Public consultation helping strengthen kauri dieback programme

Public feedback is helping shape a refreshed approach for combatting kauri dieback disease, with a further round of consultation about to get underway to enhance future protection plans.

Biosecurity New Zealand (part of the Ministry for Primary Industries), which manages the kauri dieback programme alongside partner organisations, is asking for people's thoughts on plans for the future management of the disease. This involves 3 rounds of public consultation, the second of which gets underway on 20 August.

A first round of consultation has recently been held, and feedback from this has helped inform the development of a refreshed management strategy, says John Sanson, manager of recovery and pest management for Biosecurity New Zealand.

"The purpose of the consultation process is to gather feedback from anyone with an interest in protecting kauri, so that their ideas can help us shape our plans into the future,' Mr Sanson says.

"The first consultation round, held in July, generated some excellent feedback, which has helped us get a wider view of some of the opportunities for improving management of kauri dieback disease in the future. We’re already using these ideas to refresh the current management strategy and to outline actions that can be prioritised to protect kauri."

More than 500 oral submissions were made by about 150 people who attended the July hui and meetings, with more than 80 plus submissions received through other channels.

"We're grateful to all of the people who took the time to contribute in the first round of consultation. It was clear from what we heard that people have a great passion for kauri and want to see it protected, which is something all of the programme partners are committed to," Mr Sanson says.

"One of the consistent key themes from the first round was a widespread acknowledgement that a lot of good work is already going on to protect kauri, but it's clear there is still more that can be done to improve the programme further, and that's what we are focusing on."

Along with gathering feedback on the draft refreshed strategy, the upcoming consultation is seeking people’s ideas to help shape the development of a National Pest Management Plan, and options for the creation of a new management agency to implement it.

"These measures will provide the strongest available biosecurity framework to support ongoing kauri protection efforts, which already involve a significant range of projects and initiatives that are underway across kauri lands," Mr Sanson says.

The second phase of consultation runs from 20 August to 10 September. Public meetings are also being held in kauri regions from 27 August.

Find out about the consultation and how to have your say

Public meeting timetable

A collaborative programme

The Kauri Dieback Programme is a collaborative partnership between Biosecurity New Zealand, which coordinates the programme, and tangata whenua, the Department of Conservation, Auckland Council, and the Waikato, Northland, and Bay of Plenty regional councils.