$5.7m from DOC’s kauri budget not spent

The Department of Conservation has underspent its budget for kauri dieback mitigation by $5.7 million over the past seven years.

But the department says it will continue with kauri protection work, with projects this year including more track upgrades, disease surveillance and developing a national pig strategy.

Kauri are one of the largest and longest-lived tree species in the world, but they are threatened by a fungus-like pathogen, Phytophthora agathidicida or PA, which causes fatal kauri dieback.

The pathogen is invisible to the naked eye and can be spread in less than a pinhead of soil.

DOC has prioritised kauri protection since PA was first identified as a problem in 2008 and it has received dedicated funding for this work since 2015, plant pathogens team manager Carol Rolando said.

The majority of funding had gone to help stop the spread of PA on conservation land, such as building boardwalks, new track surfacing and installing hygiene stations.

Some tracks and parks have had to close because mitigation work is too difficult and expensive, she said.

From July 2014 to June 2021, the department had a budget of $28.9m for kauri dieback mitigation, but it only spent $23.2m, according to information received under the Official Information Act.

Ben Reddiex, DOC’s director operations issues and programmes, said the $5.7m underspend was mainly due to the challenge of finding contractors prepared to do track upgrade work to the required standard, particularly in 2016-18.

Track upgrades and maintenance also could not be done in wet and muddy conditions due to the water-borne nature of PA, he said.

‘‘The remote locations of track work, additional hygiene and building requirements for working with kauri dieback and unfavourable weather delayed or prevented work from proceeding.’’

The money spent included $9.9m on capital works like building boardwalks, upgrading tracks with materials to protect kauri roots, installing hygiene stations, fencing and signs.

A further $5.5m was spent on cleaning, repairing and refilling the hygiene stations and maintaining track surfaces.

Other operational costs included $1.2m on kauri ambassadors, who educate the public about kauri protection in local communities and at track entrances.