Viewpoint – Dithering over dieback

Kauri dieback disease is a national crisis and a real threat to our region, and one that is largely ignored. In Rodney, we are home to the largest kauri tree on the east coast. With a girth of more than seven metres and estimated to be more than 800 years old, the McKinney kauri is located (in case you are new to the area) at the Parry Kauri Park in Warkworth. Kauri are a unique natural taonga. To have such a magnificent tree that you can literally hug, as there is no barrier around it, is one of the many draw cards for locals and visitors to our slice of paradise.

With the recent closure of the Waitakere Ranges, tour operators are seeking new locations to provide visitors with a kauri bush experience. As a result, we are seeing an increase in foot traffic at Parry Kauri Park. I would like to acknowledge our local heroes, the Kauri & Native Bushmen’s Association. This volunteer organisation has been successful in securing funding and assistance from Auckland Council and Forest & Bird to install two walk-through cleaning stations. There are three entrances to the park, so it is important that an additional cleaning station is installed urgently in an effort to limit the possibility of this deadly pathogen killing our small but significant kauri forest.

Currently, the Environment Select Committee is undertaking a series of briefings on the Government’s kauri dieback programme, administered by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI). After hearing from several organisations, including the Department of Conservation, Forest & Bird, local iwi and Auckland Council, I was surprised to find out that there has been no plan put in place to protect Parry Kauri Park, apart from the good work being done by our aforementioned kauri ambassadors.

I am working with the Minister of Conservation, Eugenie Sage, who has been in contact with Mayor Phil Goff to highlight my concerns. My latest communication from the Mayor’s office is that as resources become available, they will continue to support the Kauri Bushmen to protect our park from kauri dieback.

Ten years and $26.5 million later, there’s been very little progress in controlling this pathogen. Those on the front line say that there has been a breakdown in communication and frustration with the Ministry for Primary Industries-run programme. Why has there been no aerial surveillance nine years after the programme commenced? What spreads kauri dieback? What vector research is underway? When will treatment to kill the disease be available?   

I am encouraged that the new leadership at MPI is currently developing a more aggressive strategy and is now taking this biosecurity threat very seriously. However, there is a role for all of us to play if we visit the park or any forest, and that is to vigilantly and diligently use the cleaning stations and encourage others to do so as well.

Jenny Marcroft, Matakana-based MP
jennifer.marcroft@parliament.govt.nz