Possum power cuts cost

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 10, Issue 478, 23 March 1993, Page 5

Possum power cuts cost

A growmg possum population that causes 80 percent of the short term power-cuts in King Country Energy's area should be recognised as the national problem it is, according to director Tony Palmer. He told the March

board meeting that not enough attention was being paid to eradicating the pest whose economic impact was far greater than generally realised. "Possums are costing us a lot of money and, while we are doing our bit to control their effects, it

is too big a problem for us to attack on our own. There needs to be recognition from Government that something needs to be done." The board had sponsored a competition to ; find a suitable possum | guard for its power poles and was investing in their installation but he did not believe this was enough. "Something has to be done to control possum numbers." Fellow director Gordon Gower said it was now acknowledged that possums ate pasture and six of them could eat as much as one stock unit. He said the fur industry had been destroyed by animal rights campaigners and as a result the possum population was exploding. Mr Gower said possum control programmes to protect the kauri and pohutukawa forests had enjoyed excellent kill rates, but without on-going maintenance programmes, the work would all be in vain. Laying cyanide along the board' s transmission lines would help reduce the number of possums, but it would

have to be repeated regularly to be of long-term use. The board has decided to write to the appropriate parties seeking a greater government commitment to possum control or eradication.