NZDA makes submission for and on behalf of members and recreational hunters.
On 30 September, NZDA submitted on OSPRI's National Aerial Operations Plan 2027. The plan proposes six aerial 1080 operations next year under the TBfree programme, four in Hawke's Bay and the eastern Taupo district and two in Otago.
Our main concern is Kaweka East and Kaweka South. Both fall wholly or partly inside the new Central North Island Sika Herd of Special Interest, formally announced in July.
What We Asked For
- Deer repellent throughout Kaweka East, and in all parts of Kaweka South inside or within two kilometres of the Sika HOSI
- Operational boundaries that take the two-kilometre wild-meat caution buffer into account
- The lowest effective sowing rates
- Timing worked out with the Game Animal Council and Sika Foundation, avoiding the rut and peak hunting periods
- Monitoring of sika by-kill, with results shared with hunters
- Ground and other non-aerial methods wherever they can do the job
NZDA supports the goal of eradicating bovine TB and backs the position of the Game Animal Council and the Sika Foundation. But a Herd of Special Interest has to count for something when an aerial plan comes along.
Read NZDA's Submission
