Pest plants

The Pest Management Strategy for Taranaki: Plants provides a strategic and statutory framework for the control and eradication of plants identified as pests in the Taranaki region.

The strategy empowers the Council to exercise the relevant advisory, enforcement and funding provisions available under the Biosecurity Act 1993.

Management Programmes

Each pest plant has a management programme according to its designation. These programmes are summarised in the series of bulletins 'Pest Plant Facts'.

Council has determined a range of levels of regional intervention for different pest plants.

'Eradication pest plants': pest plants that are of limited distribution or density in a region and for which the long-term goal is eradication. These are:

• Climbing spindleberry
• Common and purple pampas
• Darwin's barberry
• Giant reed
• Mignonette vine
• Senegal tea
• Undaria

'Containment pest plants': pest plants that are abundant in suitable habitats in a region or part of a region and for which the long-term goal is to prevent the spread of the plant to new areas or to neighbouring properties. These are:

• Australian sedge
• Giant buttercup
• Giant gunnera
• Gorse
• Nodding, plumeless and variegated thistle
• Old man's beard
• Ragwort and pink ragwort
• Wild broom
• Kahili and yellow ginger

'Surveillance pest plants': pest plants for which there is no strategy rule requiring the land occupier to undertake control measures. Surveillance pest plants are banned from sale, propagation and distribution and their control is voluntary. These are:

• Brush wattle
• Egeria and lagarosiphon oxygen weed
• Japanese walnut
• Spanish heath
• Woolly nightshade

The focus of the Pest Management Strategy for Taranaki: Plants is on the control of 'eradication' and 'containment' pest plants.

For 'eradication pest plants', the Council will generally undertake the control of those plants, although land occupier obligations may apply (contact the Taranaki Regional Council if you are unsure of your land occupier obligations).

For 'containment pest plants', the Council will undertake property inspections to ensure that occupiers are complying with the rules in the Strategy to control those plants (ie, land occupier obligations). The Council inspection regime under the Strategy focuses on Category A, B and C properties, ie;

Category A properties are properties that are managed to the satisfaction of the Council and have not recently had significant infestations of a 'containment pest plant' on the property. Category A properties are visited as time and resources permit;
Category B properties are properties that are currently managed to the satisfaction of the Council but have recently had significant infestations of a 'containment pest plant' on the property. Category B properties are inspected at least once a year, and;
Category C properties are properties that the Council considers are inadequately managed. They currently, or in the previous season, have significant infestations of a 'containment pest plant' on the property. Category C properties are inspected at least three times a year.

For further advice or information about pest plant management, contact:
The Pest Plant Management Section

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