national red imported fire ant eradication program – south ... · no fire ants being detected....

National Red Imported Fire AntEradication Program – South EastQueensland1st Quarter Report 2015–16

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This publication has been compiled by Biosecurity Queensland, Department of Agriculture and Fisheries.

© State of Queensland, 2015.

The Queensland Government supports and encourages the dissemination and exchange of its information. Thecopyright in this publication is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Australia (CC BY) licence.

Under this licence you are free, without having to seek our permission, to use this publication in accordance with thelicence terms.

You must keep intact the copyright notice and attribute the State of Queensland as the source of the publication.

For more information on this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/au/deed.en

The information contained herein is subject to change without notice. The Queensland Government shall not be liable fortechnical or other errors or omissions contained herein. The reader/user accepts all risks and responsibility for losses,damages, costs and other consequences resulting directly or indirectly from using this information.

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NRIFAEP 1st Quarter Report 2015–16 - SEQ 1

Executive SummaryThe nationally agreed Red Imported Fire Ant Eradication Program Response Plan 2013–18 (theresponse plan) was developed to establish a framework to delimit, contain and recommenceeradication of red imported fire ants (fire ants) in South East Queensland.

The Independent Review panel found that the infestation has been successfully delimited basedon evidence of delimitation provided by Monash University which estimated that there is a 99.9%probability that fire ants are contained within the boundary corresponding with the remote sensingarea. The preliminary report was delivered to the Agriculture Ministers’ forum (AGMIN) secretariatin August 2015.

The delimitation phase of the response plan concluded in June 2015. The National Red ImportedFire Ant Eradication Program (the Program) moved to full eradication in July 2015.

Under eradication, the Program’s 2015–16 Work Plan1 (the work plan) focuses on three keystrategies—targeted treatment on planned treatment areas to eradicate infestation, ongoingsurveillance to monitor infestation (to facilitate targeted treatment) and movement controls tominimise the risk of human-assisted fire ant spread.

The work plan builds on the concept of a core infested area2 (core area). As per the work plan,work within the core area will contain and suppress while the Program will be working to eradicateinfestation outside this area.

As treatment season runs from September to May, the focus of Program activities during the firstquarter of 2015–16 was primarily delineation surveillance of recently found infestations. During thequarter, preparations were also made for commencement of Treatment Round 1.

The change in approach by the Program to undertake treatment of planned treatment areas thatremain static over two years has required additional community engagement and planning tomaximise the opportunity to implement the planned number of treatment rounds during the season.Inside the core, the planned treatment areas will receive two rounds of treatment per year over twoyears—while outside the core will receive three rounds of treatment per year over two years.

Outside the planned treatment areas, 212 hectares of new infestation were detected during thequarter and subsequently treated under the approved protocol.

An investigation has been initiated into an alleged movement of hay from the high risk restrictedarea to the Winton, Barcoo and Etheridge Shire Councils without a movement approval.Preliminary investigations indicate that the hay was donated to Aussie Helpers Ltd for droughtrelief. The biosecurity risk in the Barcoo and Winton Shire Council areas has been negated withthe assistance of Departmental staff located in Longreach visiting the sites and luring the hay withno fire ants being detected.

Genetic analysis has been conducted on the recent detections in the Gold Coast City Council areacomprised of Alberton, Yatala, Pimpama, Gilberton, Staplyton, Ormeau, Norwell and UpperCoomera. Although the results show some relationships between the infestations, the means bywhich the spread occurred, that is, nuptial flight or human-assisted movement remains unclear.

At 30 September 2015, the Program’s year-to-date expenditure is $3.48 million or 18.7% of theavailable budget.

Preparations are underway to celebrate the work undertaken by the retiring odour detection dog,Mikey, in November 2015. The special commendation recently awarded by the DAF3 Achievement

1 Endorsed by the Tramp Ant Consultative Committee (TACC 24) on 27 May 20152 A subset of suburbs in the restricted area where the majority of high density infestation is located.3 Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries

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Awards Committee to Mikey (and his handler Justin Gibson) for outstanding contributions to theBiosecurity Queensland Control Centre will be presented at this event.

Representatives from the Program continue to provide assistance to New South Wales (NSW)authorities following the detection of fire ants at Port Botany. The odour detection dog team wasdeployed to NSW to undertake surveillance activities during the quarter, with no trace of fire antsdetected.

Staff from the Program visited Darwin to inspect the recent incursion of browsing ant (Lepisiotafrauenfeldi) and to provide assistance to the Northern Territory (NT) response. Browsing ants werecollected from the Northern Territory and brought to the Program’s colony facilities at Moggill withthe aim of imprinting two of the Program’s odour detection dogs on the odour of browsing ant.These odour detection dogs could then be used for validation or targeted surveillance for the pestin Western Australia and the NT.

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Contents

Summary of Activities .....................................................................................................................5TREATMENT ......................................................................................................................5PLANNED TREATMENT.....................................................................................................5

Progress ..................................................................................................................5Communication strategies........................................................................................5

RESPONSIVE TREATMENT – NEW INFESTATION..........................................................6Communication........................................................................................................7Diagnostics ..............................................................................................................7Treatment efficacy trials...........................................................................................7

Trial 1 – bait efficacy ....................................................................................7Trial 2 – Distance Plus (new to the Program) ...............................................8

Consideration of treatment by landowners ...............................................................8SURVEILLANCE.................................................................................................................8

Validation surveillance .............................................................................................8Delineation surveillance ...........................................................................................8Targeted surveillance...............................................................................................8Sentinel sites ...........................................................................................................8Odour detection dogs...............................................................................................9Passive surveillance activities................................................................................ 10

MOVEMENT CONTROLS................................................................................................. 10Restricted area ...................................................................................................... 10Suburb monitoring ................................................................................................. 11Tracing................................................................................................................... 11Investigations......................................................................................................... 12Compliance checks................................................................................................ 12Case management ................................................................................................ 12Industry training ..................................................................................................... 13Biosecurity Act 2014 transition/implementation ...................................................... 13

BUDGET ........................................................................................................................... 13OTHER CONSIDERATIONS............................................................................................. 13

The Independent Review ....................................................................................... 13Genetic analysis .................................................................................................... 14Field mobility.......................................................................................................... 14Remote sensing surveillance (RSS) research........................................................ 14Review of colony point creation ............................................................................. 14

OTHER PROGRAM(S)...................................................................................................... 15Response at Port Botany, New South Wales ......................................................... 15

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Browsing ant .......................................................................................................... 15Appendix 1 - Key Program activities .................................................................................. 16Appendix 2 – Map showing the core area within the restricted area .................................. 18Appendix 3 – Map showing areas under treatment - planned treatment areas and newinfestation.......................................................................................................................... 19Appendix 4 – Program activities conducted across the restricted areas 1 July 2015–30September 2015................................................................................................................ 20Appendix 5 – RIFA Restricted Areas – Version 53 (effective 31 August 2015) .................. 21Appendix 6 – Financial Report to 30 September 2015....................................................... 22

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Summary of ActivitiesThe primary components of the response plan can be broadly grouped into three essentialcomponents—treatment4, surveillance and movement controls. Science and communityengagement contribute to these three components. Support functions are provided by informationservices, administration, and National Red Imported Fire Ant Eradication Program (the Program)policy and management.

An overall view of the activities (including treatment and surveillance) that have been undertakento date can be viewed spatially, where possible.

A summary of the Program’s key activities to be undertaken in 2015–16 is provided in Appendix 1.Progress against the key activities of the work plan is reported quarterly.

TREATMENTIn accordance with the 2013–18 response plan – treatment of small isolated infestations (responsivetreatment areas), areas with high density infestation, and areas that are at a high risk of becoming infested(planned treatment areas).

PLANNED TREATMENTInside the core infested area (core area) (Appendix 2 outlines the core area)

6250 hectares twice per year for two years

Outside the core area

25 000 hectares three times per year for two years

With the considerable changes to the work program with the move to the eradication phase,significant planning was undertaken by the Program prior to the beginning of the treatment seasonduring the quarter.

ProgressThe 22 September 2015 marked the start of planned treatment (Round 1) for 2015–16. TheMinister for Agriculture and Fisheries, the Hon Bill Byrne attended an infested property in Norwellin the Gold Coast City Council (GCCC) area to announce (via a press conference) thecommencement of a bait treatment program targeting key fire ant risk areas across South EastQueensland. This provided an opportunity to showcase the capability of the Program includingapplication of broadcast bait treatment, direct nest injection, odour detection dogs and aerialsupport. Please note that treatment progress for the first quarter of 2015–16 will not be provided astreatment had only been underway for nine days at the time of reporting.

Communication strategiesA comprehensive communications and engagement strategy (continuing through to May 2016)was developed to assist with facilitating the smooth delivery of field operations by gaining supportfrom residents within the treatment area. Table 1 outlines the key activities undertaken as part ofthe strategy.

4 Treatment has now become the primary focus as delimitation has been completed.

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Table 1: Communications and engagement strategy activities

Activity Message

Notification letters(~8400 letters)

To residentsCommencement of treatmentAccess to property requirementMultiple visits for treatment over two years

Letters (distributed byProgram staff)

To residentsStaff conducting treatment in the area—returning within 3–5 working days toconduct treatment

Road signage In areas of operationTreatment activities underway

Media and socialmedia

Television: Channel 7, Network Ten, NBN Gold Coast and QUT5 News attended6

Facebook advertising Targeting residents in suburbs due to receive treatment in October

Notifications To electoral representatives (three levels) and council operational contactsTreatment activities underway

Deputy Commissioner of the Queensland Police Service (QPS)Treatment activities scheduled and underwayMay require assistance by QPS for problematic sites.

RESPONSIVE TREATMENT – NEW INFESTATIONOutside the planned treatment areas, 212 hectares of new infestation were detected during thequarter and subsequently treated under the approved protocol (refer to the map in Appendix 3).

Business rules used to calculate the 'area of infestation' is currently under review. Consultationbetween technical experts from each of the Programs sections and discussion with theIndependent Review panel has determined that the current term ‘area of infestation’ is misleadingas it refers to infestation that has been treated, but not cleared. The review trigger relating to thearea of infestation is being revisited by the Independent Review panel.

Significant detections were confirmed during the quarter at:

Tamborine in July 2015

Upper Coomera in August 2015

Brisbane Airport (Eagle Farm) in September 20157.

Significant detection reports were provided to the Tramp Ant Consultative Committee (TACC)providing details on these detections.

5 Queensland University of Technology6 Broadcasting the story to an audience of 275 000 people with a media value (advertising space rate) of $84,000.7 At the time of writing this report, population analysis of the colony detected at Brisbane Airport in September 2015 has confirmed thatthe infestation is not related to any other currently known infestations in Queensland, and is therefore considered a new incursion of fireants—most likely from the southern United States of America.

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CommunicationExtensive engagement activities were conducted in the GCCC area due to the number ofdetections of fire ant in the region during the quarter including:

Over 300 council and industry personnel trained.

Static displays in council libraries.

Delivery of the education program (“Aka the Fire Ant Tracker”) in state schools.

News media and information material delivered to residents in affected areas.

Direct nest injection (DNI) demonstration was conducted on a cane farm in Norwell with over100 City of GCCC employees and local cane growers in attendance along with the local WINTV crew.

Further reports of fire ants were made by a GCCC worker in the immediate area (on a footpathin Upper Coomera) after this event highlighting the importance of engagement with thecommunity and industry.

Written advice was provided to three levels of government representatives following the UpperCoomera detection to raise awareness in the associated electorates.

The Program’s Senior Liaison Officer met with Michael Crandon MP, State Member forCoomera, to discuss the detections of fire ants in his electorate. MP Crandon raised the issueof fire ants in his adjournment speech mid-September and will be addressing all state schoolswithin his electorate to book the ‘Aka the Fire Ant Tracker’ school education program.

As per outlier detection protocols, over 15 000 residents in the GCCC region8 were sent aninformation brochure alerting them that fire ants had been found in their area, encouragingthem check their yards and local areas and report any suspicious ants.

DiagnosticsDuring the quarter, approximately 980 ant samples were submitted—almost 590 were diagnosedas fire ant with the majority having been reported by the public.

Treatment efficacy trialsThe Program currently has two bait efficacy trials in progress. Such trials are undertaken toroutinely monitor the effectiveness in the field of the baits currently used by the Program(pyriproxyfen and methoprene) and to test new products as they become available.

Trial 1 – bait efficacyThe site at Ebenezer has been chosen to check bait efficacy which is routinely undertaken toprovide confidence that the treatments are effective. This site is polygyne (multiple queen colonies)and has received two rounds of pyriproxyfen prior to the current treatment season. Due tocompetition for bait and preferential feeding of dominant queens, polygyne colonies usually requireseveral rounds of treatment before the infestation is eliminated.

8 In the suburbs of Coomera, Upper Coomera, Jacobs Well, Steiglitz, Willow Vale, Woongoolba.

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Trial 2 – Distance Plus (new to the Program)The site at Mount Forbes is being used to trial a bait product, Distance Plus (pyriproxyfen plusprotein) that has been recently registered for use against fire ants in Australia. This product has thesame active ingredient as Distance which is currently used by the Program but with the addition ofprotein to make it more attractive to fire ant. Results of efficacy trials of the product in Australiawere only published in 2013, although Sumitomo Chemical Australia applied for registration withthe Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority in 2007.

A treatment was applied in June 2015, late in the treatment season but when ground temperatureswere still suitable for ant foraging. Observations have recorded that fire ants are still active at bothsites. Additional treatments are scheduled for the 2015–16 treatment season and further fieldassessments will be made about 10–12 weeks following each round.

Consideration of treatment by landownersA number of businesses have requested that they be able to either apply preventative baits, ordestroy known infestation of fire ant themselves. These businesses view the ability to treat knowninfestation as a way of allowing easier movement of restricted items off their properties, andtherefore allowing a smoother continuation of business.

An options paper (Treatment by Landowners) is in development by the relevant Program experts,and it aims to provide direction to the Program regarding the viability of encouraging landowners totreat known infestation or prophylactically treat for fire ants.

SURVEILLANCEIn accordance with the 2013–18 response plan – targeted field surveillance will occur in highrisk zones and areas of new detections. Most new detections are reported by the public, which is adirect result of community engagement.

The map in Appendix 4 highlights the areas where surveillance has been conducted.

Validation surveillanceDuring the quarter, validation surveillance (to determine treatment success) undertaken by theProgram resulted in all but one of the infestations being cleared. This area received furthertreatment as per the treatment protocol.

The total amount of validation surveillance performed this quarter was over 390 hectares. Themajority of the validation surveillance was undertaken by the odour detection dog teams.

Delineation surveillanceDelineation surveillance was undertaken by a combination of field teams and odour detection dogson all new detections and covered over 3710 hectares.

Targeted surveillanceDuring the quarter, over 120 hectares of targeted surveillance was conducted on high risk sites.

Sentinel sitesThe sentinel sites will be static sites used to monitor for the presence or absence of fire ant. Asentinel site will be selected because it provides highly suitable habitat for fire ant, for instance,cleared or disturbed land. For surveillance, sentinel sites will be positioned along and beyond thedelimitation boundary to detect any spread of the ant.

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Surveillance will be scheduled for early in the surveillance season (May to September) andtherefore has not been conducted on the sentinel sites this quarter. Sentinel sites will be identifiedfor surveillance in May 2016 and will remain static thereafter.

Odour detection dogsThe Program has nine odour detection dogs, eight operate in the field and one is used forcommunity engagement purposes. The Program has two new dogs in training with another newdog to start training shortly. Two of the operational dogs will be replaced with the new dogs andwith a third to be sourced and trained.

The Program has recently received approval from the Animal Ethics Committee9 to have up to40 dogs. It is likely that the number of dogs in the Program will increase at certain times, forexample, when retiring dogs are waiting rehoming and when new dogs are brought into theProgram to undergo training.

Preparations are underway to celebrate the work undertaken by the retiring odour detection dog,Mikey, in November 2015. The special commendation recently awarded by the DAF10 AchievementAwards Committee to Mikey (and his handler Justin Gibson) for outstanding contributions to theBiosecurity Queensland Control Centre will be presented at this event.

Mikey (a golden Collie cross) has served the Program since 2007 when he joined at age two—having been rescued from the Animal Welfare League. Following an intense training period of sixmonths, Mikey developed such a specific sense of smell that he was able to distinguish a singlefire ant from all other ants, and there are more than 100 species of ants in the greater Brisbanearea.

As part of the Program’s odour detection dog team, Mikey has ensured the programs in South EastQueensland, Gladstone and Port Botany (NSW) are on track to eradicate fire ants from Australia.While undertaking his work, Mikey has surveyed in excess of 3200 hectares and identifiedcountless fire ants in a variety of locations, working in all climates and conditions.

Mikey leaves a legacy of excellence as one of the first odour detection dogs in the Program.

