Tasman residents are being encouraged to try their hand at pest control by using subsidised traps in their own backyard.
“Traps are the safest option to use around the home,” says Tasman District Council biosecurity officer, Mitch Seek.
He says trapping in your backyard has loads of benefits including ridding rats and mice from the compost bin, saving plants and fruit trees from possums, but most importantly making your garden a safe place for our unique native wildlife to live and feed.
The bigger picture is that pest control helps protect New Zealand’s biodiversity, environment, and keeps orchards, market gardens, and other food-producing spaces safe.
Mitch says TDC is encouraging landowners and households to engage in pest control by offering subsidised, low-cost, long-lasting traps.
“Thanks to the team at the Menzshed Waimea, who built the trap boxes for us, we have a range of traps that are designed to be weka-proof and made to the Department of Conservation’s best practice standards,” Mitch says.
“With the bigger picture of Predator Free 2050 in mind, it’s a great way for people to start thinking about the effects pests have on our environment and see what difference they can make themselves,” he adds.
To date, the traps have been extremely popular with the public and Mitch says that council is very pleased with the uptake and interest.
The traps are easy to use and information on trapping and trapping techniques can also be collected from council customer service centres.
Members of the public are able to contact the TDC biosecurity team if they have any questions about pest control on their property by emailing biosecurity@tasman.govt.nz
Subsidised backyard traps are available for purchase from the Nelson Visitor Information Centre or they can be found at any of the TDC offices in Richmond, Motueka, Tākaka, and Murchison.
