The Invasive Species Council has issued an urgent call to boost funding following the discovery of more fire ant nests on the Sunshine Coast.
Last Friday a member of the public reported suspected fire ant nests in a housing development site at North Arm.
The nests were destroyed the same day using a liquid insecticide and treatment and surveillance activities are underway.
Last year fire ant nests were found at Nirimba, Banya and Currimundi.
“Fire ants recently made their way into northern NSW through a simple turf delivery and now fresh nests have been reported on a construction site – it’s a chilling reminder of how effortlessly these tiny killers can invade new areas,” Invasive Species Council Advocacy Manager Reece Pianta said.
“But if fire ants continue to breach containment it will ruin any chance we have of eradicating them.
“Fire ants are one of the world’s worst super pests and their unchecked spread will result in economic damage greater than that caused by cane toads, rabbits, feral cats and foxes combined.
Fire ants can be lethal to humans, are expected to exceed $2 billion per year in economic impacts on Australia’s economy and if they get out of control, will devastate wildlife, cut agricultural output by up to 40% and may cause over 650,000 extra medical appointments each year.
Red imported fire ants can damage electrical and agricultural equipment, sting people, pets and livestock, kill native plants and animals, and damage ecosystems beyond repair.
A ten-year proposed eradication program has been developed, so far it is only funded until 2027 at $592 million – well short of what is required for full eradication.
The 2021 National Red Imported Fire Ant Eradication Program strategic review estimated that at least $200 to $300 million per year will be required for ongoing eradication efforts to achieve eradication by 2032.
$37.5 million has been allocated to Councils over four years for fire ant suppression efforts which Mr Pianta said falls woefully short of what is needed for local government to keep this issue under control.
“We are urgently calling for the Queensland government to act and ramp up fire ant suppression to reduce the risk of repeated fire ant spread events,” Mr Pianta said.
“We also call on Peter Dutton and Anthony Albanese to commit to an urgent fire ant surge and long-term funding. This isn’t just an election issue for Queenslanders, fire ants can spread to all parts of Australia if eradication fails.
“An increase in funding now could save Australia billions in fire ant costs each year, not to mention the immeasurable cost to our environment, wildlife and lifestyles.
“A member of the community found and reported these nests and the eradication program has taken action to destroy them and is checking the surrounding area. Repeated outlier detections distract resources from the main eradication effort,” he said.
Fire ants are dark reddish-brown with a darker black-brown abdomen and range in size from two to six millimetres long. Their ant nests are distinctive mounds of loose, crumbly or fluffy-looking soil with a honeycomb appearance, up to 40 centimetres high, with no obvious entrance holes.
Fire ants came into Australia in the late 90s in freight from the United States, they were found in 2001.
They are originally from South America but have spread across most of the southern United States, and are spreading in China at a rate of about 80 km per year.
Mr Pianta said Australia has “managed to contain fire ants in south east Queensland for 20 years, however under-resourcing has prevented successful eradication”.
Almost all of Australia is climatically suitable for fire ants.