Figure 1: Mikey at work

9 The Animal Ethics Committee is made up of Biosecurity Queensland staff and members from the community to ensure a transparentprocess is undertaken when an application to use animals for scientific purposes is submitted. This ensures that all practices on animalsare humane and with an achievable purpose or outcome. Approvals are sought every three years.10 Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries

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Passive surveillance activities11

Fire ant displays were conducted at key events across South East Queensland during the quarterincluding a presence at the 2015 Royal Queensland Show (Ekka) in the DAF corporate stand. Fireant staff and volunteers engaged with an estimated 15 000 people. Other events included theBrisbane Organic Growers Inc. (BOGI) Fair, the Beaudesert Show, Brisbane City Council GreenHeart Fair and Centenary Rocks Festival, the Gatton Show and Ormeau Fair, engaging with afurther 4500 people.

Following the detection of fire ants in Fig Tree Pocket in May 2015 over 17 000 residents within thesurrounding suburbs of Indooroopilly, Chapel Hill, Fig Tree Pocket and Kenmore were sent aninformation brochure alerting them that fire ants had been found in their area.

Following the detection of fire ants in Holland Park, a brochure was sent to 6300 residents withinthe area.

The fire ant program’s website recorded approximately 7900 page views for the period, and 1700fire ant related calls were handled by the Departments Customer Service Centre.

The September edition of the e-newsletter ‘Under the microscope’ was distributed with storiesincluding: the commencement of the treatment season; an update on the Yarwun (2013) response,staff profile of the Program’s Spatial Officer Penny Flannigan, the reporting of fire ants in ScenicRim by a grain grower, changes to the restricted area, and support provided by industry andcouncil after the Gold Coast detections.

MOVEMENT CONTROLSIn accordance with the 2013–18 response plan – application of agreed protocols and strategies tocontain fire ants through movement controls including community engagement, risk management strategiesfocussed on the high risk restricted area, audits12 of Approved Risk Management Plans (ARMPs), andinspector’s approvals for movement of risk materials.

Restricted areaThe restricted areas are areas that are either infested or at risk of being infested and wheremovement controls for restricted items apply. A new declaration of the South East QueenslandRIFA Restricted Area (Version 53) became effective on 31 August 2015.

The red imported fire ant restricted area is reviewed regularly to take into account operationalactivities and levels of infestation within suburbs in South East Queensland. Suburbs within therestricted areas area are assigned a risk position (high risk or low risk) and are subject to differinglevels of movement restrictions within each area.

A total of 259 suburbs are included in the high and low risk restricted areas (238 in the previousrestricted areas – Version 52 from 1 June–30 August 2015)—158 suburbs are included in the highrisk restricted area while 101 suburbs are included in the low risk restricted area (refer to map inAppendix 5).

The declaration appeared in the Courier Mail and Queensland Times on 31 August 2015.Notifications were sent to all government and industry stakeholders, current ARMP holders, councilcall centres, DAF regional offices and South East Queensland libraries. Over 33 400 residentswere sent notifications advising them they are now in a high risk restricted area and what theirobligations are to meet movement controls.

11 To complement the surveillance undertaken by the Program, the community will be encouraged to conduct surveillance, and reportsuspect ants. There will be increased public education regarding movement controls.12 Compliance checks

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Suburb monitoringSuburbs within the restricted areas are monitored to ensure ongoing compliance with movementcontrols and are targeted according to risk. This may include (but is not limited to):

suburbs that are new or have been re-instated to the high risk restricted area;

areas where there is a large amount of movement or storage of restricted items, such as largedevelopment sites (industrial and housing)

agricultural areas, during peak production times for restricted items such as hay

areas where there has been an unusually large number of detections within the previous sixmonths, to assess any changes in activity in that area

Table 2 outlines the activities targeted for suburb monitoring during the quarter. The map inAppendix 4 shows the suburbs targeted.

Table 2: Suburb monitoring undertaken during the quarter

Month Suburb monitoring

July 2015 The focus of monitoring was on suburbs where there had been an expansion of developmentsites, which was predominantly in the core area. Overall, earthmoving businesses working onthe development sites were compliant and demonstrated suitable knowledge of theirrequirements, due to previous work undertaken on these sites.

August 2015 Suburbs new to the restricted area and those where there had been a number of recentdetections were targeted for monitoring (predominantly in the GCCC area). Subsequentlyapprovals were given for the movement of restricted items.

September2015

A number of businesses new to the restricted areas in the GCCC and Scenic Rim areas wereidentified as requiring approvals to move their product (particularly for hay and sugar canemulch) and assessments were completed to issue the appropriate approvals.

Next quarter, suburb monitoring will focus on the hay growing areas of the Lockyer Valley RegionalCouncil area and the Scenic Rim Regional Council area (including Fassifern area) as this will bethe start of the summer hay growing and harvesting season.

TracingTracing activities are undertaken to gather information about possible spread or original source ofinfestation and are considered for the following situations:

polygyne13 infestations

significant detections

outlier infestations.

Tracing was undertaken at sites primarily in the GCCC area following the recent spate ofdetections. The large number of outlier detections in close proximity, and all the detections beingmonogyne, indicated that human-assisted spread was unlikely and spread was by nuptial flight. Alater detection in Upper Coomera revealed a tertiary genetic relatedness to a suburb in thenorthern Gold Coast area, further supporting the spread in this area as due to nuptial flight and nothuman–assisted movement.

13 Multiple queen colonies

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InvestigationsDuring the quarter, an investigation report has been finalised into the public reporting of allegedmovements of soil from inside the restricted area to suburbs just outside the restricted area but stillwithin South East Queensland. Due to insufficient evidence, the action resulted in six advisoryletters being sent to persons involved in the soil movement.

An investigation has been initiated into an alleged movement of hay from the high risk restrictedarea to the Winton, Barcoo and Etheridge Shire Councils in Queensland without a movementapproval. Preliminary investigations indicate that the hay was donated to Aussie Helpers Ltd fordrought relief. The biosecurity risk in the Barcoo and Winton Shire Council areas has beennegated with the assistance of Departmental staff located in Longreach visiting the sites and luringthe hay (240 bales) in accordance with the Program’s luring procedure. However, 55 bales of haydelivered to the Etheridge Shire Council area was unable to be lured as it had been distributed andno details of recipients were recorded during this process. Based on the absence of fire ants fromthe hay lured at the other locations during the follow up surveillance, it was determined that thehay delivered to the Etheridge Shire Council was unlikely to be infested with fire ants.

In 2015–16, the Program will undertake follow up communication with those people that may havereceived the hay and will consult with the relevant councils to ensure that the correct avenues ofcommunication are targeted.

Compliance checksIn July 2015, 41 compliance checks were undertaken for movement approvals in the landscapesupply, hay, quarries and nursery industries. Follow up compliance checks will be required atquarries to ensure stockpiles are managed correctly and at a nursery to ensure correct usage ofchemical treatments and storage of plants.

In August 2015, 52 compliance checks were undertaken for movement approvals in landscapesupply, hay, quarries and composting industries. All businesses were compliant. Follow up checksfrom the July 2015 were completed with all businesses found to be compliant.

In September 2015, 46 compliance checks were undertaken, mainly in the hay, quarry,earthmoving and composting/mulching/landscape supply industries. Six businesses were found tobe non-compliant, in areas of inadequate hay storage, no on-site monitoring being conducted andtwo businesses (one landscaper and one builder) without appropriate movement approvals. Allmatters of non-compliance will be followed up during the next quarter in 2015–16.

Case managementThis role incorporates a compliance component as well as engagement. The case manager ispreparing for ‘breakfast series’ talks with the Civil Contractors Federation in Queensland inOctober 2015. This will provide information about the Program to be disseminated to businessesinvolved in large scale developments.

The case manager is managing sites that may warrant extra scrutiny (high risk sites) by theProgram such as the new detection at the Brisbane airport.

The case manager is also preparing to meet with Local Government Associations to discuss theirrisk activities and risk management strategies. This will also help the preparations for the newbiosecurity legislation.

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Industry training48 training sessions were conducted with over 1400 industry14 and council15 personnel during thequarter.

Biosecurity Act 2014 transition/implementationThe Program continues to update the material for external communication to ensure that it alignswith the new Queensland Biosecurity Act 2014 which is scheduled to be implemented by 1 July2016.

Once the regulatory amendments are made to s 55 (Person carrying certain commercial activity inrestricted area must have approved risk management plan) of the Plant Protection Regulation2002, movement of restricted items can be approved through either an Approved RiskManagement Plan (ARMP) or an inspector’s approval. From 1 January 2016, any commercialoperator without an ARMP wanting to move restricted items will need to submit a request for aninspector’s approval. No new ARMPs will be issued after 31 December 2015.

BUDGETThe Program’s expenditure to the end of September 2015 is $3.480 million, which is $0.570 millionabove projections. However, this is predominantly due to a number of ant bait invoices being paidin September 2015 that were not budgeted for until October 2015 (refer to Appendix 6). AnnualProgram expenditure to 30 September 2015 is 18.7% of the available budget.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

The Independent ReviewPart 1 Report – was submitted to the Agriculture Ministers’ Forum (AGMIN) Secretariat on 31August 2015 and will be considered by AGMIN at the next meeting on 19 November 2015.

Part 2 Strategy – assisted the review panel to finalise a contract for expert consultants toundertake scenario modelling to provide advice on the optimal strategies for achieving the highestprobability of eradication, in the shortest timeframe at the lowest cost. The review panel isconsidering a new approach to funding the eradication response and their final report will includeoptions for achieving eradication, with indicative budgets and timeframes.

The Independent Review will also look at the Program’s five triggers for review in the currentresponse plan. The focus of the Program in 2015–16 has shifted from delimitation to eradication—of the five review triggers that may indicate a threat to Program objectives as identified in theresponse plan, two have become irrelevant under the work plan due to the cessation of RSSactivities:

The effectiveness of RSS is compromised. With the delimitation phase of the response plan(primarily undertaken with RSS) completed, this trigger becomes redundant and no longerapplicable during the eradication phase.

Reproductive areas of infestation are found beyond the area scheduled for RSS. RSS will nolonger be conducted under the work plan, therefore rendering this trigger redundant too.

The three remaining triggers will be considered as part of the Independent Review:

The new area of infestation is more than 600 hectares in a given financial year.

14 Industry attendees included universities, turf suppliers, road infrastructure providers, water providers, cane growers etc.15 Representatives from the Gold Coast City Council, Logan City Council attended these sessions

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Infestation is detected beyond the 30 km boundary.

A dramatic and ongoing decline in community support is evident.

Genetic analysisGenetic analysis has been conducted on the recent spate of detections in the Gold Coast CityCouncil area comprised of the northern Gold Coast suburbs of Alberton, Yatala, Pimpama,Gilberton, Staplyton, Ormeau, Norwell and Upper Coomera.

Although the results show some of the relationships between the infestations, the means by whichthe spread occurred, that is, nuptial flight or human-assisted movement remains speculative.

Field mobilityMobile data capture functionality for the Direct Nest Injection (DNI) process has been developedand is pending further field evaluation and user acceptance testing.

Remote sensing surveillance (RSS) researchThe Program has had some initial discussions with the Queensland University of Technology -QUT (the Australian Research Centre for Aerospace Automation - ARCAA), University of Sydney(Australian Centre for Field Robotics – ACFR) and CSIRO about a Research and Development(R&D) project to look at improving the efficiency and reducing the costs of the Program’s remotesensing. The aim is to then use remote sensing as a means of validation surveillance to assist withproof of freedom.

The Program’s Project Coordinator (Information Services) is currently working through theprocurement process to document a request for information to engage the market and determinesuitable parties to take part in the R&D project.

At a high level, the R&D project will be looking at the following:

Effectiveness of new image capture technologies – Hyper/Multi-spec, Infrared, NDVI, 3Dmodelling, LIDARImproving the identification algorithms to make use of new image technologies, improving theaccuracy and sensitivity, and reducing false positive outputsDetermine the most effective vehicles (i.e. helicopters, fixed wing planes, drones/UnmannedAerial Vehicles (UAVs)) and their suitable/cost effective application regarding remote sensingand surveillance activities.

For example:

o helicopters would be used for the first high-level scan and then drones/UAVs for furtherfollow-up/more detailed analysis regarding remote sensing

o UAVs/drones have the potential for use in surveillance (delineation) of inaccessible areasor sites with WH&S concerns.

This project is only in the initial research/planning stage and more information will becomeavailable once the request for information has been approved/released and market contendershave responded.

Review of colony point creationAutomation of processes within the map creation system/s has revealed the need to review thecreation and use of critical data, including colony points. A review process is underway.

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OTHER PROGRAM(S)

Response at Port Botany, New South WalesThe Program has continued to provide assistance to the NSW Department of Primary Industries(NSW DPI) following the detection of fire ants at an industrial container site at Port Botany, NSW inNovember 2014.

The odour detection dog team conducted surveillance of approximately 155 hectares of high risksites within the 2 km zone at Port Botany from 15–25 August 2015 and no trace of fire ants wasdetected.

The Team Leader of the Invasive Species and Plant Health, Greater Sydney Local Land Serviceshas made a request for assistance with next round of treatment, particularly the operation of thebait hopper the Program provided earlier this year. The Operations Project Coordinator andOperations Coordinator are scheduled to assist the Port Botany response in late October 2015.

Browsing antStaff from the Program including the Director, Science Manager and Senior Dog Handler visitedDarwin to inspect the recent incursion of browsing ant (Lepisiota frauenfeldi) and to provideassistance to the Northern Territory (NT) response. Ant colonies were collected in the field andextracted at the NT Entomology laboratory at Berrimah Farm—and then transported to BQCCfacilities at Moggill where they are being kept in culture in the colony room. The aim is to attempt toimprint two of the Program’s odour detection dogs on odour of L. frauenfeldi. These dogs couldthen be used for validation or targeted surveillance for the pest in Perth and Darwin.

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Appendix 1 - Key Program activitiesUnder eradication, the Program’s 2015–16 Work Plan16 (the work plan) focuses on three keystrategies—targeted treatment on planned treatment areas to eradicate infestation, ongoingsurveillance to monitor infestation (to facilitate targeted treatment) and movement controls tominimise the risk of human-assisted fire ant spread.

The Program will concentrate eradication activities on areas outside the core infested area17 (corearea) while continuing to contain and suppress infestation within the core area.

TreatmentThe Program will be applying multiple rounds of treatment to high density infestations and high riskareas within static treatment areas referred to as planned treatment areas. These areas will beassessed prior to clearance after planned treatment.

Inside the core area the planned treatment areas will receive two rounds of treatment over twoyears while outside the core will receive three rounds of treatment per year over two years.

New infestationThe Program will also respond to new infestation by conducting appropriate treatment inaccordance with the agreed protocol beyond the planned treatment areas. These areas will becleared as per the Protocol - Removal of IS18 Status19.

The 'area of infestation' is under review. The term ‘area of infestation’ is misleading as it includesinfestation that has been treated but not cleared. The colony point review will consider thereporting of the ‘area of infestation’.

SurveillanceThe Program will focus surveillance effort on newly detected infestation outside the core area nowthat delimitation of the infestation in South East Queensland is complete, to ensure eradication issuccessful and to target treatment effort.

Validation surveillanceValidation surveillance will be undertaken by the Program to verify the treatment of infestation hasbeen effective. Once the second validation surveillance is undertaken (usually by the odourdetection dogs but can also be conducted using luring) and no evidence of fire ants are found thecolony point(s) become ‘inactive’ and the infestation is deemed cleared.

Delineation surveillanceThe Program will undertake surveillance either by field teams or the odour detection dogs, as perthe treatment protocol, out to 100 m on all new detections outside treatment areas, except outlierdetections (500 m delineation) will be undertaken.

Targeted surveillanceTargeted surveillance will be conducted on high risk sites in a number of outlying suburbs.

Movement controlsCompliance monitoring will increase inside the core area, to effectively contain infestation.

16 Endorsed by the Tramp Ant Consultative Committee (TACC 24) on 27 May 201517 A subset of suburbs in the restricted area where the majority of high density infestation are located.18 infested site19 Protocol – Removal of IS Status was approved by the Tramp Ant Consultative Committee (TACC) in February 2012

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A transition will occur across to the new legislation, with the use of generic inspector’s approvalsthat will include the conditions from the factsheets, and become the General BiosecurityObligation.

Suburb monitoringThere will be an increased presence in the field to monitor the movement of restricted items.

TracingTracing will be performed to gather information about the possible spread or original source of fireant infestation, which may contribute to planning future surveillance and checking activities.

Case managementThe case manager will deliver a coordinating role in identifying where new large scaledevelopments are planned in South East Queensland.

Compliance checksCompliance checks will be conducted to support other compliance activities and to ensure thatbusinesses are complying with established movement controls. The source of compliance checkswill include:

Infested sites – known infested site that is involved in product movement

Suburb monitoring – random checking of businesses to ensure they have necessarymovement approvals and are following the conditions of the approval

Tracing investigations – recommended as a result of a tracing investigation

Targeted high risk industries – industries that are moving high risk items and in bulkquantities (e.g. hay, composted material, quarry material)

Follow ups – on any previous reported non-compliance.

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National Red Imported Fire AntEradication Program – South EastQueensland2nd Quarter Report 2015–16

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NRIFAEP 2nd Quarter Report 2015–16 - SEQ 1


The delimitation phase of the response plan was completed in June 2015 and the Program movedto eradication in July 2015.


The work plan builds on the concept of a core infested area2 (core area). As per the work plan,work within the core area will contain and suppress while the Program works to eradicateinfestation outside this area.

