Federated Farmers Feedback on the Bay of Plenty Regional Council Pest Management Plan
The feedback is
designed to respond to specific pest management issues.
Federated Farmers consider that the eradication of
new pests should include addressing tutsan and Chilean needle grass.
We
support the focus of education of farmers on the benefits of on-farm
biosecurity and advice and support on good practices.
Any
targeted pest management requires prior obtained agreement from the landowner
and incentives from the Council around fencing, pest control funding and other
such measures.
If the Council is intending
to step back from managing well established pests then Federated Farmers would
need more information on which species will be involved and exactly what
Council is proposing. Only then can Federated Farmers provide
constructive feedback.
Any stepping back by the
Council from managing well established pest and the responsibility moving
towards landowners requires a ‘good neighbour’ rules.
In general, regulations to control gorse
is unnecessary and will only add costs to farmers and Council. Federated
Farmers support financial incentives to remove gorse and consider that the
Council should promote the initiative better.
Federated
Farmers supports a continued effort to contain the wallaby population to its
current range because of the adverse environmental and economic outcomes if the
Council do not.
Federated
Farmers supports any plan to manage unowned and abandoned cats.
They are an environmental and economic pest on working farms.
Accordingly, we suggest Council should:
1)
Monitor
and develop solutions for the problem of cat abandonment;
2)
Work
with landowners to:
a. Educate them on the risk of the feral
cats, and
b. Support and provide free measures to
ensure landowners can take appropriate steps.
3)
Control
feral cats in high value conservation land.
Lastly Federated Farmers consider that
adverse events, road and rail maintenance is other pathways which can be
managed in a more deliberate manner.