Wilding Management Strategy

How you can help

All affected areas in New Zealand have been or are addressing the wilding tree issues. ln the Mackenzie Basin, ECAN and DOC contracted Te Manahuna to prepare a management strategy for the district. Following consultation with landowners, a comprehensive wilding management strategy was completed and adopted by ECAN, DOC and the Trust. This forms the basis for the work already undertaken and planned in the Basin.

The strategy records that the Wilding Conifer Management Zone covers some 535,305 hectares. It identifies and illustrates the potential effects of the wildings in the Mackenzie. Adverse implications include loss of many varieties of our biodiversity, lost production for farmlands, reduction in water yields, threats to recreational and tourism uses, increased dangers from fire, iced roads and implications for powerline networks. The paper also provides an implementation plan for the work to be done

All of the issues are real threats to the long term economic future of the Basin.

It will take at least 12 years to get the Mackenzie Basin to a position of containing the wildings and so there is a need for a long-term commitment to the issue by all landowners and agencies.

To ensure long term planning is effective, the Trust aims to align its efforts with the Mackenzie Country Trust under the umbrella of the Mackenzie Agreement and with other key groups such as Federated Farmers who, with their members, are concerned about controlling the wilding problem.

Your feedback is important

The Trustees are aware of the size of the task and encourage landowners to work with us by:

1. Continuing your efforts to eradicate and control wilding trees on your properties;
2. Recording your wilding eradication and management activities and costs so that your contribution demonstrates to funders that landowners are committed to fighting the expansion of the wildings. 
3. Noting that one landowner not participating can cause significant exposures to neighbouring properties

How to record your eradication and management activities.

What has been achieved to date?

View progress gallery

The DOC District in the Mackenzie Basin has treated some 202,000 hectares over the last 10 years with approximately 50% at zero population. However continued surveillance will continue.

In 2017, MPI has helped fund the control of 137,000 hectares in the Godley area.

A great deal of effort has taken place in researching options available for the control of wildings. Spray options and other techniques continue to be developed by SCION and Landcare Research to improve and widen the options. Farmers are also developing ways of controlling wildings by encapsulation.

The Trust intends to provide landowners with regular updates of advances so that everyone can benefit from new knowledge and more effective practices. Add my name to the newsletter.

Government agencies are taken action to contain the spread of wilding in the Mackenzie and this effort is an ongoing task. Local Government is also participating by providing planning information as to suitable trees to use in the area

And at a local level, the Ohau Conservation Trust and the Twizel Landcare Group contribute by organising working bees that target local areas for eradication. 

The Future

With the work planned for the next year, subject to MPI Funding being available, over two-thirds of the affected Mackenzie Basin will have been treated. Work is planned for both East Pukaki (south of the Tekapo Canal) and western sides of Lake Tekapo (Braemar).

Although this is a very good result, ongoing control of new seedlings will require continued efforts as will work on attacking the cone sources causing the problem.

lf you would like to find out more about the Trust and how you can participate in effective Wilding control, please contact a local Trustee who can take on board any comments or concerns you have and report back to the Trustees at a future meeting.