The Program is treating planned treatment areas which remain static over two years. Inside thecore, the planned treatment areas will receive two rounds of treatment per year over two years—while outside the core will receive three rounds of treatment per year over two years.

The treatment season runs from September to May, with Treatment Round 1 for the 2015–16commenced in late September 2015 and is due for completion during the next quarter. There havebeen some delays with Treatment Round 1 however the Program expects to complete thescheduled treatment by May 2016.

Outside the planned treatment areas 146 hectares of new infestation were detected during thequarter and subsequently treated under the approved protocol.

During the quarter, the investigation into alleged movement of hay from the high risk restrictedarea to Western Queensland without a movement approval was finalised. An advisory letter wasissued and an onsite meeting was held with the person of interest.

Population analysis of the colony detected at Brisbane Airport in September 2015 has confirmedthe infestation is not related to any other currently known infestations in Queensland, and istherefore considered a new incursion of fire ants. This new incursion is most likely to haveoriginated from southern USA. In December 2015, the National Biosecurity Management Groupunanimously agreed to support the eradication of the incursion of fire ant at Brisbane Airport.Technical experts across the country agreed that there is a high degree of confidence that theincursion can be eradicated. The estimated cost of the eradicating fire ant at Brisbane Airport is$914,240. These costs are being shared by all states, territories and the Commonwealth. TheBrisbane Airport incursion will be undertaken as a separate response.

Genetic analysis has commenced on the infestations at Royal Australian Airforce Base (RAAF)Base Amberley and Greenbank Military Range to determine any possible links. Preliminaryanalysis indicates no evidence of a link between these sites.

On 19 November 2015, the Agriculture Ministers’ Forum (AGMIN) endorsed the IndependentReview Panel’s interim report confirming that it remains in the national interest to eradicate fireants and that it is technically feasible to do so.

During the quarter, the Program continued to assist the Independent Review Panel in progressingindependently-commissioned scenario modelling on optimal eradication strategies, including thebudgets required and the probabilities of achieving eradication in the shortest timeframe. Themodelling will inform the panel’s recommendations in their final report, which is due to be

1 Endorsed by the Tramp Ant Consultative Committee (TACC 24) on 27 May 20152 A subset of suburbs in the restricted area where the majority of high density infestation is located.

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completed in March 2016. The Independent Review’s final report is expected to be considered byAGMIN on 20 May 2016.

At 31 December 2015, the Program’s year-to-date expenditure is $8.8 million or 46.04% of theavailable budget.

Odour detection dog Mikey was retired on 20 November 2015 after serving the Program since2007. He was one of the first odour detection dogs in the Program and received an award from thePremier recognising the outstanding contributions he (and his handler Justin Gibson) has made tothe Program.

The Program provided assistance to the Port Botany response in late October 2015 and treatmenthas now been completed with no trace of fire ants detected.

The browsing ants collected from Darwin are now held at the Program’s Moggill site with the aim ofimprinting two of the Program’s odour detection dogs with the ants’ scent.

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Contents

Summary of Activities .....................................................................................................................5TREATMENT ......................................................................................................................5PLANNED TREATMENT.....................................................................................................5


RESPONSIVE TREATMENT – NEW INFESTATION..........................................................7Diagnostics ..............................................................................................................7Treatment efficacy trials...........................................................................................7

Trial 1 – bait efficacy ....................................................................................8Trial 2 – Distance Plus (new to the Program) ...............................................8


Validation surveillance .............................................................................................8Delineation surveillance ...........................................................................................8Targeted surveillance...............................................................................................9Sentinel sites ...........................................................................................................9Odour detection dogs...............................................................................................9Passive surveillance activities................................................................................ 10




OTHER PROGRAM(S)...................................................................................................... 14Brisbane Airport ..................................................................................................... 14Response at Port Botany, New South Wales ......................................................... 14

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Browsing ant .......................................................................................................... 15Appendix 1 - Key Program activities .................................................................................. 16Appendix 2 – Map showing the core area within the restricted area .................................. 18Appendix 3 – Map showing areas under treatment - planned treatment areas and newinfestation.......................................................................................................................... 19Appendix 4 – Program activities conducted across the restricted areas 1 October 2015–31December 2015................................................................................................................. 20Appendix 5 – RIFA Restricted Areas – Version 53 (effective 31 August 2015) .................. 21Appendix 6 – Financial Report to 31 December 2015........................................................ 22

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In line with the Program’s move to the eradication phase, significant planning continued to beundertaken in relation to the treatment season, particularly treatment areas.

ProgressAt 31 December 2015, over 24 000 hectares of Treatment Round 1 was completed. TreatmentRound 1 is expected to be completed during the next quarter. This will mean that almost 31 000hectares will have received one scheduled treatment application.

At 31 December 2015, almost 13 500 hectares of Treatment Round 2 was completed.

Treatment outside the core was undertaken as a priority, with all teams then tasked to finishtreatment inside the core infested area. There were some delays experienced in the first round oftreatment, for instance:

Over the life of the Program, field staff have made a reasonable attempt to contact an occupierof a place to obtain consent prior to entry, preferring to develop a sense of cooperation withinthe community. However, the process of obtaining consent is time consuming and with all thenew areas scheduled for treatment this task has been particularly burdensome during thistreatment round. In some cases consent is refused and subsequent negotiations with theoccupier of the land have to be undertaken incurring more delays. The Program’s managementteam is working to resolve this issue.

The treatment was also delayed by the field teams detecting fire ants. Once fire ants aredetected, samples are taken and a global positioning system (GPS) reading taken which slowsthe treatment progress.


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Further, the timely application of bait treatment has been delayed when teams arrive toundertake treatment on what was scheduled as one parcel of land but find that the land hasbeen subdivided. This means that consent has not be been sought from each of the occupiersfrom the subdivided plots hindering treatment progress. Consent has to be subsequentlysought further delaying the treatment progress.

Issues with land parcel data (including those created by new subdivisions) are created due tothe Digital Cadastre Data Base (DCDB) not aligning with data in the Program’s Fire AntManagement System. The DCDB contains the property boundaries and related propertydescription of all land parcels in Queensland. It provides the base for searching, planning andanalysing land related information. Manual fixes have been used to date to ‘force’ the system towork. The specific problems over the last several months have been catalogued, and systemfixes will be performed by DAF specialist information technology section, ITP.

Effective fire ant bait applications currently must avoid water exposure to maintain the integrityof the bait. The Program works to ensure the bait treatment is avoided in areas where theremay have been rainfall the previous day, rainfall forecast, heavy dew or irrigation so thatcontact with moisture is avoided. This will continue to be an ongoing issue that affects thetimely application of treatment and work is scheduled accordingly.

This issue may be resolved if a new water resistant (hydrophobic) bait containing pyriproxyfenis shown to be effective in Queensland (further information on this bait is available in the‘Treatment Efficacy Trials’ section of the report).

Under the current work plan where the planned treatment areas are to remain static over a twoyear period, it is anticipated that there will be less delays in the subsequent treatment rounds asmany of the issues hampering timely progress of Treatment Round 1 have to some degree nowbeen resolved.

In addition, there is an increased level of consent for treatment in the second round and this islikely to allow for greater use of aerial baiting. Aerial baiting is less resource intensive than onground treatment applications, enabling large areas to be treated with less staff hours.

Further time savings may be possible by implementing a temporary base the Gold Coast CityCouncil (GCCC) area for a few weeks while treating local areas to reduce travel times—investigations to determine viability are ongoing.

Treatment Rounds 1 and 2 are continuing.

Communication strategiesA comprehensive communications and engagement strategy was developed in the first quarter of2015–16 and will continue being implemented through until the treatment season is finished in May2016. This strategy will assist in facilitating the smooth delivery of field operations by gainingsupport from residents within the treatment area. Table 1 outlines the key activities undertaken aspart of the strategy.

The Program’s website recorded over 16 000 views of the treatment operations page in October2015 likely due to a successful Facebook campaign conducted during this month.This campaignalerted residents that bait treatment for fire ants would occur in their suburb and generated over11 000 website clicks, likely reaching over 183 000 people—an estimated 2000 more people thanthe campaign was paid to reach.

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Activity Message

Notification letters To residentsCommencement of treatmentAccess to property requirementMultiple visits for treatment over two years





Radio, print articles and social media campaignsAn article focussing on the continuation of treatment was included in thestakeholder e-newsletter ‘Under the Microscope’

Facebook advertising Targeting residents in suburbs due to receive treatment between October andDecember 20154


RESPONSIVE TREATMENT – NEW INFESTATIONOutside the planned treatment areas 146 hectares of new infestation were detected during thequarter and subsequently treated under the approved protocol (refer to the map in Appendix 3).

Business rules used to calculate the 'area of infestation' is currently under review. Consultationbetween technical experts from each of the Programs sections and discussion with theIndependent Review panel has determined that the current term ‘area of infestation’ is misleadingas it refers to infestation that has been treated, but not cleared. The trigger relating to the area ofinfestation is being reviewed as part of the Independent Review.

There were no significant detections during this quarter.

DiagnosticsDuring the quarter, approximately 785 ant samples were submitted—440 were diagnosed as fireant with the majority having been reported by the public. In addition, approximately 465 photoswere submitted for identification—52 were diagnosed as fire ant.

Treatment efficacy trialsThe Program now has two bait trials in progress. Such trials are undertaken to routinely monitorthe effectiveness in the field of the baits currently used by the Program (pyriproxyfen andmethoprene) and to test new products as they become available.

The Program has identified a new water resistant (hydrophobic) bait containing pyriproxyfen thatcould be considered for future use by the Program. This bait was identified from the 2014 USA

4 Total campaign cost was approximately $5000 and reached an audience of over 183 000 people—2000 higher than paid for andexpected.

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Imported Fire Ant (IFA) Conference Proceeding papers. This bait is not registered for use inAustralia. The bait is manufactured in Taiwan and has company ties with Sumitomo Chemical, theProgram’s current bait supplier. If and when the bait is registered for use in Australia the Programwould proceed with trials. If the bait is shown to be effective in Queensland, it would be a valuableaddition to treatment regime, allowing bait application even with ground moisture.

Trial 1 – bait efficacyThe site at Ebenezer has been chosen to check bait efficacy which is routinely undertaken toprovide confidence that the treatments are effective. This site is polygyne (multiple queen colonies)and has received a third round of pyriproxyfen treatment. Due to competition for bait andpreferential feeding of dominant queens, polygyne colonies usually require several rounds oftreatment before the infestation is eliminated. An assessment following the third round oftreatment showed that the majority of mounds were still active.

Trial 2 – Distance Plus (new to the Program)The site at Mount Forbes is being used to trial a new bait product, Distance Plus (pyriproxyfen plusprotein). This product has the same active ingredient as Distance which is currently used by theProgram but with the addition of protein to make it more attractive to fire ant. The first treatmentwas applied in June 2015, late in the treatment season but when ground temperatures were stillsuitable for ant foraging. A second treatment was applied in October 2015. The first treatment wasassessed in late September and all nests were still active. The October treatment was assessed inJanuary 2016 and all were found dead.


For an eradication program allowing individuals to treat is a significant change in approach and assuch needs to be carefully considered. An options paper (Treatment by Landowners) is indevelopment by the relevant Program experts which will assist in deliberations. In addition, it isexpected that this issue will be considered in the independent review.

SURVEILLANCEIn accordance with the 2013–18 response plan – targeted field surveillance will occur in high riskzones and areas of new detections. Most new detections are reported by the public, which is a direct resultof community engagement.


Validation surveillanceDuring the quarter, validation surveillance (to determine treatment success) undertaken by theProgram resulted in all but four of the sites being cleared. The total amount of validationsurveillance performed this quarter was over 300 hectares. The majority of the validationsurveillance was undertaken by the odour detection dog teams. The four areas that remainedinfested received further treatment as per the treatment protocol.

Delineation surveillanceDelineation surveillance, undertaken by a combination of field teams and odour detection dogs onall new detections, covered over 1300 hectares.

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Targeted surveillanceNo targeted surveillance was planned or undertaken during this quarter.

Sentinel sitesSentinel sites are used to monitor for the presence or absence of fire ant. A sentinel site will beselected because it provides highly suitable habitat for fire ant, for instance, cleared or disturbedland. For surveillance, sentinel sites will be positioned along and beyond the delimitation boundaryto detect any spread of the ant.


Odour detection dogsThe Program has nine odour detection dogs, eight operate in the field and one is used forcommunity engagement purposes. The Program has two dogs in transition training—however onedog has not been successful. It is expected that the remaining dog will be validated and handedover in mid-January 2016, replacing an operational dog.

Odour detection dog Mikey was retired on 20 November 2015 after serving the Program since2007. Mikey joined the Program at age two having been rescued from the Animal Welfare Leagueand after an intense training period of six months, developed such a specific sense of small that hewas able to distinguish a single fire ant from all other ants.

Mikey was one of the first odour detection dogs in the Program and received an award from theQueensland Premier recognising the outstanding contributions he (and his handler Justin Gibson)have made to the Program.

Figure 1: Hon Annastacia Palaszczuk Premier of Queensland, Mikey and Justin Gibson.

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During the quarter, the ‘Aka the fire ant tracker’ presentation was delivered to over 2800 students,over 28 500 brochures were delivered to residents and four static displays were set up in librariesand shopping centres through South East Queensland. In December, discussions with other keyshopping centres commenced to organise space for static displays. It is anticipated that theProgram’s contact list and presence will expand with the introduction of new displays, and agreater audience will be reached.

In November 2015, approximately 13 000 identification cards were supplied to BunningsWarehouse stores and Toxfree centres (environment, waste management and industrial serviceprovider) for distribution to residents and suppliers—the Program continues to coordinate thedistribution of identity cards through key businesses within the restricted area.

The December edition of the e-newsletter ‘Under the microscope’ was also distributed with storiesincluding: Mikey swaps fire ants for family fun, fire ant movement approvals set to change, fire antbaiting continues across South East Queensland, fire ants fear the break of Dawn and NorthernTerritory trials Queensland’s detection dogs for browsing ants.

MOVEMENT CONTROLSIn accordance with the 2013–18 response plan – application of agreed protocols and strategies tocontain fire ants through movement controls including community engagement, risk management strategiesfocussed on the high risk restricted area, audits of Approved Risk Management Plans (ARMPs), andinspector’s approvals for movement of risk materials.

Restricted areaRestricted areas are areas that are either infested or at risk of being infested and where movementcontrols for restricted items apply. A new declaration of the South East Queensland RIFARestricted Area (Version 53) became effective on 31 August 2015. A total of 259 suburbs areincluded in the high and low risk restricted areas—158 suburbs are included in the high riskrestricted area while 101 suburbs are included in the low risk restricted area (refer to map inAppendix 5).

The next suburb assessment is due to commence mid-January 2016.


suburbs that are new or have been re-instated to the high risk restricted area;



areas where there has been an unusually large number of detections within the previous sixmonths, to assess any changes in activity in that area.

Table 2 outlines the suburbs targeted for monitoring during the quarter. The map in Appendix 4shows the suburbs targeted for monitoring during the quarter.

5 To complement the surveillance undertaken by the Program, the community will be encouraged to conduct surveillance, and reportsuspect ants. There will be increased public education regarding movement controls.

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October 2015 Monitoring shifted from the eastern corridor detections to suburbs in hay growing areas, with afocus on ensuring compliance with production and storage requirements. Majority of clients werefound to be compliant. A number of business within these areas were identified as requiringmovement approvals, and assessments and compliance activities have been conducted toensure the appropriate approvals are held. All businesses were already implementing practicessuitable for mitigating the risk of spreading fire ants.

November2015

The focus remained on monitoring hay growing regions within the restricted area—particularlysuburbs in Scenic Rim, Lockyer Valley, Fassifern, Northern Gold Coast and Logan. Allbusinesses visited were compliant.

December2015

Monitoring focussed on suburbs in GCCC involved with large movements of unprocessed soil,after a compliance check in Pimpama revealed soil was being moved without appropriateapprovals—three businesses were identified as non-compliant for not having movementapprovals for soil. A strategy is being developed for monitoring the large amount of soilmovement in this area.

TracingTracing activities are undertaken to gather information about possible spread or original source ofinfestation and are considered for the following situations:




Tracing was focussed during the quarter at sites located outside the restricted area.

For instance, on 30 September 2015 fire ants were detected within the Brisbane Airport precinct.Population analysis of the colony has confirmed it is a new incursion, most likely originating fromthe southern USA. Tracing investigations determined the area where the mound was located wasused as the arrival point for clearance of Group of Twenty (G20) delegates and associated cargo inNovember 2014. A large percentage of cargo stored in the immediate area was not inspected as itwas diplomatic cargo. This incursion is being treated as a separate response.In November 2015, two mounds were detected by staff at a golf course in Indooroopilly in theBrisbane City Council area—one in a garden and the other approximately 2 m away in the turf on atee off area. The garden bed had been planted two years previously and the plants and soil weresourced from outside the restricted area. However the sand used in the bunker was sourced frominside the restricted area but is subject to processing prior to its use in bunkers. Mulch is locatedapproximately 900 m from the detection and is received through unrecorded donations. Educationis being provided to the staff at the golf course regarding the risks of accepting mulch fromunknown sources.

