โThe Government’s expectation that local Bay of Islands hapลซ fight a tsunami of caulerpa, a pest seaweed species, with garden rakes is unrealistic,โ Labour biosecurity spokesperson Jo Luxton said.
โGovernment funding of $15 million to combat caulerpa in Northland is not enough.ย Tonnes of it have washed up on shores following Cyclone Tam.
โCaulerpa is a seaweed that smothers the seafloor and competes with other species for space. It could potentially devastate the local aquaculture industry, and stifle opportunities for the local Mฤori economy and jobs.
โLocal hapลซ are crying out for government resourcing to control the weed but are being ignored. Instead, they must resort to rakes and buckets to clean up a multimillion-dollar mess.
โOverseas, infested areas have halved local fish stocks and heavily affected tourism jobs.
โMฤori arenโt after compensation but want their efforts to be resourced and to be involved in decision making. By ignoring their calls, this is just another kick in the guts for Mฤori from this government.
โThere are opportunities for the local Mฤori economy and jobs that could be lost because of this Government’s incompetent response,โ Jo Luxton said.