New Zealand’s Department on Conservation (DOC) which aims to eradicate mustelids from the country by 2050, spent nearly $500,000 (US$297,000) to rid a wildlife area in the South island of just one predator, select committee documents recently released say.
The country’s native species, in particular birds like the Kiwi, are under constant threat from introduced predators like stoats, ferrets, and Norway and ship rats. These animals were introduced from the United Kingdom in the 19th century as a way of controlling rabbits that were destroying pasture used for raising sheep.
The predator population swelled to uncontrolled levels and without proper interdiction, one in three native species are now at serious risk of extinction within two human generations.
The establishment of predator-free areas throughout New Zealand’s wild surrounds is vital to the conservation of at-risk animals.
Stoats are known for their ability to adapt to any type of climate and will frequent habitats anywhere that is in easy reach of prey. According to the advocacy group Predator Free NZ, they are found all across New Zealand in high country, beach areas, farms, bushland and forests and at high altitudes.
In 2016, the New Zealand government introduced Predator Free 2050, an ambitious project that aims to completely eradicate all non-native predators and other environmentally challenging pests like possums.
Traditional methods to kill stoats include traps and bait stations, which are designed to target only the introduced pests, and are complemented by para-aminopropiophenone, a toxin that reduces an animal’s oxygen levels causing death.
According to their website, DOC maintains over 180,000 traps with a cost to the taxpayer of over $5 million per annum.
A Radio NZ investigation has now detailed how DOC spent $483,260 and took eight months to rid Chalky Island, Fiordland, of a single male stoat. The area has been predator-free since 1999.
In August 2022, the stoat was identified, activating a response from DOC which utilised an incident management team, conservation dog handlers, and transport from boats and a helicopter.
Previously Accused of Wasteful Spending
In recent years, DOC has been accused of being too frivolous in using public money with excessive spending on compliance and regulatory issues which have spiralled operational costs.In response to intentions by the government to cut DOC’s budget by 6.5 percent, Director-General Penny Nelson argued at a recent annual review presented to Parliament’s environment committee that, “The department is not currently financially sustainable for what we’re being asked to do.”
The comments raised the ire of the NZ Taxpayer’s Union which accused the agency of wasting money on “an ever-growing backroom bureaucracy” after DOC complained of being “spread too thin” by budgetary constraints.
“The only reason DoC is spread too thin is because they are spreading their resources across rather than on delivering improved conservation outcomes,” Taxpayers’ Union Campaigns Manager Connor Molloy said.
“Since 2017, DoC’s headcount has grown by a staggering 28.2 percent, including an additional 134 managers and at least 319 other additional staff in back-office roles.”
Citing the example of DOC storing and ultimately burying a leatherback turtle with full Maori protocols in 2021, Mr. Molloy said on March 11 that, “This is also the same department that spent almost $12,000 on a funeral for a turtle and more than $5,000 on retirement gifts for its former director-general.”
Expenditure Defended by Biologist
In defending the expenditure to kill one stoat, DOC pointed towards the unenviable outcome of the endangered Kākahu skinks (lizards) and little spotted kiwi chicks, along with kākāpō chicks, which could have been killed by the stoat.
When asked about whether the cost-to-value ratio was acceptable, Auckland University Professor of Conservation Biology James Russell said he supported the decision.
He added that would like to see continued investment in stoat eradication as the area was a “precious place,” which, owing to DOC’s work and Chalky Island’s geographic isolation, has seen the successful reintroduction of the kakapo.
“That isolation that has protected the birds is also what makes some of these operations so expensive such as doing a predator incursion response,” Mr. Russell told RNZ.
Mr. Russell remarked that while $500,000 may seem a lot, it was a relatively small investment to protect native flora and fauna for generations ahead.
“We have to decide, do we want to keep investing in this and push through these reinvasions and hopefully work towards a predator-free New Zealand or will we just kind of draw the line and say we’re not willing to spend any more money on these predator incursion responses,” he said.
“When we are looking at some of the challenges and the responsibilities we have to our native birds and reptiles of New Zealand, I think we really should feel that DoC’s pretty hard done by.”
