Fresh call to stamp out fire ants

NSW Farmers is calling for urgent action to eradicate fire ants after yet another detection of the insidious pests on the North Coast. 

According to the NSW Government, Red Imported Fire Ants were discovered in pallets of turf being installed this week on a private property on the North Coast, 53 kilometres from the Queensland border. 

In an official statement, the government said the NSW Fire Ant Program team located and removed six queens as well as worker ants from turf on the property, after landscape contractors detected and reported the ants at the site.

NSW Farmers President Xavier Martin said it was yet another critical breach of the state’s biosecurity controls, further endangering lives and livelihoods. 

“Red Imported Fire Ants are an incredibly dangerous invasive pest – they are a threat to people, animals and the environment, and they must be eradicated as quickly as possible,” Mr Martin said. 

“These insidious pests can damage agricultural equipment, sting livestock, ruin the natural environment, and pose a serious risk to the health and wellbeing of all people in NSW, so we simply cannot keep letting them slip through our borders.

“This is the third detection we’ve seen in less than a year, and enough is enough – they cannot come back again.”

Mr Martin called on federal and state governments to ensure every resource was available to support eradication efforts. 

“NSW Farmers has been calling for increased efforts and competent resources to secure prompt eradication of these ants, and our calls cannot continue to fall on deaf ears,” Mr Martin said.

“DPIRD, with the full support of other critical agencies, must act quickly to eradicate these pests as they did at Port Botany in 2014, or else it’s the whole community that will face the consequences.

“Enforcing our biosecurity rules must be a top priority for governments, and anyone found to be doing the wrong thing and spreading these pests must be prosecuted.”

People across Australia are strongly encouraged to remain vigilant for Red Imported Fire Ants and are reminded of their legal responsibility to comply with biosecurity orders. Suspected fire ant sites in NSW should be reported to the NSW Government on 1800 680 244.

Editor’s note: Fire ants are tiny (2-6mm long) and reddish-brown in colour, are aggressive when disturbed and will sting repeatedly, causing the sensation the victim is on fire. Nests are mounds or flattish patches of soil with no obvious entrance holes, and up to 40cm high.   

Date: Thursday, November 14 2024
Media Contact: Eliza Fessey | 0427 411 220 | [email protected]