InvestigationsDuring the quarter, an investigation report was finalised for the alleged movement of hay from thehigh risk restricted area to Western Queensland without a movement approval. An advisory letterhas been issued and an onsite meeting was held with the person of interest. A case managementofficer has been assigned to the property that supplied the hay to regularly monitor compliancewith movement approvals.

6 Multiple queen colonies

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Compliance checksThirteen targeted compliance checks were performed on earthmoving, landscape supply andnursery industries in October 2015. All of these businesses were compliant.

In November 2015, there were 19 compliance checks conducted at hay properties and all werecompliant with storage requirements and timeframe requirements for making and moving the hay.An additional 22 compliance checks were conducted on landscape, earthmoving, wastemanagement and construction industries. All businesses were compliant.

In December 2015, 16 businesses were monitored for movement controls in theconstruction/earthmoving industry in the Ipswich and GCCC areas. Five businesses were found tobe non-compliant due to not having the necessary movement approvals. Of the 36 high riskindustries targeted for compliance checks during the quarter in the earthmoving, nursery, hay,landscape suppliers and turf industries, three businesses were found to be non-compliant due toinadequate storage. Ten follow up checks were performed on nursery, earthwork and quarrybusinesses, with all now found to be compliant.

Case managementThis role incorporates a compliance component as well as engagement. The Case Managerdelivered ‘breakfast series’ talks with the Civil Contractors Federation in Queensland in October2015. These talks allowed information about the Program to be disseminated to businessesinvolved in large scale developments (housing and industrial). Further talks are planned for theGold Coast and Toowoomba series early in 2016.

The Case Manager has also met with Local Government Associations to discuss their riskactivities and risk management strategies. Logan, Somerset, Redlands and Ipswich City Councilshave provided information outlining the proposed and current developments and soil disturbanceactivities within their area.

The Case Manager is also managing sites that may warrant extra scrutiny (high risk sites) by theProgram such as the new detection at the Brisbane airport and a site that is involved in hayproduction and soil processing.

Industry training28 training sessions were conducted with over 560 industry7 personnel during the quarter.

Biosecurity Act 2014 transition/implementationThe Program continues to update material for external communication to ensure it aligns with thenew Queensland Biosecurity Act 2014 which is scheduled to be implemented by 1 July 2016.

Regulatory amendments have been made to s55 (Person carrying on certain commercial activity inrestricted area must have approved risk management plan) of the Plant Protection Regulation2002, to remove the mandatory requirement to have an ARMP. From 1 January 2016, anycommercial operator without an ARMP wanting to move restricted items will need to submit arequest for an inspector’s approval. No new ARMPs will be issued after 31 December 2015,however current ARMPs will remain valid until the new legislation commences.

Updates to the industry training PowerPoint and web content has been undertaken to ensure thetransitional changes are effectively communicated to industry.

7 Industry attendees included construction representatives, road infrastructure, energy providers, etc.

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BUDGETThe Program’s expenditure to the end of December 2015 is $8.8 million (refer to Appendix 6)—annual Program expenditure to 31 December 2015 is 46.04% of the available budget.


The Independent ReviewOn 19 November 2015, the Agriculture Ministers’ Forum (AGMIN) endorsed the IndependentReview Panel’s interim report confirming that it remains in the national interest to eradicate fireants and that it is technically feasible to do so.

During the second quarter, the Program continued to assist the Independent Review Panel toprogress independently-commissioned scenario modelling on optimal eradication strategies,including the budgets required and the probabilities of achieving eradication in the shortesttimeframe. The modelling will inform the panel’s recommendations in their final report, which is dueto be completed by 18 March 2016. The Independent Review’s final report is expected to beconsidered by AGMIN on 20 May 2016.

On 16 November 2015, the Independent Review received an interim report from MonashUniversity, which included the preliminary results of modelling commissioned by the IndependentReview Panel. This modelling produced estimates of duration, cost and probability of eradicationfor a small set of specified eradication strategies based on the Program’s current operations.

During December 2015, the Independent Review Panel received drafts of the final report fromMonash University outlining optimal strategies, the budgets required, and the probabilities ofachieving eradication within the shortest timeframe. The panel met with Monash University on18 December 2015 and further modelling was requested. To satisfy these requests, the modellingproject has been extended to 24 February 2016.

The review secretariat and panel chair met 17–18 December 2015 and are working to progress thefinal report. Due to the extension of the modelling commissioned by the panel, the submission ofthe Review Panel’s final report has been delayed until 18 March 2016.

Genetic analysisPopulation analysis of the colony detected at Brisbane Airport in September 2015 has confirmedthe infestation is not related to any other currently known infestations in Queensland, and istherefore considered a new incursion of fire ants. This new incursion is most likely to haveoriginated from southern USA.

Genetic analysis has been conducted on the infestations at RAAF Base Amberley and GreenbankMilitary Range to determine any possible links. Preliminary analysis indicates no evidence of a linkbetween these sites.

Samples taken from Mount Marrow in November 2015 have been analysed and are polygyne,indicating the infestation is likely to be a result of human-assisted movement or establishment by a‘heavy’ polygyne queen colony. However, long distance flights from ‘heavy’ polygyne queensoccurs infrequently (Tschinkel 2006)8.

Field mobilityThe Direct Nest Injection (DNI) mobile data capture application was used successfully in the fieldby Program personnel in November 2015. However, there are some minor changes required to

8 Tschinkel WR (2006) The Fire Ants. Harvard University Press, Cambridge, USA.

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both the data capture element and the processing phase that occurs back in the office. InformationManagement are currently working through finalising the details of these required changes, as wellas documenting the requirements for the sample collection form.

Remote sensing surveillance (RSS) researchThe Program released a request for information in early December to determine who would like,and has the capabilities, to take part in the Research and Development (R&D) project aiming toimprove the efficiency and reducing the costs of the Program’s RSS. It is anticipated, that RSS canthen be used as a means of validation surveillance to assist with proof of freedom.

At a high level, the R&D project will be looking at the following:

Effectiveness of new image capture technologies – Hyper/Multi-spec, Infrared, NDVI, 3Dmodelling, LIDAR.

Improving the identification algorithms to make use of new image technologies, improvingthe accuracy and sensitivity, and reducing false positive outputs.

Determine the most effective vehicles (i.e. helicopters, fixed wing planes, drones/Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and their suitable/cost effective application regardingremote sensing and surveillance activities.

A consultation day with potential vendors was held on 16 December 2015, with approximately30 people attending the session. The session included presentations on the RSS work undertakenby the Program and was followed with a question and answer session—responses have beenrecorded and made available to potential request for information respondents via the QueenslandQTenders webpage.

This project is only in the initial research/planning stage and more information will becomeavailable once market contenders have responded to the request for information.

Review of colony point creationAutomation of processes within the map creation system(s) has revealed the need to review thecreation, timing and use of ‘colony points’—enabling greater accuracy and flexibility in reporting.

OTHER PROGRAM(S)

Brisbane AirportA management options paper for the Brisbane Airport incursion (September 2015) was provided toTramp Ant Consultative Committee (TACC) for discussion on 27 November 2015.

In December 2015, the National Biosecurity Management Group unanimously agreed to supportthe eradication of this incursion of fire ant. Technical experts across the country agreed that thereis a high degree of confidence that the incursion can be eradicated. The estimated cost of theeradicating fire ant at Brisbane Airport is $914 240. These costs are being shared by all states,territories and the Commonwealth.

The Brisbane Airport incursion will be undertaken as a separate response.

Response at Port Botany, New South WalesThe Program has continued to provide assistance to the NSW Department of Primary Industries(NSW DPI) following the detection of fire ants at an industrial container site at Port Botany, NSW inNovember 2014.

The Operations Project Coordinator and Operations Coordinator assisted the Port Botanyresponse in late October 2015—no trace of fire ants was detected. A final round of treatment was

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applied without the assistance of Program staff and treatment has now been completed. A TACCmeeting determined that the final round of surveillance was not required.

An invoice was raised and forwarded to NSW for reimbursement of costs incurred in providingsupport in August 2015 and a further invoice will be generated for treatment conducted in October2015.

Browsing antThe browsing ants collected from Darwin are now held at the Program’s Moggill site. At least 24queens were present in this material and there is evidence that they are reproducing. Videocameras have been installed over two colony boxes to monitor and provide further information onfood preferences and determine their foraging patterns and timings. Analysis of the imagerycaptured by the video cameras continues. However, preliminary results indicate the ants aremainly daylight foragers and have a feeding preference for 25% sugar water, tuna and ‘ant cake’ (aspecially formulated food source that combines carbohydrates, protein and essential vitamins andnutrients for the ants).

A limiting factor in successful imprinting and maintenance of the odour detection dogs to continueto successfully detect invasive ant species is the regular production of quality ant odour undercontrolled conditions. As the Program is continually producing fire ant odour and has nowcommenced production of browsing ant odour, the Program is planning to extend secure colonyhousing to include separate culture space for the browsing ant colonies to meet odour productionrequirements for both species.

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Appendix 1 - Key Program activitiesUnder eradication, the Program’s 2015–16 Work Plan9 (the work plan) focuses on three keystrategies—targeted treatment on planned treatment areas to eradicate infestation, ongoingsurveillance to monitor infestation (to facilitate targeted treatment) and movement controls tominimise the risk of human-assisted fire ant spread.











9 Endorsed by the Tramp Ant Consultative Committee (TACC 24) on 27 May 201510 A subset of suburbs in the restricted area where the majority of high density infestation are located.11 Infested site12 Protocol – Removal of IS Status was approved by the Tramp Ant Consultative Committee (TACC) in February 2012

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Case managementThe Case Manager will deliver a coordinating role in identifying where new large scaledevelopments are planned in South East Queensland.







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National Red Imported Fire AntEradication Program – South EastQueensland3rd Quarter Report 2015–16

Release

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NRIFAEP 3rd Quarter Report 2015–16 - SEQ 1


The delimitation phase of the response plan was completed in June 2015 and the Program movedto eradication in July 2015.



The Program is treating areas (planned treatment areas) which remain static over two years.Inside the core, the planned treatment areas will receive two rounds of treatment per year over twoyears—while outside the core will receive three rounds of treatment per year over two years.

After some initial delays, treatment is progressing well. The first treatment round is now completeand it is expected that Treatment Round 2 will be finished in early April 2016. The aerialcomponent of Treatment Round 3 commenced in February 2016 and it is anticipated that this finaltreatment round will be completed by late May 2016.

Outside the planned treatment areas 139 hectares of new infestation were detected during thequarter and subsequently treated separately under the approved protocol.

With a number of the Program’s odour detection dogs reaching retirement age new candidate dogshave been sourced from Department of Immigration and Border Protection. One dog hasundertaken the requisite training and imprinting and will begin work for the Program during the nextquarter. A further three candidate dogs commenced training in March 2016.

A new declaration of the South East Queensland Red Imported Fire Ant Restricted Area (Version54) became effective on 15 February 2016 with a total of 273 suburbs included in the high and lowrisk restricted areas. With the implementation of the Biosecurity Act 2014 and Regulation in July2016, restricted areas will become fire ant biosecurity zones with similar movement restrictions. Anassessment will be undertaken next quarter to identify the suburbs that will be included in thesezones.

Compliance monitoring focused on the suburbs new to the restricted area as well has high riskbusinesses. Once businesses are aware of the requirements, compliance with movement controlshas been found to be reasonable with adequate risk mitigation measures in place. One propertywith a history of non-compliance continues to be regularly monitored.

At 31 March 2016, the Program’s year-to-date expenditure is $14.262 million or 74.25% of theavailable budget.

The imprinting of two National Red Imported Fire Ant Eradication Program (RIFA Program) odourdetection dogs with browsing ant (Lepisiota frauenfeldi) trail pheromone commenced in Februaryand has demonstrated positive results.


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ContentsSummary of Activities .....................................................................................................................4

TREATMENT ......................................................................................................................4PLANNED TREATMENT.....................................................................................................4



Trial 1 – bait efficacy ....................................................................................6Trial 2 – Distance Plus (new to the Program) ...............................................6Trial 3 – Distance Plus (new to the Program) ...............................................6


Validation surveillance .............................................................................................7Delineation surveillance ...........................................................................................7Targeted surveillance...............................................................................................7Sentinel sites ...........................................................................................................7Odour detection dogs...............................................................................................7Passive surveillance activities..................................................................................7

MOVEMENT CONTROLS...................................................................................................8Restricted area ........................................................................................................8Suburb monitoring ...................................................................................................8Tracing.....................................................................................................................9Investigations......................................................................................................... 10Compliance checks................................................................................................ 10Case management ................................................................................................ 10Industry training ..................................................................................................... 10Biosecurity Act 2014 transition/implementation ...................................................... 10




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Browsing ant .......................................................................................................... 12Appendix 1 - Key Program activities .................................................................................. 13Appendix 2 – Map showing the core area within the restricted area .................................. 15Appendix 3 – Map showing areas under treatment - planned treatment areas and newinfestation.......................................................................................................................... 16Appendix 4 – Program activities conducted across the restricted areas 1 January 2016–31March 2016 ....................................................................................................................... 17Appendix 5 – RIFA Restricted Areas – Version 54 (effective 15 February 2016) ............... 18Appendix 6 – Financial Report to 31 March 2016 .............................................................. 19

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In line with the Program’s move to the eradication phase, significant planning and monitoringcontinued to be undertaken in relation to the treatment season, particularly treatment areas.

ProgressTreatment Round 2 is expected to be finished early in April 2016. The aerial component forTreatment Round 3 commenced in late February 2016.

At 31 March 2016, treatment was applied as follows:

Over 31 000 hectares of Treatment Round 1 - complete

Over 29 900 hectares of Treatment Round 2

Over 9600 hectares of Treatment Round 3.

Treatment outside the core continues to be undertaken as a priority, with all teams then tasked tofinish treatment inside the core infested area.

Under the current work plan where the planned treatment areas are to remain static over a twoyear period, there have been less delays in the subsequent treatment rounds as many of theissues hampering timely progress of Treatment Round 1 have to some degree now been resolved,particularly the consent aspect.

The increased level of consent for treatment in the subsequent rounds has allowed for greater useof aerial baiting which is less resource intensive than on ground treatment applications.


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Communication strategiesA comprehensive communications and engagement strategy was developed in the first quarter of2015–16 and will continue being implemented through until the treatment season is finished in May2016. This strategy assists in facilitating the smooth delivery of field operations by gaining supportfrom residents within the treatment area. Table 1 outlines the key activities undertaken as part ofthe strategy.

As part of the communications and engagement strategy, the Program has encouraged thecouncils within the treatment area to distribute information through their communication channelsregarding the treatment regime. Logan City Council shared the post on their Facebook page andIpswich City Council promoted the treatment through their Environment Matters publication.


Activity Message








Content was provided for Facebook in January 2016


RESPONSIVE TREATMENT – NEW INFESTATIONOutside the planned treatment areas 139 hectares of new infestation was detected during thequarter and subsequently treated under the approved protocol (refer to the map in Appendix 3).

Business rules used to calculate the 'area of infestation' are currently under review. Consultationbetween technical experts from each of the Program's sections and discussion with theIndependent Review panel has determined that the current term ‘area of infestation’ is misleadingas it refers to infestation that has been treated, but not cleared. The review trigger relating to thearea of infestation is being revisited as part of the Independent Review.


4 Total campaign cost was approximately $5000 and reached an audience of over 183 000 people—2000 higher than paid for andexpected.

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DiagnosticsDuring the quarter, 764 ant samples were submitted—421 were diagnosed as fire ant with themajority (61%) having been reported by the public. In addition, 602 photos were submitted foridentification—43 were diagnosed as fire ant.

Treatment efficacy trialsThe Program now has three bait efficacy trials in progress. Such trials are undertaken to routinelymonitor the effectiveness in the field of the baits currently used by the Program (pyriproxyfen andmethoprene) and to test new products as they become available.

Trial 1 – bait efficacyThe site at Ebenezer has been chosen to check bait efficacy which is routinely undertaken toprovide confidence that the treatments are effective. This site is polygyne (multiple queen colonies)and five treatment rounds have now been undertaken since May 2014. Due to competition for baitand preferential feeding of dominant queens, polygyne colonies usually require several rounds oftreatment before the infestation is eliminated. At a field assessment in January 2016, seven of theten mounds originally marked for inspection were dead.

Trial 2 – Distance Plus (new to the Program)The site at Mount Forbes is being used to trial a bait product that would be new to the Program,Distance Plus (pyriproxyfen plus protein). This product has the same active ingredient as Distancewhich is currently used by the Program but with the addition of protein to make it more attractive tofire ant. Treatments are scheduled for the 2015–16 treatment season and further fieldassessments will be made about 10–12 weeks following each round. A second treatment wasapplied in October 2015. A field assessment conducted in January 2016 showed 100% kill of fireants at the site.

Trial 3 – Distance Plus (new to the Program)A site at Willowbank was added in February 2016 to further trial Distance Plus. In early March, halfthe site was treated with Distance Plus bait and half with the Program’s standard Distance bait asa ‘control’. The first field assessment of this trial is scheduled for early June 2016.


