Moth spraying expected to ease off for winter

By ANNE BESTON

Biosecurity authorities will not promise an end to their massive aerial blitz on the painted apple moth in West Auckland - but nobody expects it to continue during the winter.

Instead, Cabinet is likely to approve helicopter "spot spraying" and ground spraying during the colder months.

The Cabinet will consider the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry's report on the programme on May 26.

Although not completely dormant over winter, the native Australian moth does not like cold weather.

Ministry experts hope that populations have been reduced to the point where winter breeding will be low or non-existent.

The crunch time for the ministry will come later this year when spring weather will help to reveal any survivors of the spraying campaign.

Ministry officials continued to be upbeat about their eight-month campaign yesterday.

Operations manager Robert Isbister said nine live moths were caught in March, one in April and one last week.

The best news was that no moths had been caught for nine weeks in Waikumete Cemetery, he said. The cemetery is suspected of being the site of the original and has proved resistant to spraying.

Anti-spray campaigner Hanafia Blackmore said that although some residents would be relieved to see an end to the current campaign, they would rather it stopped completely.

"The spot spraying is so scattered over the city that you would be lucky to avoid it," she said.

The spray programme angered some West Auckland residents who said the Foray 48B insecticide caused headaches, vomiting, asthma and diarrhoea.

The ministry has always argued a majority of residents backed its efforts to wipe out the moth, which has been said to pose a potential $50 million to $350 million threat to New Zealand.

What happens now?

* Residents are almost certain to get a six-month break from aerial spraying.
* The Government is due to decide on the future of the $90 million aerial operation on May 26.
* Crunch time is November and December: that's when any remaining moths will begin to show up.