Hygiene and care vital to limit kauri dieback

Simple hygiene measures can prevent kauri ending up like this stricken tree.

The simple steps you take to clean your gear will help protect our kauri forests and could mean the difference between the ultimate survival and extinction of this iconic species.

That's a message the Kauri 2000 Trust hopes everyone visiting Peninsula forests will take personally, and by observing simple hygiene precautions do their bit to prevent kauri dieback disease spreading amongst Coromandel Peninsula kauri.

Kauri 2000 chairwoman Alison Henry says with thousands of holidaymakers and tourists hitting the peninsula this summer it is particularly important that visitors from Auckland, Northland and Great Barrier Island "come clean to the Coromandel" and that locals also play their part in protecting our kauri.

"Kauri dieback disease kills kauri of all ages and sizes by destroying their feeding roots. There is no cure. It has spread rapidly through our kauri forests because people have transported infected dirt from one area to another and it's highly likely that's how kauri dieback came to the Coromandel.

"The only practical way to save our kauri forests now is to stop the spread of the disease into healthy areas and to keep it contained within known infected locations," says Henry.

"Fortunately, even with the recent discovery of a new site near Tairua, there are still only a limited number of infected sites on the peninsula. If we all apply simple hygiene procedures every time we go into the bush, we should be able to slow down the spread of this disease."

What to do

* Clean all dirt off your footwear, tyres and equipment before you leave home and again after every visit to a kauri forest.
* Always use hygiene stations entering and exiting forests — scrub, check you've removed all soil, or at least as much as possible, then spray with disinfectant.
* Stay on tracks at all times and off kauri roots. Walking on and disturbing soil around the roots can spread the disease and also damages fine feeder roots.
* Keep dogs on a leash as they can spread soil too. Hunting or moving between forests, clean their paws as well as your own gear.
* Obey all track closures — it's a small commitment for you but will make a big difference to our kauri! (You can check for Department of Conservation (DOC) track closures before you set out at www.doc.govt.nz.)

The Kauri 2000 Trust says efforts to protect Coromandel kauri are ramping up this summer with DOC progressively upgrading tracks and installing new hygiene stations, and track ambassadors being stationed at several key tracks over summer to explain how visitors can help to protect kauri forests.

Kauri 2000 has received funding from the Ministry for Primary Industries to run an advertising campaign targeting local residents and the thousands of tourists and holidaymakers who visit the peninsula over the holiday season.

They say New Chums Beach/Wainuiototo is a very popular spot, but there is kauri dieback in this area, which makes it even more important not to take shortcuts or trespass through private property.

"We're saying stick to the public track, and stay on the beach, please don't go exploring or camp up behind the beach.

"If you want to look at kauri, go to places where there are boardwalks so you can get up close without standing on the tree roots. Great places to see mature kauri are the 309 Kauri Grove and the Long Bay kauri walk."

The organisation's tips for cleaning footwear so the trees are protected from the disease include removing the soil first, paying special attention to the treads. Soil should be disposed of in a rubbish bag or where people won't walk.

Also scrub off every trace of soil with hot soapy water — soles and uppers. This is the most important step. Repeat until all the soil is removed. Pour dirty water down the drain or into your septic tank.

Finally, rinse clean, and spray with Sterigene solution, or a diluted solution of household disinfectant such as bleach, as an added precaution.