For an eradication program allowing individuals to treat is a significant change in approach and assuch needs to be carefully considered. An options paper (Treatment by Landowners) is indevelopment by the relevant Program experts which will assist in deliberations. In addition, it isexpected that this issue will be considered in the independent review.



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Validation surveillanceDuring the quarter, validation surveillance (to determine treatment success) undertaken by theProgram resulted in all but one of the sites being cleared. The total amount of validationsurveillance performed this quarter was over 180 hectares. The majority of the validationsurveillance was undertaken by the odour detection dog teams. The one area that was still infestedreceived further treatment as per the treatment protocol.

Delineation surveillanceDelineation surveillance, undertaken by a combination of field teams and odour detection dogs onall new detections, covered over 120 hectares.

Targeted surveillanceNo targeted surveillance was planned or undertaken during this quarter.

Sentinel sitesSentinel sites are sites used to monitor for the presence or absence of fire ant. A sentinel site willbe selected because it provides highly suitable habitat for fire ant, for instance, cleared ordisturbed land. For surveillance, sentinel sites will be positioned along and beyond the delimitationboundary to detect any spread of the ant.


Odour detection dogsThe Program has nine odour detection dogs, eight operate in the field and one is used forcommunity engagement purposes. There was a delay in the validation and delivery of another dogin January 2016. The dog is scheduled to begin working for the Program during the next quarter,replacing an operational dog.

During March 2016, three new candidate dogs from Department of Immigration and BorderProtection were delivered to the Program to undertake further training and imprinting. As they arecandidate dogs there is no guarantee that they will pass the requirements of the Program.


During the quarter, ‘Aka the fire ant tracker’ featured in a school holiday program with Logan CityCouncil which received publicity on Facebook and the Sunday Mail newspaper. Further ‘Aka thefire ant tracker’ school education sessions were delivered to 1277 people.

18 state wide representative groups for community organisations in Queensland agreed todisseminate relevant information through multiple networks including online, web-based and printmedia. These included the national sporting organisations (NSOs), Girl Guides Qld, OrienteeringQld, Qld Men’s Shed Association, Defence Housing Australia, Garden Clubs’ of Queensland,National Seniors Australia.

During the quarter, the Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ) agreed to disseminate fire anttext and images through the property management division’s newsletter which is emailed regularly


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to all members. This is the first stage of the communications plan which aims to raise awarenessamong property managers and tenants who live and work in the fire ant restricted areas.

700 brochures were supplied to Brisbane City Council libraries to distribute on behalf of theProgram at targeted events—predominantly garden related talks. 500 were given to the TamborineMountain Show Society, 200 to Brookfield Produce to be distributed on the Program’s behalf.


Restricted areaThe restricted areas are areas that are either infested or at risk of being infested and wheremovement controls for restricted items apply. A new declaration of the South East QueenslandRIFA Restricted Area (Version 54) became effective on 15 February 2016.

The red imported fire ant restricted area is reviewed regularly to take into account operationalactivities and levels of infestation within suburbs in South East Queensland. Suburbs within therestricted areas are assigned a risk position (high risk or low risk) and are subject to differing levelsof movement restrictions within each area.

A total of 273 suburbs are included in the high and low risk restricted areas—172 suburbs areincluded in the high risk restricted area while 101 suburbs are included in the low risk restrictedarea (refer to map in Appendix 5).

The next suburb assessment is due next quarter prior to the implementation of the Biosecurity Act2014 and Regulation.


suburbs that are new or have been re-instated to the high risk restricted area




Table 2 outlines the suburbs targeted for monitoring during the quarter. The map in Appendix 4shows the suburbs targeted for monitoring during the quarter.

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January 2016 Suburb monitoring was focussed on soil movements in the northern City of Gold Coast Council(GCCC) area, the suburbs of Ripley and Deebing Heights in the Ipswich City Council area andJimboomba in the Logan City Council Region. Over 30 businesses were visited. Five businesseswere found to be non-compliant because they did not have the necessary movement approvals.However their current management practices were mitigating the risk of spreading fire ants. Allnon-compliances were addressed.

February 2016 Monitoring focussed on landscape supplies and nurseries in the Lockyer Valley RegionalCouncil, Scenic Rim Regional Council and GCCC areas. The suburb monitoring will run inconjunction with the northern GCCC area soil project which is targeting soil movement.

30 suburb monitoring checks were undertaken, the large majority of which were found to becompliant. These checks focused on building and construction, earthmovers, landscape supplyyards and nurseries. Three businesses were found non-compliant as they did not have thenecessary movement approvals. These businesses were new to the fire ant restricted area andsubsequent inspector’s approvals have been issued. The suburb monitoring schedule wasimplemented during February 2016.

March 2016 Monitoring was again focussed on landscape supplies and nurseries in same areas as inFebruary 2016. Suburb monitoring will continue in these areas until May 2016.In March 2016 almost 13 suburb monitoring checks were undertaken. Two were found to benon-compliant (new to the fire ant restricted area) and two required following up in an attemptcontact the most appropriate person in each of the companies.The suburb monitoring continues to run in conjunction with the northern GCCC area soil projectwhich is targeting soil movement. Three companies in the northern GCCC area were found non-compliant for moving soil without movement approvals. These companies were new to therestricted area. Approvals have subsequently been implemented.

TracingTracing activities are considered for the following situations:




There were five detections within the quarter that were either polygyne (two)7 or outliers (three)8.The outlier infestations were in suburbs adjacent to the low risk restricted area and within flightdistance to active infestations. One of the polygyne infestations on a property of a hay producerand is being case-managed to co-ordinate treatment with harvesting. The other polygyne detectionis in an area with multiple polygynes and is still under investigation.With the introduction of the Brisbane Airport (2015) response, the tracing officer has been taskedwith overseeing movement controls in the area. An assessment of the current movement ofrestricted items in the area was conducted. The restricted area contains a large amount ofdevelopment and possible movement of restricted items between the Brisbane Airport restrictedarea and the Program’s restricted area.

6 Multiple queen colonies7 Brisbane City Council and Ipswich City Council areas8 Brisbane City Council area

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InvestigationsDuring the previous quarter, a case management officer was assigned to a property that suppliedthe hay from the high risk restricted area to Western Queensland without a movement approval.Compliance monitoring at this property is ongoing.

Compliance checks9

25 compliance checks of high risk businesses were conducted in January 2016. The high riskbusinesses included landscape supply yards, earthmovers and landfill sites. Of these, only onewas found to be non-compliant by not having the relevant movement approvals. This business hadnot previously worked inside the fire ant restricted area and a subsequent inspector’s approval hasbeen issued.

Over 33 checks were conducted in February 2016 and 13 in March 2016 on landscape suppliers,waste management, earthmoving, quarry, turf, nursery and hay industries. All of these businesseswere compliant.

Case managementThis role incorporates a compliance component as well as engagement. The case managerattended a meeting with the GCCC to discuss soil disturbance during January 2016. The GCCChave indicated that the development of the northern areas of the Gold Coast will increase over thenext 12 months. Due to this and the recent inclusion of suburbs from GCCC in the restricted areaplanning has commenced for a pro-active compliance activity targeting soil movement in the area.

The GCCC inspectors have ‘pre-start’ meetings at new development sites, to explain their testingrequirements (e.g. soil testing) to the civil contractors. This is a good opportunity to explain the fireant restricted areas and movement controls. GCCC invited the case manager to present at a pre-start meeting at a development site on the Gold Coast to explain these requirements. Thepresentation was well received, and with GCCC support, this approach that will continue into thefuture. The site in question will be included in the suburb monitoring schedule.

Scoping was conducted at the Commonwealth Games Athlete’s Village site for potentialearthmoving and future surveillance activities. Access to the site is not permitted for securityreasons, but further meetings are planned to allow entry to determine what work and movement ofmaterials has already occurred on site and the suitability of site for odour detector dogsurveillance. It will also allow the opportunity to highlight the risk of spread of the northern GCCCinfestation.

Industry training10 training sessions were conducted with 310 industry, Council and Government10 personnelduring the quarter.

Biosecurity Act 2014 transition/implementationThe Program is continuing to implement new the Biosecurity Act 2014 (the Act) which is due tocome into effect 1 July 2016.

The implementation of the Act will see the introduction of a fire ant biosecurity zone, aligned alongsuburbs boundaries that will be used to control the movement of fire ant carriers (e.g. soil, turf,mulch)—currently referred to as restricted items. The fire ant biosecurity zone will see an increasein the overall control area from the current fire ant restricted area. A subzone (biosecurity zone 1)

9 Suburb monitoring compliance checks are not included under Compliance checks. However they can be found in Table 2.10 Industry attendees included utilities representatives, Brisbane Airport, civil contractors, etc.

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will be used to control the movement of soil from the core infested area to elsewhere within theoverall fire ant biosecurity zone, and outside the confines of the zone.

Communicating the changes to the Program’s stakeholders will be vital to ensure that theyunderstand their obligations under the new legislation. The external communication material isbeing developed to ensure it aligns with the new legislation.

BUDGETThe Program’s expenditure to the end of March 2016 is $14.262 million (refer to Appendix 6)—annual Program expenditure to 31 March 2016 is 74.25% of the available budget.


The Independent ReviewOn 11 March 2016, the Panel received the final results of independently-commissioned scenariomodelling on optimal eradication strategies undertaken by Monash University. The modellingincluded the budgets required and the probabilities of achieving eradication of fire ants in SouthEast Queensland in the shortest timeframe, for a range of strategy options. The panel hasrequested that the Monash modelling report be independently peer reviewed by modelling expertsin CSIRO and Landcare Research New Zealand. The peer reviews are due to be completed by15 April 2016. The modelling and peer reviews will inform the panel’s recommendations in theirfinal report, which is expected to be considered by AGMIN on 20 May 2016.

Genetic analysisThe recent purchase by the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF) of a Next GenerationSequencer (NGS) will provide increased opportunities to examine the genetics of fire ants inAustralia. The NGS is likely to provide a more efficient and trustworthy method for genetic analysis,and also provide different information than previous or current sequencing technologies that oftenrely on the patching together of sequences rather than one complete result.

It is anticipated that the NGS will provide a way for the Program to examine more samples, ingreater depth, and have even greater confidence of the result than current technologies used bythe Program. The NGS will allow for the Program to examine the genome in different ways, and assuch demonstrate hypotheses such as reduced genetic fitness within and between populations.The NGS may also provide avenues of future research that may be of benefit to the Program, orother biosecurity programs.

Field mobilityThe Direct Nest Injection (DNI) mobile data capture application was used successfully in the fieldby Program personnel in November 2015. However, there are some minor changes required toboth the data capture element, and the processing phase that occurs back in the office.Information Management personnel continue to work through finalising the details of thesechanges. Documenting the requirements for the sample collection form has begun.

Remote sensing surveillance (RSS) researchIn February 2016 an evaluation panel was formed to assess the submissions to the Request forInformation: Biosecurity Remote Sensing Research and Development Project (the RFI). The aim ofthe RFI is to determine suitable collaborators for a research and development project to beundertaken by the Program to improve the efficiency and reduce the costs of future RSS. It isanticipated, that as a result of this project the Program will be able to use RSS for other types ofsurveillance (previously it was only used for delimitation surveys), including targeted and validation

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surveillance; and will eventually assist to demonstrate freedom of south east Queensland from fireant.

At a high level, the research and development project will assess the following:


Determine the most effective vehicles (i.e. helicopters, fixed wing planes, drones/Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) to perform RSS activities.

Improvements to the existing, or development of new, mathematical algorithm/s to analysethe data provided new image technologies, thereby improving the accuracy and sensitivityof fire ant mount detection, and reducing false positive outputs.

Submissions for the RFI closed on 12 February 2016. Submissions were reviewed by theevaluation panel at two discussion sessions (2 and 24 March 2016) based at the Program’sMoggill office. Due diligence and referee checks of shortlisted market contenders are currently inprogress.

The preparation of the RFI Evaluation Report has commenced.

Review of colony point creationAutomation of processes within the map creation system(s) has revealed the need to review thecreation, timing and use of ‘colony points’—enabling greater accuracy and flexibility in reporting.

OTHER PROGRAM(S)

Brisbane AirportThe Brisbane Airport (2015) incursion is being undertaken as a separate response and will bereported six monthly.

Response at Port Botany, New South WalesNo work was undertaken by the Program in Port Botany during the quarter.

Browsing antA limiting factor in successful imprinting and maintenance of the odour detection dogs to continueto successfully detect invasive ant species is the regular production of quality ant odour undercontrolled conditions. As the Program is continuously producing fire ant odour and has nowcommenced production of browsing ant odour, secure colony housing was extended to provide adedicated culture space for the browsing ant colonies to meet odour production requirements.

The imprinting of two National Red Imported Fire Ant Eradication Program (RIFA Program) odourdetection dogs (Willow and Olivia) with browsing ant trail pheromone commenced on 5 February2016. As this process had not been undertaken with browsing ant odour previously, it was unclearexactly how much time was needed. However, the process has gone very smoothly to date andimprinting was completed in February 2016. The “proofing” (where the dogs reliably detectunseen/hidden scented items) and “transitioning” parts of the process (the detection of live ants)were undertaken in March 2016, and are progressing well.

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Appendix 1 - Key Program activitiesUnder eradication, the Program’s 2015–16 Work Plan11 (the work plan) focuses on three keystrategies—targeted treatment to eradicate infestation, ongoing surveillance to monitor infestation(to facilitate targeted treatment) and movement controls to minimise the risk of human-assisted fireant spread.












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National Red Imported Fire AntEradication Program – South EastQueenslandAnnual Report 2015–16

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NRIFAEP Annual Report 2015–16 - SEQ 1


The delimitation phase of the response plan was completed in June 2015 and National RedImported Fire Ant Eradication Program (the Program) moved to eradication in July 2015.



The Program is treating areas (planned treatment areas) which remain static over two years.Inside the core, the planned treatment areas will receive two rounds of treatment per year over twoyears—while outside the core will receive three rounds of treatment per year over two years.

After some initial delays primarily due to the delayed distribution of treatment notifications to thepublic where treatment was being conducted, treatment progressed well with treatment on themajority of planned areas being completed by the end of the treatment season on 17 June 2016. Atotal of over 84 500 hectares of treatment was conducted during the treatment season—with threeapplications of treatment undertaken outside the core and two rounds inside the core area.

Outside the planned treatment areas, 259 hectares of new infestation were detected during thequarter and subsequently treated separately under the approved protocol.

During 2015–16 one odour detection dog undertook the requisite training and imprinting andpassed the final validation assessment in February 2016. Training and imprinting through tovalidation is undertaken by an independent dog technical advisor contracted to the Program. Witha number of the Program’s odour detection dogs reaching retirement age, three new candidatedogs were sourced from Department of Immigration and Border Protection. These dogscommenced odour imprint training in April 2016 and continue to progress well.

In July 2016, with the implementation of the Biosecurity Act 2014 and Biosecurity Regulation 2016,restricted areas will become fire ant biosecurity zones with similar movement restrictions. A reviewwas undertaken during the quarter to identify the suburbs to be included in these zones. Abiosecurity zone will be established over the current restricted area—while a second biosecurityzone will be located over the core area and similar in size to the existing core area boundary.

Compliance monitoring focused on the high risk industries including landscape suppliers andnurseries as well as businesses moving soil, in particular large scale developments in the GoldCoast City Council area. No significant issues of non-compliance were found.

At 30 June 2016, the Program’s expenditure was $18.742 million or 97.57% of the availablebudget.

Techniques developed under the National Red Imported Fire Ant Eradication Program were able tobe applied to other invasive ant eradication programs in Australia. From 14–15 April 2016, live fieldtransitions were conducted on two odour detection dogs to browsing ant in Darwin, NorthernTerritory.


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From 9–14 May 2016, staff from the Program including the Senior Dog Handler and two odourdetection dogs, surveyed an area of approximately 26 hectares at the Perth Airport, WesternAustralia for browsing ant (Lepisiota frauenfeldi). No browsing ants were detected during thissurveillance. During this time, surveillance was also undertaken by Department of Agriculture andFood, Western Australia (DAFWA) field teams at this site. During DAFWA surveillance a total of135 ant samples were collected. These samples were diagnosed as negative for browsing ant.

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ContentsSummary of Activities .....................................................................................................................5

TREATMENT ......................................................................................................................5PLANNED TREATMENT.....................................................................................................5



Trial 1 – bait efficacy ....................................................................................7Trial 2 – Distance Plus (new to the Program) ...............................................7Trial 3 – Distance Plus (new to the Program) ...............................................8


Validation surveillance .............................................................................................8Delineation surveillance ...........................................................................................8Targeted surveillance...............................................................................................8Sentinel sites ...........................................................................................................9Odour detection dogs...............................................................................................9Passive surveillance activities..................................................................................9





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Browsing ant .......................................................................................................... 15Appendix 1 - Key Program activities .................................................................................. 16Appendix 2 – Map showing the core area within the restricted area .................................. 18Appendix 3 – Treatment report 2015–16 ........................................................................... 19Appendix 4 – Map showing areas under treatment - planned treatment areas and newinfestation.......................................................................................................................... 21Appendix 5 – Program activities conducted across the restricted areas 1 April–30 June2016 .................................................................................................................................. 22Appendix 6 – Program activities conducted across the restricted areas in 2015–16 .......... 23Appendix 7 – RIFA Restricted Areas – Version 54 (effective 15 February 2016) ............... 24Appendix 8 – Financial Report to 30 June 2016 ................................................................ 25

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An overall view of the activities (including treatment and surveillance) that have been undertakento date is provided spatially where possible.







