Fire ants: Demands for more funding to eradicate super pests from Gold Coast grow

Pleas for more funding to ramp up fire ant eradication efforts on the Gold Coast are growing, with fears intensifying the “super pests” will force the city’s beaches to close.

Pleas for more funding to ramp up fire ant eradication efforts on the Gold Coast will be taken to next week week’s Agriculture Ministers meeting.

Acting Mayor Donna Gates met with state minister Mark Furner on Wednesday to discuss the rapid spread of fire ants through the city in the past six months.

Mr Furner said the state government was committed to eradicating the deadly “super pests” and would not move to a containment-based strategy.

“When you think that they can fly four to 5km, go down rivers, they are a real super pest which we need to eradicate, “he said.

“I will be doing another presentation (to the other agriculture ministers) and bring them up to date.”

Acting Mayor Donna Gates. Picture Glenn Hampson

Ms Gates met with Mr Furner, with discussions covering the need for more funding to ramp up the eradication efforts, with fire ants recently found just 5km north of the NSW border

“This was an opportunity for the city to have some discuss with the Minister about how we are going to get some more funding for the eradication of these creatures nationally,” she said.

“As a tourism city this is something we are incredibly concerned about. If these ants progress to our beaches we are in deep trouble and we have had great numbers come out for tourism numbers and we want to stay on top of the heap.

“We need to eradicate these creatures.”

A decision was made at the most recent meeting of the nation’s Agriculture Ministers to develop a new plan to wipe out fire ants, with a $60m tranche of funding committed.

However a Queensland Audit Office report identified the need for an additional $593m over the next four years to fight the pests.

It comes as the council and National Fire Ant Eradication Program begin a rollout of the next stage of the project, sending out self-treatment packs to properties by mail to 61 suburbs. The packs include bait which is designed to be eaten by the queen of each fire ant nest preventing them from breeding further.

Agriculture Minister Mark Furner Photo: Steve Pohlner

Mr Furner said the mail-out would complement the eradication strategy.

Ms Gates welcomed the kits.

“There has been a steady progression and they are heading for the southern suburbs of our city so this is a step forward,” she said.

“The state is responding and has responded really clearly to council’s call for the eradication of fire ants.

“We are not going to get eradication all the way through the city at this point except in the southern part where eradication will occur.”

The presence of the pests also near The Spit to the north has the city on high alert, with the potential to close down our beaches and various public facilities if the spread gets out of control.

This worst case scenario would have a devastating impact on the Coast economy.

Fire ants, which are native to South America and first discovered in Brisbane in 2001, are considered one of the world’s worst invasive species because of their rapid spread.

They are highly aggressive and will swarm anything which disturbs their nests. Their stings can be fatal in rare circumstances.