11:45 am
Round one of the aerial spraying campaign to kill West Auckland's painted apple moth is over – six days after it began.
The spraying was meant to be over in a morning.
But since Saturday, when the twin-engined BK-117 helicopter was due to take off at first light, high winds,
rain and mechanical difficulties forced the spraying to be abandoned repeatedly.
Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry spokesperson Mary Ann Crawford today said that at 10.30 am the crew finished spraying the insecticide Btk in the last areas of the target zone - a small part of Avondale, plus Kelston, Glendene and Te Atatu South.
Waikumete Cemetery, the Avondale Pensinsula and Traherne
Island were sprayed on Monday.
The spray zone affects about 3000 West Auckland properties around the Whau River, its tributaries and the Avondale peninsula.
Round two of the spraying will begin in three to four weeks.
The helicopter was forced to make an emergency landing at 7 am yesterday, after one hour of spraying, when a faulty instrument indicated engine problems.
On Tuesday, the wind became too strong for spraying about 11 am and the flight was halted.
Any wind stronger than 12 km/h can cause the Btk spray to drift outside the designated 560ha spray zone over residential and industrial properties in West Auckland.
The day before, the helicopter had only completed spraying Traherne Island when the crew found that something was blocking the spray nozzles and had to abort spryaing.
And at the weekend, high winds and forecasts of further rain prevented spray runs.
The helicopter needs seven hours of calm, dry conditions to drop the pesticide and the spray requires a further five hours without rain to be effective.
Environment
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