In line with the Program’s move to the eradication phase in accordance with the response plan,significant planning and monitoring continued to be undertaken in relation to the treatment season,particularly treatment areas.

ProgressDue to favourable weather conditions, treatment was able to be extended to 17 June 2016.

At the end of the season, treatment had been applied as follows:

Over 31 000 hectares of Treatment Round 1 – completed (completed third quarter).

Over 31 300 hectares of Treatment Round 2 – completed during the quarter.

Over 22 200 hectares of Treatment Round 3 – completed during the quarter.

During the treatment season, treatment outside the core was undertaken as a priority, with allteams then tasked to finish treatment inside the core area.

Under the current work plan where the planned treatment areas are to remain static over a twoyear period, there have been less delays in the subsequent treatment rounds as many of theissues hampering timely progress of Treatment Round 1 have to some degree now been resolved,particularly the consent aspect. The new legislation which will come into effect on 1 July 2016 willenable the Program to further streamline the entry onto properties by staff to apply treatment.

A detailed report of the treatment undertaken in 2015–16 can be found in Appendix 3.


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Communication strategiesA comprehensive communications and engagement strategy was developed in the first quarter of2015–16 and continued to be implemented through until the treatment season finished in June2016. This strategy assisted in facilitating the smooth delivery of field operations by gainingsupport from residents within the treatment areas. Table 1 outlines the key activities undertaken aspart of the strategy.

As part of the communications and engagement strategy, the Program has engaged the localcouncils within the treatment area to distribute information through their communication channelsregarding the treatment regime.


Activity Message








Content was provided for Facebook in January 2016


RESPONSIVE TREATMENT – NEW INFESTATIONOutside the planned treatment areas, 259 hectares of new infestation was detected during thequarter and subsequently treated under the approved protocol (refer to the map in Appendix 4).

Business rules used to calculate the 'area of infestation' are currently under review. Consultationbetween technical experts from each of the Program's sections and discussion with theIndependent Review panel has determined that the current term ‘area of infestation’ is misleadingas it refers to infestation that has been treated, but not cleared.

During 2015–16 there were two significant detections5:

4 Total campaign cost was approximately $5000 and reached an audience of over 183 000 people—2000 higher than paid for andexpected.5 During the first quarter of 2015–16, Brisbane Airport (Eagle Farm) was reported as a significant detection. Genetic analysis confirmedthat the infestation was not related to any other currently known infestations in Queensland and considered a new incursion intoAustralia. The Brisbane Airport (2015) detection has resulted in a separate response being undertaken.

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Tamborine in July 2015

Upper Coomera in August 2015

Significant detection reports were provided to the Tramp Ant Consultative Committee (TACC)providing details on these detections.


DiagnosticsDuring the quarter, 879 ant samples were submitted—583 were diagnosed as fire ant with themajority (68 %) having been reported by the public. In addition, 371 photos were submitted foridentification—62 were diagnosed as fire ant.

On 26 April 2016, the Program received some diagnostic test kits for fire ant for testing. These kitshave been developed by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and are notcommercially available. The Program will work with the USDA to determine if the kit detects nativeor endemic Australian ants. The Program has undertaken some initial tests and it reliably detectslocal fire ants, that is, it reliably detects the South East Queensland population of fire ants(Solenopsis invicta) and not native Solenopsis species.

. This will ensure that once commercialised, the kit can be used in Australia to perform preliminarydiagnoses of fire ants at the border and post border.

Treatment efficacy trialsTreatment efficacy trials are undertaken to routinely monitor the effectiveness in the field of thebaits (pyriproxyfen and methoprene) currently used by the Program and to test new products asthey become available. With the completion of the trials at the Ebenezer and Mount Forbes sitesthe Program now has one bait efficacy trial in progress.

Sites for further trials of Distance® Plus bait are being sought but none were suitable in June 2016.All multiple-nest sites assessed were unsuitable because of risks to the public or animals, or to theProgram through possible movement of fire ant restricted items.

Trial 1 – bait efficacyThe site at Ebenezer has been chosen to check bait efficacy of Distance® Plus which is routinelyundertaken to provide confidence that the treatments are effective. This site is polygyne infestation(multiple queen colonies) and five treatment rounds have now been undertaken since May 2014.Due to competition for bait and preferential feeding of dominant queens, polygyne colonies usuallyrequire several rounds of treatment before the infestation is eliminated.

During the assessment in January 2016, the majority of the mounds originally marked forinspection were dead. There have been three more visits and no live mounds were found—indicating an effective baiting program on the site.

Trial 2 – Distance Plus (new to the Program)The site at Mount Forbes is being used to trial a bait product new to the Program, Distance® Plus(pyriproxyfen, plus protein). This product has the same active ingredient as Distance® which iscurrently used by the Program but with the addition of protein to make it more attractive to fire ant.Treatments were scheduled for the 2015–16 treatment season and field assessments were madeabout 10–12 weeks following each round. A second application of Distance® Plus was made inOctober 2015. A field assessment conducted in January 2016 showed 100 % kill of fire ants at thesite.

The conclusion is that the baiting was effective. It should be noted that as there were no side-by-side applications of Distance® treatments from which to directly compare efficacy with the

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Distance® Plus treated area—there is no evidence to suggest that Distance® Plus does, or would,out-perform Distance®. Reinforcing the need for several more side-by-side assessments oftreatment with Distance® and Distance® Plus baits.

Work at this site has now concluded.

Trial 3 – Distance Plus (new to the Program)A further trial Distance® Plus assessment at a site in Willowbank was added in February 2016. Inearly March, Distance® Plus bait was applied to half the site with Distance® (the Program’sstandard treatment) applied to the other half of the site for comparison. At the first assessment inearly May all marked mounds were still active. A second application of Distance® Plus baitoccurred at Willowbank in May 2016, with a further assessment of progress planned for July 2016.

Bait application at this site has now concluded.


For an eradication program allowing individuals to treat is a significant change in approach and assuch needs to be carefully considered. An options paper (Treatment by Landowners) is indevelopment by the relevant Program experts and will assist in deliberations. However inpreliminary discussions it was agreed that current baits used by the Program are not appropriatefor use by landowners as a risk mitigation measure.


The maps in Appendix 5 and Appendix 6 highlight the areas where surveillance has beenconducted during the quarter and 2015–16.

Validation surveillanceDuring the quarter, validation surveillance (to determine treatment success) undertaken by theProgram resulted in all but one of the sites being cleared. The total amount of validationsurveillance performed this quarter was over 230 hectares (1100 hectares for 2015–16). Themajority of the validation surveillance was undertaken by the odour detection dog teams. The onearea that was still infested received further treatment as per the treatment protocol.

Delineation surveillanceDelineation surveillance, undertaken by a combination of field teams and odour detection dogs onnew detections, covered over 405 hectares (5535 hectares for 2015–16).

Targeted surveillanceTargeted surveillance undertaken on potential high risk areas was undertaken by field teams andcovered 380 hectares during this quarter (380 hectares for 2015–16).

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Sentinel sitesSentinel sites are sites used to monitor for the presence or absence of fire ant. A sentinel site willbe selected because it provides highly suitable habitat for fire ant, for instance, cleared ordisturbed land. For surveillance, sentinel sites will be positioned along and beyond the delimitationboundary to detect any spread of the ant.

Surveillance will be scheduled for early in the surveillance season (July to September) andtherefore has not been conducted on the sentinel sites this quarter. Sentinel sites will be identifiedfor surveillance next quarter. The delay in identification of surveillance sites was caused bytreatment continuing into mid-June 2016.

Odour detection dogsThe Program has nine odour detection dogs, eight operate in the field and one is used forcommunity engagement purposes. There was a delay in the validation and delivery of another dogin January 2016. The dog has now passed the final validation and will now begin working for theProgram, replacing an operational dog who will be transitioned into retirement.

One dog during 2015–16 has undertaken the requisite training and imprinting and passed the finalvalidation. Training and imprinting through to validation is undertaken by an independent dogtechnical advisor contracted to the Program. With a number of the Program’s odour detection dogsreaching retirement age, three new candidate dogs have been sourced from Department ofImmigration and Border Protection. Further, the three candidate dogs that were delivered to theProgram commenced odour imprint training in April 2016 and continue to progress well.

Preparations have begun to find a new home for one of the dogs that is due to retire.


During the quarter, ‘Aka the fire ant tracker’ school education sessions were delivered toapproximately 2770 students. In addition, Aka also attended Rural Discovery Day engaging with1200 students from schools across South East Queensland.

The Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF) mobile office unit was used in rural areas,during the quarter, predominantly on the outskirts of the restricted area including animal saleyards, retail hubs and shopping centres engaging with approximately 500 people.

The Program communicated with community organisations and peak bodies regarding thedistribution of a fire ant information article with a reach of potentially over 189 500 consumers.Groups included:

garden clubs in South East Queensland

community groups including Scout Association of Australia—Queensland branch, OrienteeringQueensland, Simply Living magazine

sporting sectors including the Sports Federation of Queensland—QSport

the Australian Defence Force at Amberley and including Defence Housing Australia, DefenceCommunity Organisation website, Defence Community Organisation monthly bulletin

special interest groups including the Entomological Society of Queensland

community care including YMCA Outside School Hours Care, long day care and family daycare centres


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Restricted areaThe restricted areas are areas that are either infested or at risk of being infested and wheremovement controls for restricted items apply. As reported last quarter, a declaration of the SouthEast Queensland RIFA Restricted Area (Version 54) became effective on 15 February 2016 (referto map in Appendix 7).

The restricted areas were reviewed during the quarter prior to the implementation of biosecurityzones under the Biosecurity Act 2014 and Biosecurity Regulation 2016 due to come into effect on1 July 2016. A biosecurity zone will be established over the current restricted area—while asecond biosecurity zone will established over the core area and remains similar in size to theexisting core area boundary. Further, a third zone will be established over the Brisbane Airportprecinct to control a separate incursion of fire ants (conducted as a separate response – BrisbaneAirport Response 2015).


suburbs that are new or have been re-instated to the high risk restricted area




Table 2 outlines the suburbs targeted for monitoring during the quarter. The maps in Appendix 5and Appendix 6 show the suburbs targeted for monitoring during the quarter and 2015–16.

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April 2016 The suburb monitoring schedule for April continued to focus on landscape suppliers andnurseries in the Lockyer Valley Regional, Scenic Rim Regional and Gold Coast City Council(GCCC) areas as well as monitoring soil movements in the northern GCCC area. Monitoring inthe GCCC area identified several large scale developments that will be areas of interest in thecoming months. All seven compliance checks of businesses resulting from suburb monitoringconducted in April 2016 were found compliant. Industries included earthmoving, building andconstruction and landscape suppliers.

Program resources were diverted to monitoring in the Brisbane Airport restricted area. Due tothe development occurring in the area, compliance officers will continue to conduct monitoringregularly in the coming months.

May 2016 The end of May 2016 brought to a close the first round of suburb monitoring for the year. Thefour month activity saw a total of 92 compliance checks conducted which resulted in thediscovery of several minor non-compliance issues most of which centred around not having theappropriate approval. There was no risk of spread of fire ants with all non-compliances havebeen addressed.

In subsequent months, the compliance team will turn its attention from suburb monitoring totransitioning clients from current approvals/ARMPs7 to the appropriate movement controls underthe Biosecurity Act 2014.

June 2016 Suburb monitoring was put on hold this month so the compliance inspectors could focus on thetransition to the new legislation.

Risk assessments were being performed for industries such as soil recyclers and construction inpreparation for the requirement for biosecurity instrument permits (which replace inspector’sapprovals which will cease being used on 1 July 2016). It is anticipated that there will be a largedemand for risk assessments in July/August 2016. Inspectors have been allocated particularindustries (and localities, such as the Brisbane Airport area8) for processing requests forbiosecurity instrument permits.

TracingTracing activities are considered for the following situations:




There was an infestation of a polygyne10 on a property of a hay producer which is being closelymanaged to co-ordinate treatment with harvesting. An audit of the property found the business tobe compliant with the making and storage requirements for baled hay.

Preliminary tracing activities have begun in Eagle Farm following a detection. Genetic analysis todetermine its origin is yet to be undertaken.

InvestigationsAn investigation is continuing into an infested turf farm at Stockleigh. Information provided by theclient indicated that turf had been treated in accordance with fire ant treatment outlined in their

7 Approved Risk Management Plans8 Under the new legislation, biosecurity zone 3 will be established over the Brisbane Airport area and immediate surrounds.9 Multiple queen colonies10 Brisbane City Council and Ipswich City Council areas

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ARMP and was supplied to areas outside the restricted area. These areas have been surveyedand no ants were found. The client also made an admission that he had been aware of the fireants being on the property for over a week before reporting. Statements are being compiled forinclusion in the brief to be presented to Biosecurity Queensland Investigations Unit.

Compliance checks11

Approximately 50 targeted checks were conducted between April–June 2016 on industriesincluding earthmoving, building and construction, nursery and landscape suppliers, turf suppliers,waste management and quarries. All of these businesses were compliant.

Case managementThe compliance inspectors have continued to attend ‘pre-start’ meetings in the GCCC area. TheGCCC inspectors (usually a compliance and water inspector) have conducted ‘pre-start’ meetingsat development sites, to explain the Council’s testing, any legislative/regulated requirements (e.g.earthworks, sewerage, water main, soil testing, etc) to a variety of stakeholders includingdevelopers, civil contractors, civil engineers, landscapers and landowners. These meetings providea good opportunity to explain the fire ant restricted areas and relevant movement controls. Pre-start meetings were held at Upper Coomera and Pimpama.

Other activities in the GCCC area have included a meeting with one of the largest privately-ownedcivil construction and mining services company in Queensland.

A meeting was held with the quarry industry (organised through Cement Concrete and AggregatesAustralia) with assistance from the science unit. The purpose of the meeting was to: explain theprocess for applying for a biosecurity instrument permit; explain the scientific principles behindcurrent risk mitigation conditions; and give industry the opportunity to propose alternative riskmitigation processes. A follow up meeting with industry representatives is planned for July 2016 toconsider proposed alternative risk mitigation strategies for quarry material.

A review of the list of waste facilities on the web resulted in the list being amended to reflectfacilities that are open to the public. This included the removal of a number of commercial facilitiesand the addition of a number of council-operated facilities to the list. It is recommended that thecurrent waste facility policy be reviewed in the coming months.

Industry training17 training sessions were conducted with 513 industry12 personnel during the quarter. This trainingincluded training sessions conducted as part of the Brisbane Airport (2015) response.

Biosecurity Act 2014 transition/implementationThe Program has continued to implement new the Biosecurity Act 2014 which is due to come intoeffect 1 July 2016.

The Governor in Council has approved the Biosecurity Regulation 2016 on 16 June 2016.

Communicating the changes to the Program’s stakeholders will be vital to ensure that theyunderstand their obligations under the new legislation. The external communication material iscontinuing to be developed to ensure it aligns with the new legislation.

11 Suburb monitoring compliance checks are not included under Compliance checks. However they can be found in Table 2.12 Attendees included representatives from the Australian Defence Force, Brisbane Airport, Customs Brokers and Forwarders Council ofAustralia, Mirait Technologies Australia—a national telecommunications and ICT infrastructure construction and maintenance provider,etc.

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BUDGETThe Program’s expenditure to the end of March 2016 was $18.742 million (refer to Appendix 8)—which was 97.57% of the available budget. The national cost-shared funding component wasunderspent by $0.466 million resulting from the diversion of core resources to manage and assistother programs including National Electric Ant Eradication Program, National Fire Ant EradicationProgram in Yarwun (2013), National Fire Ant Eradication Program at the Brisbane Airport (2015),browsing ant incursions in the Northern Territory and Western Australia, which have not all beenoffset. Also planned activities in community and stakeholder engagement, Remote SensingSurveillance (RSS) research and development of a mobile solution for operational activities havebeen delayed or deferred. A small component of the bait purchased for planned treatment in 2015–16 was not required, and will not be expensed until it is dispensed—this bait will be held in reservefor unforeseen detections or the new treatment season in 2016–17. Operating on annual nationalcost-share funding, the Program has no ability to overspend and must apply conservativemeasures when managing expenditure. This also ensures flexibility to respond to significantdetections that may incur further financial implications that are not able to be forecast for whenbudgets are built at the beginning of financial year.

At the end of June 2016 although there was an underspend of national cost-share funding totalling$0.466 million—it should be noted that this underspend does not include the $0.771 millionattributed to Western Australia’s apportionment. An understanding was reached to share theWestern Australian apportionment equally between Queensland and the Commonwealth. As aconsequence Queensland recognised 50 percent or $0.381 million. Due to federal electioncaretaker conventions, the Commonwealth Government advised on 20 June 2016 that costsharing of their component could not be progressed until a new government ministry wasappointed. The Commonwealth have since advised that reimbursement of the full contributionshould be pursued from the Western Australian Government and negotiations are continuing.


