Predator Free 2050 committed to 'professional' transition as it hands over years of work to DOC
Photo:
Supplied / Predator Free Wellington
Predator Free 2050 says it's committed to a "professional and smooth transition", as it
hands over its responsibilities to the Department of Conservation
following news of its disestablishment.
A Crown-owned company, Predator Free 2050 Limited was set up in 2016 after the government set the ambitious goal of removing mustelids, rats and possums nationwide by the year 2050.
For nearly a decade it co-funded large-scale predator elimination projects and supported science to achieve this goal by providing funding, resources and expertise to predator removal projects around New Zealand.
But its disestablishment was announced on Budget Day last month, and science director Dan Tompkins said the company would be handing over its 18 active contracts by mid-August.
"We'll take our time, we want to make sure that nothing is lost, we're ensuring all our learnings and understanding and insights into the way we have been running to achieve the advances that we've made to date [are passed on]."
It was yet to be decided whether jobs at Predator Free 2050 Limited would go, or be amalgamated into DOC.
He said the company's disestablishment had "not really" come as a surprise. "We've been working for seven to eight years now, and what we've been doing is we've been building a national mission.
"I think our work, alongside that of DOC and the PFNZ Trust, has been really successful. We've shown it can be done, we've developed lots of new tools available for the job, we've got some good research coming along in the background for future tools to make it even more achievable."
Did Tompkins have faith that the predator-free-by-2050 goal was achievable? "Completely," he said. "Already I think it's totally achievable - it's just
whether we can afford it
."
Chief executive Rob Forlong said many projects had proven eradication was achievable, and lately it had been focussing on how to make them cheaper, through new tools and solutions that could be scaled up.
"We're committed to delivering a professional and smooth transition of contractual responsibilities to the Department of Conservation. This includes sharing proven strategies, roadmaps and insights."
Predator Free 2050 chief executive Rob Forlong.
Photo:
Susan Botting / LDR
DOC's deputy director-general for public affairs, Sia Aston, said the agency was committed to honouring all existing contracts.
It already had a large existing programme of predator-free work and would "absorb the cost of managing the company's projects and contracts within its baseline".
The remaining Crown funds of $2.3 million that PF2050 Ltd was allocated would be transferred to DOC and continue to be invested in predator free projects and contracts to avoid disruption.
DOC is
currently consulting
with the public on its predator free strategy, with submissions closing on 30 June.
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero
,
a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
RNZ News
7 hours ago
- RNZ News
Cruise industry brainstorms over falling foreign visitor numbers
The volatility of New Zealand's tourism policies are problematic for operators. Photo: NZ Herald/Paul Taylor The cruise sector hopes crisis talks at this year's industry conference will help chart a course through rocky financial waters. The theme of this year's NZ Cruise Association Conference - 'This is Not a Drill' - speaks for itself. Passenger numbers have fallen year on year , down 20 percent last summer and projected to fall another 20 percent this year, but NZCA chief executive Jacqui Lloyd maintains an optimistic outlook. "It is a little [like] crisis talks, but there is also a lot of positivity," she told RNZ, between panel discussions from the conference in Napier. "[We're talking about] how we all need to work together, and make sure that the messaging is going out around central and local government on how important cruise is for regional economies, particularly our tourism and hospitality operators." Lloyd expected 660 port calls and about 215,000 cruise passengers to visit New Zealand shores in the 2025/26 season. "That's down from 1120 port calls in 2023/24 and around 330,000 passengers." She said the industry could do little to adapt, rather policy change was needed to keep it from sinking. "We'd rather not adapt, to be honest. We'd like to instead make sure that we get some return in that business, and a key part of it has been around working with government on regulatory changes, transparency on increased costs, and also biosecurity risks." Lloyd said New Zealand was particularly harsh on biofouling - the build-up of algae and other microorganisms on a ship's hull. "[There's a] risk of being turned away, because we don't have a safety net in New Zealand to allow any kind of cleaning, if ships do have any issues, and cruise lines have to go off the 12-mile limit, and wait for a calm day for a diver to go down and clean the ship. "Meanwhile, passengers are on board, wondering why they're not at the destination that they had planned, so that's a real strong risk from a brand reputation and cost reputation." Lloyd said representatives from Ports of Auckland had also spoken at the conference about their plans to facilitate in-water cleaning for visiting ships. "Ports of Auckland has been speaking today about the trials they're doing for in-water cleaning, which has been positive, and they are working with MPI on how they might be able to do that going forward," she explained "That's safe cleaning, not only for the ship, but also New Zealand's environment. We don't want to let any nasties into our waters and cause concerns with our aquaculture industry." Meanwhile, the volatility of New Zealand's tourism policies were problematic for operators that often planned cruises years in advance. "Passengers will book their cruises two years in advance and we've had cases recently where government agencies have increased costs by $11, $12, $20 per passenger, with only a very short two to three-month window," she said. These challenges were causing a decline in New Zealand's global reputation as a cruise destination. "[It was] interesting talking to Princess Cruises today, who spoke at conference, and talked about the fact that the searches for New Zealand and Australia for Princess are down quite considerably on what they have been previously," Lloyd said. "We will need to do a lot of work, as a nation, to promote passengers to come back to our shores." She said job losses would be inevitable. "There will be [job losses], and that will predominantly be through hospitality and tourism providers, drivers for coaches, likely within ports for teams that usually will look after cruise vessels. "There are 10,000 jobs created by [the cruise industry] in the 2023/24 season and we do have concerns that we'll see a reduction for this season coming." Viv Beck, the chief executive of central Auckland's business association Heart of the City, said cruises were an essential source of visitors. "[Cruises] are really important and particularly at a time where spending is down, and we've had severe impacts with construction and Covid-19, and all of the above," she said. "This is one of the means of getting people in here and they arrive right on our doorstep at the bottom of Queen Street. "A reduction in numbers is definitely going to be missed." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
7 hours ago
- RNZ News
Cruise ship season sinking fast
business tourism 27 minutes ago Napier Port has revealed its cruise ship revenue is down nearly 10%. Bookings for the upcoming season that starts in October are headed in the same direction. Cruise ship numbers in the Bay of Island have almost halved from the peak two years ago. Meanwhile, Disney Cruise Line has confirmed it will only be sailing to to New Zealand up until February 2026. New Zealand Cruise Association chief executive Jacqui Lloyd spoke to Lisa Owen.
RNZ News
8 hours ago
- RNZ News
Kiwis not digging spuds as much as they used to
Kiwis are eating 10% fewer potatoes than we were just over a decade ago. New industry research shows a quarter of people eating fewer spuds are passing on them because they are worried about their carb content. Despite this, potatoes are still New Zealand's most eaten vegetable. CEO of Potatoes New Zealand, Kate Trufitt spoke to Lisa Owen. Tags: To embed this content on your own webpage, cut and paste the following: See terms of use.
