South Canterbury High Country TB Management Area (TMA)

Eradicating bovine TB in NZ

As part of our TBfree programme we deliver our pest control operations through a framework of TB management areas (TMAs). TMAs are areas with known TB infection in livestock or wildlife. Each TMA has a specific TB control plan designed to eradicate TB as effectively as possible.

The South Canterbury High Country TMA

The South Canterbury High Country TMA covers 232,042 hectares, extending from the Main Divide to between the Two Thumb Range in the north and the Ahuriri River catchment in the south.

The habitat includes high-country river valleys with a mixture of rocky and scrubby habitat, extensive native forest ecosystems in some major valley systems, and improved and intensively farmed flats.

History of TB and pest control in South Canterbury High Country

The South Canterbury High Country TMA has a long history of TB infection. TB has been found in wildlife throughout the TMA for many years, with sporadic infections in cattle herds.

We completed ground-based possum control in:

• Wairepo Creek in 2011/2012 and 2022/2023
• Ahuriri, Dobson, MacKenzie North, Ohau Pukaki and Tasman in 2015/2016, and
• Ahuriri in 2021/2022 and 2022/2023.

We did ferret surveys in:

• Dobson in 2011/2012, and
• Wairepo Creek in 2015/2016.

Some areas, such as Hopkins and Huxley, have had very little or no control.

Current state

As of June 2023, there are no infected herds in the South Canterbury High Country TMA.

Future pest control operations

We plan our pest control operations up to 3 years in advance. The current year runs from July 2023 to June 2024.

Dates and control methods for pest control operations in South Canterbury High Country are provisional and subject to change. If you’re affected by any upcoming operations, our pest control contractors will contact you before work begins. They will:

• talk you through the specifics of each operation
• explain what you need to do before the operations start
• get your consent for the work to be done.

Map of 2023/2024 pest control operations

The proposed area for ground control is marked on the map in green and wildlife surveillance are marked in blue.

Interactive map showing South Canterbury High Country TB management area boundaries, Vector Control Zone, and proposed control areas.

Contacts

Excell Limited manages eradication activities in the South Canterbury High Country TMA. Contact them directly if you have feedback or questions about upcoming operations.

Excell Limited

Phone: 0508 EXCELL (0508 392 355)
Email: ssi.excell@excell.co.nz

Nearest local OSPRI office

OSPRI Dunedin office
PO Box 5745
Moray Place
Dunedin 9058
Phone: 03 477 9829
Email: cr_ssi@ospri.co.nz