1080 usage in New Zealand

[3] Although the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment deemed the use of 1080 in New Zealand "effective and safe" in a 2011 re-evaluation[4] and the substance is widely considered[5][6] to be the most effective tool currently available for controlling possums over large areas,[7][8] it remains a contentious issue, with the majority of the debate occurring between conservationists and livestock farmers on one side and hunters and animal-rights activists on the other.

[13] New Zealand has used 1080 for pest control since the late 1950s;[14] it imports sodium fluoroacetate in raw form from the United States of America.

[10] 1080 is considered to be suitable for use as a mammalian pest control in New Zealand because the country has only two native land mammals (bats).

[17] New Zealand's flora and fauna evolved for 80 million years with moa being the primary browsing animals and no predatory mammals.

Consequently, the native birds, insects, and flora have developed no natural defence mechanisms against introduced animals such as possums, rats, mustelids and feral cats.

[23] In New Zealand, the common brushtail possum was the main vector for the spread of bovine tuberculosis—a highly contagious disease affecting farmed cattle and deer.

The organisation responsible for managing bovine TB in New Zealand, the Animal Health Board, uses 1080 poison as one of a range[24] of pesticides to kill possums and control the spread of disease to both livestock and unaffected areas of the country.

Aerial application of 1080 poison is only used in places where ground control methods are impractical or unable to reduce possum numbers to a low enough level to break the disease cycle.

[37] In June 2011, the Parliamentary Commissioner for the Environment (PCE) released a report in favour of 1080 to control possums, rats, and stoats, especially in large and remote areas.

[38] In June 2011, New Zealand's four largest daily newspapers all ran editorial pieces questioning the need for continued debate in light of the PCE's report.

In 2015, the New Zealand Police revealed that anonymous blackmail threats were sent to Fonterra and Federated Farmers saying that infant formula in supermarkets would be poisoned unless the use of 1080 was halted by the end of the month.

[12] While many research teams are actively seeking new and supplemental approaches to current technologies, no method has yet gained widespread acceptance as a viable alternative to 1080.

[69] New Zealand currently spends at least $8 million annually on improving existing pest control technology and developing new methods.

[70] According to the EPA's Annual Report on the Aerial Use of 1080,[71] as of October 2011 there are currently over 50 research projects underway industry-wide to find improvements in the use of 1080, alternatives to 1080 and other related topics.

Brodifacoum takes a very long time to break down in soil and water and accumulates in the tissue of exposed animals for years.

Consequently, there is a very high risk of by-kill: it is known to have killed at least 21 species of native birds, including kiwi, kākā, kākāriki and tūī.

It is a highly lethal, broad-spectrum poison that depletes cells of energy, quickly resulting in respiratory arrest and death.

[84] In August 2011, the New Zealand Environmental Protection Authority approved the import and manufacture of microencapsulated zinc phosphide (MZP paste) as an alternative to 1080 for the ground control of possums.

The application was made by Pest Tech Limited, with support from Connovation Ltd, Lincoln University, and the Animal Health Board.

However, an intensive ground operation will typically involve trapping possums and stoats, but poisoning rats because there are so many more of them and they reproduce quickly.

Twenty three species of native birds have been reported as having been killed by leg-hold traps,[87] and many kiwi have suffered leg or beak damage.

Most of the methods proposed involved some form of genetic engineering, and if developed further would attract a great deal of public opposition.