Images provided by Biosecurity New Zealand show the threat wilding pines present to landscapes in the South.
The images show the unchecked spread of pines at Mid Dome, Upper Tomogalak catchment, in Southland from 1998 to 2015.
Biosecurity Minister Damien O’Connor today told the New Zealand Wilding Conifer Group annual conference at Omarama the National Wilding Conifer Control Programme would now target 150,000 hectares in Canterbury, Otago, Southland, Marlborough and the Central North Island.
The programme had treated 500,000ha of land and searched a further 1,000,000ha for outliers, with 40,000ha of dense and moderate infestation removed.
Before control efforts pines were spreading about 90,000ha a year, and with control under way still cover about 5% of the landscape.
If left to spread on their own, the invasive pest plant was estimated to cover 20% of New Zealand's total land area -- 5,400,000ha -- by 2030, Ministry for Primary Industries wilding conifer control programme manager Sherman Smith said.
In a statement Mr O'Connor said to date the Government has spent $12.4 million on wilding conifer control, with $5.8 million from other parties.
By 2030 the programme aims to have contained or eradicated all wilding pines.
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Comments
"invasive pest plant" or future forestry & natural asset? "Shocking" or inspiring? To some of us the forest is no less attractive than the grassland, does a more effective job at soaking up excess atmospheric carbon dioxide, and may ultimately prove more useful to future human generations (especially in the event of the almost inevitable civilisation setbacks that will push us into technological dark ages).
The government's goal needs to be containment, not extermination.