The Independent ReviewThe final Independent Review Report was considered by the Agricultural Ministers’ Forum(AGMIN) on 20 May 2016. The forum agreed that it remains in the national interest to eradicate fireants and that it is technically feasible and cost beneficial to do so. Ministers agreed to considerfunding of a ten year eradication plan or transition to a management plan for the Program at thenext AGMIN meeting in late 2016/early 2017.

Development of the Ten Year Response Plan also commenced in June 2016, with the internaldiscussion paper circulated and working group meetings held to discuss: treatment andsurveillance; RSS and information systems; and community engagement. Meetings to discussother components of the Ten Year Response Plan have been scheduled for early July 2016.

Genetic analysisThe recent purchase by the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF) of a Next GenerationSequencer (NGS) will provide increased opportunities to examine the genetics of fire ants inAustralia. The NGS is likely to provide a more efficient and trustworthy method for genetic analysis,and also provide different information than previous or current sequencing technologies permit.

It is anticipated that the NGS will provide a way for the Program to examine more samples, ingreater depth, and have even greater confidence of the result than current technologies used bythe Program. The NGS will allow for the Program to examine the genome in different ways, and assuch demonstrate hypotheses such as reduced genetic fitness within and between populations.The NGS may also provide avenues of future research that may benefit the Program, or otherbiosecurity programs. The NGS was installed at DAF facilities at the Health and Food SciencesPrecinct, Coopers Plains in Brisbane in June 2016. Active experimentation on fire ant samples is

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anticipated to begin in August 2016, following the standard training and testing required after theinstallation process.

Field mobilityThe Direct Nest Injection (DNI) mobile data capture application was used successfully in the fieldby Program personnel in November 2015. However, some minor changes are required to both thedata capture element, and the processing phase that occurs back in the office. InformationManagement personnel continue to work through finalising the details of these changes.Documenting the requirements for the sample collection form has been completed. The next stageof this work is to incorporate these changes in the Fire Ant Management System (FAMS).

Remote sensing surveillance (RSS) researchIn February 2016 an evaluation panel was formed to assess the submissions to the Request forInformation: Biosecurity Remote Sensing Research and Development Project (the RFI). The aim ofthe RFI is to determine suitable collaborators for a research and development project to beundertaken by the Program to improve the efficiency and reduce the costs of future RSS. It isanticipated, that as a result of this project the Program will be able to use RSS for other types ofsurveillance (previously it was only used for delimitation surveys), including targeted and validationsurveillance; and will eventually assist to demonstrate freedom of south east Queensland from fireant.

The research and development project will assess the following:


Determine the most effective vehicles (i.e. helicopters, fixed wing planes, drones/Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV) to perform RSS activities.

Improvements to the existing, or development of new, mathematical algorithm/s to analysethe data provided new image technologies, thereby improving the accuracy and sensitivityof fire ant mount detection, and reducing false positive outputs.

Submissions for the RFI closed in February 2016. Submissions were reviewed by the evaluationpanel at two discussion sessions in March 2016. Due diligence and referee checks of shortlistedmarket contenders were conducted.

The Evaluation report for the RFI has been revised, and is pending final approval.

Second stage (Invitation to Offer – ITO) documentation is in progress with the intention to releaseearly – mid July 2016.

Review of colony point creationAutomation of processes within the map creation system(s) has revealed the need to review thecreation, timing and use of ‘colony points’—enabling greater accuracy and flexibility in reporting.No further progress has been made.

OTHER PROGRAM(S)

Brisbane AirportThe Brisbane Airport (2015) incursion is being undertaken as a separate response and will bereported six monthly.

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Response at Port Botany, New South WalesNo work was undertaken by the Program in Port Botany during the quarter. In 2015–16 the PortBotany response was finalised. The Program will no longer report on this response.

Browsing antThe imprinting of two National Red Imported Fire Ant Eradication Program odour detection dogs(Willow and Olivia) with browsing ant (Lepisiota frauenfeldi) trail pheromone commenced inFebruary 2016. As this process had not been undertaken with browsing ant odour previously, itwas unclear exactly how much time was needed. However, the process was able to be completedsuccessfully and the “proofing” (where the dogs reliably detect unseen/hidden scented items) and“transitioning” parts of the process (the detection of live ants) were undertaken under controlledconditions in March 2016. The final stage of the imprinting process was conducted from 14–15April 2016, when live field transitions were made with the two dogs on the browsing ant infestationin Darwin, Northern Territory.

Finalising of the browsing ant imprinting process allowed staff from the Program, including theSenior Dog Handler and two odour detection dogs (dogs), to survey an area of approximately 26hectares at the Perth Airport, Western Australia for browsing ant (Lepisiota frauenfeldi) from 9–14May 2016. No browsing ants were detected during this surveillance. During this time, surveillancewas also undertaken by Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia (DAFWA) fieldteams at this site. During DAFWA surveillance a total of 135 ant samples were collected. Thesesamples were diagnosed as negative for browsing ant.

Survey areas were prioritised in conjunction with DAFWA. DAFWA provided invaluable support tothe Program’s dog team, and also coordinated and conducted the visual surveillance (conductedby DAFWA field teams) with the Australian Department of Agriculture and Water Resourcespersonnel.

As a part of the Program’s surveillance work, community engagement and awareness activitieswere undertaken. Media activities contributed to the broader National Browsing Ant EradicationProgram objectives, by enhancing passive surveillance and reporting by stakeholders and thegeneral community.

The surveillance report for browsing ant at Perth Airport and tax invoice for reimbursement of$10,600 for expenses has been forwarded to Western Australia for payment.

.

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Appendix 1 - Key Program activitiesUnder eradication, the Program’s 2015–16 Work Plan13 (the work plan) focuses on three keystrategies—targeted treatment to eradicate infestation, ongoing surveillance to monitor infestation(to facilitate targeted treatment) and movement controls to minimise the risk of human-assisted fireant spread.












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Appendix 3 – Treatment report 2015–16Treatment in 2015–16 was undertaken in planned treatment areas located inside the core and outside thecore with the priority being outside the core (results of the treatment of planned treatment areas is includedin Table 1 below).

Treatment is undertaken either aerially or on the ground which includes by foot, ATV17 and blower truck.Aerial treatment is the preferred method of treatment as it covers large areas in less time. However part ofthe aerial treatment is the ground buffering treatment which is undertaken around buildings/dwellings, watercourses and water tanks. This is a much slower process.

Table 1: Treatment outcomes in 2015–16

Location Total plannedtreatment areas

Full complement oftreatment

Ground treatmentincomplete

Aerial and groundtreatment incomplete

Outside core 80 areas 61 areas 10 areas 9 areas

Inside core 74 areas 69 areas 3 areas 2 areas

Treatment undertaken outside the coreDuring the 2015–16 treatment season, 80 planned treatment areas were scheduled for treatment outsidethe core.

Of the total of 80 planned treatment areas outside the core, the majority were treated in full. However, 19 ofthe planned treatment areas did not receive their full complement of treatment. Reasons include:

New areas being added to the treatment schedule after the first round of treatment when it is agreedthat they fall into the parameters of high density or high risk. Of the 19 areas not receiving their fullcomplement of treatment, nine of these areas outside the core fall into this category. Surveillancewill be undertaken on these areas after the two year treatment period is completed in 2016–17 andan assessment conducted to determine future activities.

Access to planned treatment areas was denied—for example at the Amberley RAAF Base (threescheduled rounds) and a cropping enterprise (first round). The Program has resolved the accessissue with the owner of the cropping enterprise and the subsequent treatment rounds werecompleted. The Program plans to resolve all access issues with the Base prior to the start of the2016–17 treatment season. Only the aerial component of the treatment was conducted on the site.An assessment of the areas missed for treatment at the Base will be conducted to determine whatfuture action will be undertaken by the Program.

Treatment was denied due to client claiming to be organic during the first treatment round. Thisissue was resolved and subsequent treatment rounds were completed. The Program will only makeother arrangements for clients claiming organic status if it can be proven that they are officiallyaccredited as organic.

Delay in the timely application of bait treatment has occurred when teams arrive to undertaketreatment on what was scheduled as one parcel of land but find that the land has been subdivided.This means that not only has consent not be been sought from each of the occupiers from thesubdivided plots hindering treatment progress but there may be many more properties to enter.

Issues with land parcel data (including those created by new subdivisions) are created due to theDigital Cadastre Data Base (DCDB) not aligning with data in the Program’s Fire Ant ManagementSystem. The DCDB contains the property boundaries and related property description of all landparcels in Queensland. It provides the base for searching, planning and analysing land related

17 All-terrain vehicle.

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information. Manual fixes have been used to date to ‘force’ the system to work. The specificproblems over the last several months have been catalogued, and system fixes will continue to beperformed by DAF specialist information technology section, ITP.

A large development site located outside the core, for example, went from 500 houses to 2500houses during the treatment season.

Under the new Biosecurity legislation which will come into effect on 1 July 2016 the Program willuse their powers to enter a property rather than wait for consent. This means that multiple visits to aplace to undertake treatment will be avoided. Under the new legislation a reasonable attempt toobtain consent is required. However if a property is unoccupied and the risks assessment indicatesthat a property is safe to enter, treatment will automatically be undertaken.

Treatment undertaken inside the core74 planned treatment areas were scheduled for treatment inside the core.

Of the total of 74 planned treatment areas inside the core, the majority received the full complement oftreatment. However, five of the planned treatment areas, for a variety of reasons, did not receive their fullcomplement of treatment.

The Program’s focus is on eradication outside the core area, then followed by suppression within the corearea. For this reason, under the tight timeframe, the Program prioritised the treatment outside the coresacrificing treatment inside the core area.

As detailed above, the DCDB issues also hampered treatment progress inside the core area.

General issues affecting treatment in 2015–16The Program continues to deal with clients refusing the Program’s staff access to treat their properties. TheProgram continues to address these issues as they arise.

Ground treatment started two weeks late primarily due to the delayed distribution of treatment notificationsto the public where treatment was being conducted.

Overall the weather during the treatment season was relatively dry and therefore conducive to treatmentHowever, 14 days were lost during the treatment season due to wet weather.

New fire ant detections significantly slow the treatment process as sample collection, collecting GPSrecordings, completing paperwork and delineation take time away from the team’s treatment progress.

The delay in the treatment dashboard, an IT solution to report treatment progress, has meant there areissues when reporting and reconciling the work planned and conducted. The dashboard was designed tobe a simple solution to monitor progress of the treatment rounds at any time during the treatment season.Further, IT issues with FAMs caused major issues with job creation, reconciliation and reporting.

Improvements/good newsAs the treatment rounds progressed positive samples of fire ants decreased. This is pleasing news as itmeans the baits are working and the teams will not be inundated with sample collection slowing thetreatment process down. This pattern should continue as future treatment is undertaken in the plannedtreatment areas.

With the implementation of the new Biosecurity legislation which will come into effect on 1 July 2016 thechange by Program staff to use their powers to enter a property rather than wait for consent will speed uptreatment. This will enable a more efficient approach rather than multiple visits to a place to undertaketreatment.

The science unit have advised that ground temperatures which consistently reach a minimum at or above18 °C are acceptable for bait application, allowing for a larger treatment window with the season tocommence earlier and finish later ensuring maximum treatment application. Soil temperatures will berecorded at the Moggill site to ensure consistency of the temperature data. This new approach will beimplemented in the 2016–17 treatment season.

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NRIFAEP 1st Quarter Report 2015–16 – Yarwun (2013)

Executive SummaryThe National Red Imported Fire Ant Eradication Program - Yarwun 2013 (the Program) is beingimplemented by Biosecurity Queensland, Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries(DAF) in accordance with the nationally agreed Response plan: Eradication of the red imported fireant – Yarwun 2013 (Version 2.0, September 2014) (the response plan). Reporting is undertakenon a quarterly basis in accordance with this response plan and this is the first quarterly report for2015–16.

No red imported fire ants (fire ants) were found during the surveillance undertaken in July 2015.This result is very promising as there is one final round of verification surveillance scheduled forJune 2016—indicating that the Program is on track for declaration of eradication and reinstatementof pest-free area status for the Yarwun/Curtis Island area in mid-2016.

Surveillance was undertaken as follows:

Buffer surveillance in the 2–4 km Surveillance Zone (out to 6 km in some areas), andtargeted surveillance of identified high-risk sites outside this zone, conducted in July 2015.

Verification surveillance was conducted as scheduled for July 2015 to verify that the sixtreatments applied by the Program have been effective in destroying known infestation andthat there was no evidence of ongoing infestation on any of the previously infested sites.

The total available budget for 2015–16 is $1,608,223 and expenditure to 30 September 2015 is$251,276 which represents approximately 16.0% of the available budget.

No broadcast bait treatment was undertaken during the first quarter of 2015–16. The finaltreatment round was undertaken in April 2015, and covered the entire 2 km Treatment Zone, aswell as the waste facilities where risk items from the restricted area can be moved.

During this quarter, compliance with movement controls continued with no issues found duringaudits of Approved Risk Management Plans (ARMPs) and inspector’s approvals. Audits wereundertaken to coincide with July 2015 surveillance activities.

Ongoing community engagement activities with key stakeholders in the Yarwun area continues toresult in a high level of stakeholder investment in the Program. This has allowed the Program toundertake treatment and surveillance activities with little disruption and is evidenced by the highlevel of compliance with movement controls.

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ContentsEradication Program .......................................................................................................................1Program management and governance ..........................................................................................1Objectives.......................................................................................................................................1Performance indicators ...................................................................................................................1Review trigger points ......................................................................................................................2

Treatment and surveillance .................................................................................................3Containment and movement controls ..................................................................................4Community and Stakeholder Engagement ..........................................................................4Science ...............................................................................................................................5Policy and planning .............................................................................................................5Support services..................................................................................................................5

Appendix 1 – July 2015 surveillance ...............................................................................................7Appendix 2 – Area of infestation 2014–15.......................................................................................8Appendix 3 – Restricted area..........................................................................................................9Appendix 4 – Financial report ....................................................................................................... 10Appendix 5 – Key statistics for the Program.................................................................................. 11Appendix 6 – Treatment (Restricted Area) and Surveillance Zones – Yarwun as at 30 September2015.............................................................................................................................................. 12

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Eradication ProgramProgram management and governanceAfter fire ants were confirmed at a multi-use industrial site and port facility known as Fisherman’sLanding, at Yarwun, near Gladstone on 1 December 2013 a National Red Imported Fire AntEradication Program - Yarwun 2013 (the Program) was established. The Program is beingimplemented in accordance with the nationally agreed Response plan: Eradication of the redimported fire ant – Yarwun 2013 (Version 2.0, September 2014) (the response plan) made underthe National Environmental Biosecurity Response Agreement (NEBRA).

The Program, which will run until 31 August 2016, will receive national cost-shared funding totalling$3,804,077.

The response plan requires quarterly reporting to the Program’s cost-sharing partners.

ObjectivesThe response objectives are to:

1. contain the pest and prevent spread to un-infested areas

2. eradicate fire ant in Yarwun through destruction of nests by direct nest injection (DNI) withfipronil and through prophylactic broadcast baiting with an insect growth regulator (IGR)

3. conduct buffer and targeted surveillance to delimit the area of infestation

4. conduct engagement activities to garner support and cooperation from the community to assistwith movement controls and passive surveillance

5. conduct verification surveillance to demonstrate proof of freedom and support the declarationof eradication of the Yarwun (2013) incursion.

These response objectives will be achieved through implementation of control and containmentmeasures, and a process of treatment, surveillance and validation, in addition to passive/community-assisted surveillance throughout the 2.5 year program.

The Program remains on track to achieve the response objectives.

Performance indicatorsUnder the response plan, the Program is assessed through four performance indicators:

Surveillance – On track

The extent of the infestation is verified by buffer and targeted surveillance by August 2015.

During the July 2015 surveillance undertaken by the odour detection dog team, no fire antswere found.

Buffer surveillance in the 2–4 km Surveillance Zone, and targeted surveillance on identifiedhigh-risk sites outside this zone, was conducted as scheduled in July 2015. Verificationsurveillance was conducted as scheduled for July 2015 to verify that the six treatments appliedby the Program were effective in destroying known infestation and there was no evidence ofongoing infestation on any of the previously infested sites.

The total area of surveillance undertaken was 1571 hectares (Appendix 1).

It should be noted that total area of infestation at 30 September 2015—which is yet to becleared—remains at 43 hectares (Appendix 2). There has been no change to this figure since

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the first quarter of 2013–14. Surveillance of the 2 km Treatment Zone (Version 2.0) will beundertaken in July 2016.

Treatment – On track

Six treatments (two in 2013–14 and four in 2014–15) with an insect growth regulator (IGR) areapplied to the 2 km Treatment Zone between March 2014 and May 2015.

The completion of the sixth treatment round in April 2015 concluded the treatment to beundertaken by the Program—therefore no treatment was planned or undertaken during thisquarter.

Compliance – On track

Compliance with movement controls prevents human-assisted spread beyond the restrictedarea.

There were no reports of long distance human-assisted spread and no evidence of human-assisted spread beyond the restricted area during this quarter.

