Lack of possum contractors may impact on pest control

A SHORTAGE of possum contractors could risk future pest programmes by Greater Wellington Regional Council, a biosecurity manager has reported.
Wayne O'Donnell, regional council biosecurity manager, said in a report to the council's rural services and Wairarapa committee there was a "looming ... capacity problem" for possum-control contractors. "There are concerns being raised nationally," he said.
"The general opinion is that five years of competitive tendering for Animal Health Board contracts has resulted in a number of contractors downsizing, working in a single region or exiting the industry."
The result was a lack of intensive staff training, a lack of skilled personnel, "and a high staff attrition rate".
Mr O'Donnell said this raised "major concerns" for regional councils who wanted to develop community schemes in areas where TB control had stopped.
Earlier this year Mr O'Donnell said changes to the TB programme, and Animal Health Board rules, had held up contractors.
"You start off with an approved programme on July 1, and the council had to clear changes to its possum control plans with the Animal Health Board," Mr O'Donnell said.
Tenders for the last round of possum control were delayed by nearly two months, which Mr O'Donnell said, "at this time of year is critical".
"There is a lot of pressure on the contractors now, to get that done by the end of the financial year."
Complicating factors is the fact that after the possum-control workers have done their job, a second set of contractors is employed to check it.
"A delay somewhere along the way inevitably delays two sets of contractors," Mr O'Donnell said.
"Each of those changes has to go back to the AHB."
Possum-control contractor Scott Forbes, of Bioworks, an independent operator that has split off from the regional council, said staff's "biggest problem is that we have to do 600ha to 700ha a day".
The last round of tenders "hit the table a bit late", Mr Forbes said.
Mr Forbes said the pressure was on but "if the weather holds out, and a little bit of rain to keep the farmers happy" it could be done.
"You need to do 1400ha (to catch up) if you get a wet day," Mr Forbes said. "It starts to become a practical impossibility. He'd be a pretty fit man that could walk that far."
The council's independent possum control arm, Bioworks, has indicated 7689ha of their 75,754ha of projects will not be complete by June 30, the end of the financial year.
They already have contractual approval to complete 6045ha of that work after June 30.