In April, the Wet Tropics Management Authority welcomed the Australian Government’s 3-year, $9 million funding commitment to secure the future of the Yellow Crazy Ant Eradication Program. In June, the Queensland Government also announced an additional $9 million over the next 3 years to support Eradication Program.
Chair of the Wet Tropics Management Authority, Leslie Shirreffs, welcomed both the Australian and Queensland governments’ commitments.
‘The Australian and Queensland governments are valued partners in the Wet Tropics Management Authority’s Eradication Program,’ she said.
‘This demonstrates their continuing dedication to the protection of the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area and the ongoing success of the Eradication Program.’
The Wet Tropics Management Authority’s Yellow Crazy Ant Eradication Program was established in 2013 in response to community demand for a solution to an outbreak of the ants in the Cairns region.
These announcements secure the future of the highly successful program and represent a substantial funding increase to the eradication of yellow crazy ants over the next 3 years.
The Eradication Program is showing positive signs for success, with a significant drop in population densities and the eradication of yellow crazy ants at three sites.
Yellow crazy ants have recently been confirmed at a site at Shute Harbour in Airlie Beach. Eradication Program staff travelled down to Airlie Beach to meet with Whitsunday Regional Council and local Queensland Parks and Wildlife staff to assist them to develop a response plan to manage the infestation.