried out.
Mr Donaldson said "the greater percentage" were complying with their plan and carrying out appropriate control.
Audits were expected to be completed by Christmas and decisions about prosecutions would be made then.
"We'll wait and see how the audits come in but I would imagine that there are some people who have failed to do the work they promised to do, or that their management plan said they would do."
Mr Donaldson acknowledged some landowners were unable to carry out poisoning programmes because they lacked an effective boundary fence with a neighbour who refused to go ahead with poisoning.
"So those people we have to work with, because they are not deliberately not carrying out their work."
Asked about the high number of rabbits in the Queensberry area, Mr Donaldson said work was programmed for properties there over the winter.
"You have five people agreeing to carry out some work, one says no at the last minute, it's impossible to go ahead with that programme.
"It has not just happened in that area [Queensberry]; it happens in other areas, as well."
Mr Donaldson said the biggest problem the council faced was with people who were not prepared to control their rabbits by primary control methods, including the use of 1080 poison.
"Everybody thinks they can control their rabbits by secondary control ... whereas, in actual fact, they can't."