The Gladstone Fire Ant Restricted Area (restricted area) remains the same. The most recentrestricted area was declared under s49 of the Plant Protection Regulation 2002 on12 November 2014. The restricted area follows the same boundaries as the 2 km TreatmentZone1 (Appendix 3). The 2 km Treatment Zone (Version 1.0) was expanded as a result of aninfestation of fire ants found outside this zone in July 2014.

Budget – On track

Annual Program expenditure is within 5% of the allocated budget.

The total available budget for 2015–16 is $1,608,223 and expenditure to 30 September 2015is $251,276, which represents approximately 16.0% of the available budget.

A claim for reimbursement of eligible costs incurred during 2014–15 will be submitted to thenominated officer in the Commonwealth Department of Agriculture in July 2015, for processingin accordance with NEBRA guidelines

A Financial Report for the Program for the first quarter of 2015–16 is provided as Appendix 4.

A table detailing key statistics for the Program for 2015–16 is provided as Appendix 5.

Review trigger pointsThe response plan identifies five trigger points for review of the Program:

- confirmation of fire ant infestation outside the 2 km Treatment Zone (Version 2.0), afterapproval of the response plan

- confirmation of fire ant infestation in the 2 km Treatment Zone (Version 2.0), after the sixthround of bait treatment

- detection of an active colony within the 2 km Treatment Zone (Version 2.0) or2–4 km Surveillance Zone (Version 2.0) that is genetically distinct from the Yarwun (2013)infestation

- evidence that the chemical treatments being applied are not effective at killing fire ant

- any event or circumstance that means the objectives of the response plan are unlikely tobe achieved within the agreed timeframe or budget detailed in the response plan.

1 The 2 km Treatment Zone and the restricted area follow the same boundary. This area includes sites that are unsuitable for baittreatment, e.g. sites that are covered by water. These areas will not be aerially treated.

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None of the five review trigger points identified in the response plan2 were activated during thefirst quarter of 2015–16.

Treatment and surveillanceResponse plan – Eradication of fire ant at Yarwun will be achieved through a scheduledseries of prophylactic bait treatments and surveillance across two zones:

- 2 km Treatment Zone – at least 2 km zone around known colony points (approximately4600 hectares)

- 2–4 km Surveillance Zone – 2 km buffer around the 2 km Treatment Zone3 (approximately4112 hectares) (Appendix 6).

Treatment and surveillance schedule4

2013–14 2014–15 2015–16

July Buffer & target surveillance

Dog verification surveillance

Buffer & target surveillance


August

September Treatment Round 3

October

November Treatment Round 4

December Detection

January Initial aerial treatment

February Treatment Round 5

March Treatment Round 1

April Treatment Round 6

May Treatment Round 2

June Verification surveillance

As of 30 June 2015, the full complement of scheduled treatment rounds (1–6) wascompleted—therefore no treatment was conducted during the quarter.

During the quarter buffer surveillance and targeted surveillance was conducted on1434 hectares and verification surveillance on 137 hectares during July 2015—and no fireants were detected at all on the areas surveyed, totalling 1571 hectares.

Buffer surveillance was conducted by a combination of the field teams and the odour detectiondogs in July 2015 on all suitable habitat in the 2–4 km Surveillance Zone (including somesuitable habitat out to 6 km) to confirm the results of the previous rounds of surveillanceincluding the delimitation surveillance conducted during the investigation phase of theresponse.

2 Version 2.03 Only suitable habitat is surveyed.4 Treatment and surveillance schedule taken from the Response plan: Eradication of the red imported fire ant – Yarwun 2013 (Version2.0, September 2014)

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Targeted surveillance was conducted by the field teams in July 2015 on all identified high-risksites outside the 2 km Treatment Zone (Version 2.0), including port facilities, freight yards,storage sites for construction materials and equipment, and waste facilities.

Verification surveillance was conducted by the odour detection dogs in July 2015 to verify thatthe six treatment rounds were effective in destroying known infestation and there was noevidence of ongoing infestation.

In June 2016, a final round of verification surveillance will be conducted to confirm eradicationand provide the evidence required to support reinstatement of pest free area status for theGladstone Regional Council area.

There were 11 public reports5 of suspect ants in central Queensland during this quarter, noneof which was diagnosed as being fire ant.

Containment and movement controlsResponse plan – deliverables include:

- issue of ‘Notice of Infestation’ to all owners/lessees/occupiers of land infested with fire ant

- establishment of a restricted area

- implementation, maintenance and audit of Approved Risk Management Plans andinspector’s approvals for high risk businesses

- maintaining and monitoring compliance with movement controls to mitigate the risk ofhuman-assisted spread of fire ant

- provision of information on detections of fire ant to facilitate management of interstateentry requirements.

The restricted area, following the same boundary as the 2 km Treatment Zone (Version 2.0),controls the movement of restricted items within and out of the area. Over 4600 hectares arecurrently under movement restrictions.

No new Notices of Infestation were required for owner/lessees/occupiers of land infested withfire ants during this quarter.

There were 28 Approved Risk Management Plans in place for persons carrying on acommercial activity in the restricted area involving the movement of restricted items.

Four audits have been conducted during the first quarter of 2015–16 with no areas of non-compliance identified.

There were 19 current inspector’s approvals issued to businesses in Yarwun for movement ofrestricted items outside the restricted area. Two audits of inspector’s approvals wereconducted during the quarter, and all businesses were found to be compliant with theconditions of their inspector’s approval.

Audits of Approved Risk Management Plans and inspector’s approvals were conducted tocoincide with surveillance activities that were undertaken in July 2015.

Maps showing the 5 km Interstate Plant Quarantine (IPQ) zone around the confirmed fire antinfestation at Yarwun are updated as required and provided to interstate jurisdictions.

Communications and stakeholder engagementResponse plan – deliverables include:

- maintain and build stakeholder relations

5 This figure includes reports from the areas of: Gladstone Regional Council and Rockhampton Regional Council.

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- keep stakeholders informed and engaged in the response

- provide training to industry personnel

- encourage public surveillance as well as industry and public compliance.

Early in July 2015, a stakeholder briefing was held to provide an update on the Program’sprogress. This included a joint media conference with the Program’s Director and GladstoneMayor to provide an update on the Program prior to undertaking the surveillance.

During this time training was conducted with industry personnel from Gladstone RegionalCouncil, Gladstone Area Water Board, Toll Group, Tox Free Solutions Ltd and BechtelCorporation. A community presentation was also delivered to the Gladstone Rotary Club.

The Program’s Director and Senior Liaison Officer met with the new State Member forGladstone. This provided an opportunity to continue the successful relationship establishedwith the previous State Member.

Later in July a media conference was held to promote the success of the validationsurveillance activities with articles featured in the Gladstone Observer and on 7 Local News -Central Queensland.

The strategy for 2015 in Gladstone continues to be ongoing high-level engagement of keyindustry stakeholders and the engagement of residents to assist in continuing to confirm theabsence of fire ants outside of the restricted area.

ScienceResponse plan – deliverables include:

- Diagnostic services

- Genetics analysis

- Technical advice on risk management.

Ants collected at Yarwun since November 2013, either during Program surveillance or frompublic reports, have been diagnosed at the Brisbane laboratory of the National Red ImportedFire Ant Eradication Program in South East Queensland. Since December 2013, 71 sampleshave tested positive as fire ant. There were no detections of fire ants during this quarter.

Policy and planningResponse plan – deliverables include:

- ongoing review of eradication program/management strategies to ensure they remaineffective to eradicate the current pattern of infestation

- reporting response results to cost-share partners

- preparation of the pest-free area submission (to be submitted to the NBMG in September2016).

During this quarter, the Tramp Ant Consultative Committee (TACC 24) endorsed out-of-session—the annual report for 2014–15 and the Efficiency and financial audit of theEradication of the red imported fire ant – Yarwun 2013 Response plan – May 2015 (auditreport).

Support servicesResponse plan – deliverables include mapping, program office and administrative services asrequired to support the response.

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Support services provided during the third quarter of 2014–15 included provision of spatial andmapping products for treatment and surveillance activities; upkeep, maintenance andmanagement of information/data management systems; travel and accommodationarrangements for response staff; resourcing and logistics including contract labour hire;procurement of materials and equipment; and administration and management of budget andfinancial systems.

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NRIFAEP 2nd Quarter Report 2015–16 – Yarwun (2013)

Executive SummaryThe National Red Imported Fire Ant Eradication Program - Yarwun 2013 (the Program) is beingimplemented by Biosecurity Queensland, Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries(DAF) in accordance with the nationally agreed Response plan: Eradication of the red imported fireant – Yarwun 2013 (Version 2.0, September 2014) (the response plan). Reporting is undertakenon a quarterly basis in accordance with this response plan and this is the second quarterly reportfor 2015–16.

No surveillance was undertaken during the second quarter, as the last buffer and treatmentsurveillance was completed in July 2015. No red imported fire ants (fire ants) were found duringthe July 2015 surveillance and this is a very promising result. There is one final round ofverification surveillance scheduled for June 2016, indicating that the Program is on track fordeclaration of eradication and reinstatement of pest-free area status for the Yarwun/Curtis Islandarea by September 2016.

The total available budget for 2015–16 is $1,608,223 and expenditure to 31 December 2015 is$272,490 which represents approximately 16.9% of the available budget.

No broadcast bait treatment was undertaken during the second quarter of 2015–16. The finaltreatment round was undertaken in April 2015, and covered the entire 2 km Treatment Zone, aswell as the waste facilities where risk items from the restricted area can be moved.

During this quarter, compliance with movement controls continued with no issues found duringaudits of Approved Risk Management Plans (ARMPs) and inspector’s approvals.

Ongoing community engagement activities with key stakeholders in the Yarwun area continue toresult in a high level of stakeholder investment in the Program. This has allowed the Program toundertake treatment and surveillance activities with little disruption and is evidenced by the highlevel of compliance with movement controls.

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ContentsEradication Program .......................................................................................................................1Program management and governance ..........................................................................................1

Objectives ...........................................................................................................................1Performance indicators........................................................................................................1Review trigger points...........................................................................................................2

Treatment and surveillance.............................................................................................................2Containment and movement controls..............................................................................................3Community and Stakeholder Engagement......................................................................................4Science...........................................................................................................................................4Policy and planning.........................................................................................................................5Support services .............................................................................................................................5Appendix 1 – Area of infestation 2014–15.......................................................................................6Appendix 2 – Restricted area..........................................................................................................7Appendix 3 – Financial report .........................................................................................................8Appendix 4 – Key statistics for the Program....................................................................................9Appendix 5 – Treatment (Restricted Area) and Surveillance Zones – Yarwun as at 31 December2015.............................................................................................................................................. 10

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The Program, which will run until September 2016, will receive national cost-shared fundingtotalling $3,804,077.













Buffer and targeted surveillance was completed in July 2015—therefore no surveillance wasscheduled or undertaken during the second quarter.

It should be noted that total area of infestation at 31 December 2015—which is yet to becleared—remains at 43 hectares (Appendix 1). There has been no change to this figure sincethe first quarter of 2013–14. Surveillance of the 2 km Treatment Zone (Version 2.0) will beundertaken in June 2016.



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Budget – On track


The total available budget for 2015–16 is $1,608,223 and expenditure to 31 December 2015 is$272,490, which represents approximately 16.9% of the available budget.

A Financial Report for the Program for the second quarter of 2015–16 is provided asAppendix 3.








None of the five review trigger points identified in the response plan2 were activated during thesecond quarter of 2015–16.



1 The 2 km Treatment Zone and the restricted area follow the same boundary. This area includes sites that are unsuitable for baittreatment, e.g. sites that are covered by water. These areas will not be aerially treated.2 Version 2.0

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Treatment and surveillance schedule4

2013–14 2014–15 2015–16





August


October


December Detection








Buffer and targeted, and verification surveillance was conducted in July 2015—no fire antswere detected. No surveillance was scheduled or undertaken during the second quarter.

In June 2016, a final round of verification surveillance will be conducted to confirm eradicationand provide the evidence required to declare the Gladstone Regional Council area free fromfire ants.

There were 3 public reports5 of suspect ants in central Queensland during this quarter, none ofwhich was diagnosed as being fire ant.





3 Only suitable habitat is surveyed.4 Treatment and surveillance schedule taken from the Response plan: Eradication of the red imported fire ant – Yarwun 2013 (Version2.0, September 2014)5 This figure includes reports from the areas of: Gladstone Regional Council and Rockhampton Regional Council.

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There were 25 Approved Risk Management Plans in place for persons carrying out acommercial activity in the restricted area involving the movement of restricted items.

Five audits have been conducted during the second quarter of 2015–16 with no areas of non-compliance identified. A new company, taking over a site that currently holds a Notice ofInfestation, are in the process of applying for approval of a risk management plan. Staff fromthe new company have received fire ant general awareness training and are undertaking athorough handover with the current company on site.

There are 23 current inspector’s approvals issued to businesses in Yarwun for movement ofrestricted items outside the restricted area. Eight audits of inspector’s approvals wereconducted during the quarter, with no non-compliance found with the conditions of theapprovals.


Community and Stakeholder EngagementResponse plan – deliverables include:





The strategy for 2015–16 in Gladstone continues to be ongoing high-level engagement of keyindustry stakeholders and Gladstone residents to assist in continuing to confirm the absenceof fire ants outside of the restricted area.

This strategy includes a two week campaign to generate passive surveillance reportingoutside the 6 km area—providing further evidence of absence of fire ants. Materials to supportthis campaign, such as a brochure and television and radio scripts, have been drafted.

Industry training was coordinated during this quarter to align with the Program’s complianceactivities.



- Genetics analysis


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- preparation of the pest-free area submission (to be submitted to the National BiosecurityManagement Group in September 2016).


Support services provided during the second quarter of 2015–16 included provision of spatialand mapping products for treatment and surveillance activities; upkeep, maintenance andmanagement of information/data management systems; travel and accommodationarrangements for response staff; resourcing and logistics including contract labour hire;procurement of materials and equipment; and administration and management of budget andfinancial systems.

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National Red Imported Fire AntEradication Program – Yarwun (2013)3rd Quarter Report 2015–16

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NRIFAEP 3rd Quarter Report 2015–16 – Yarwun (2013)

Executive SummaryThe National Red Imported Fire Ant Eradication Program - Yarwun 2013 (the Program) is beingimplemented by Biosecurity Queensland, Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries(DAF) in accordance with the nationally agreed Response plan: Eradication of the red imported fireant – Yarwun 2013 (Version 2.0, September 2014) (the response plan). Reporting is undertakenon a quarterly basis in accordance with this response plan and this is the third quarterly report for2015–16.

No surveillance was undertaken during the third quarter, as the last buffer and treatmentsurveillance was completed in July 2015. No red imported fire ants (fire ants) were found duringthe July 2015 surveillance and this is a very promising result. There is one final round ofverification surveillance scheduled for June 2016, indicating that the Program is on track fordeclaration of eradication and reinstatement of pest-free area status for the Yarwun/Curtis Islandarea mid-late 2016.

The total available budget for 2015–16 is $1,608,223 and expenditure to 31 March 2016 is$312,326 which represents approximately 19.5% of the available budget.

No broadcast bait treatment was undertaken during the third quarter of 2015–16. The finaltreatment round was undertaken in April 2015, and covered the entire 2 km Treatment Zone, aswell as the waste facilities where risk items from the restricted area can be moved.

During this quarter, no compliance audits were undertaken but requests for movement approvalswere received, assessed and issued when necessary.

Ongoing community engagement activities with key stakeholders in the Yarwun area continue toresult in a high level of stakeholder investment in the Program. This has allowed the Program toundertake treatment and surveillance activities with little disruption and is evidenced by the highlevel of compliance with movement controls.

During the quarter a successful communication and engagement campaign was conducted.

A media announcement was conducted on 2 February 2016 with Minister for Agriculture andFisheries, the Hon. Leanne Donaldson MP and Gladstone MP Glenn Butcher outlining upcomingProgram activities for eradication. Media coverage likely reached a cumulative audience of over26 500 people.

Facebook advertising commenced on 16 March 2016. Results from the campaign as at 31 March2016 include:

Gladstone Facebook post—almost 3160 web clicks, estimated reach of almost 34 000 with atotal cost of $2257.Gladstone Facebook video—9360 people viewed, estimated reach of over 13 300 people at acost of $282.

Media activities were also conducted in March 2016 with six radio stations, one print and twotelevision articles reaching an estimated audience of almost 35 000 people and advertising spacerate of $3685. The television commercial commenced on 21 March 2016.

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ContentsEradication Program .......................................................................................................................1Program management and governance ..........................................................................................1


Treatment and surveillance.............................................................................................................2Containment and movement controls..............................................................................................3Community and Stakeholder Engagement......................................................................................4Science...........................................................................................................................................5Policy and planning.........................................................................................................................5Support services .............................................................................................................................5Appendix 1 – Area of infestation 2014–15.......................................................................................7Appendix 2 – Restricted area..........................................................................................................8Appendix 3 – Financial report .........................................................................................................9Appendix 4 – Key statistics for the Program.................................................................................. 10Appendix 5 – Treatment (Restricted Area) and Surveillance Zones – Yarwun as at 31 March 2016..................................................................................................................................................... 11

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The Program, which will run until 31 August 2016, and has an indicative budget totalling$3,804,077.













Buffer and targeted surveillance was completed in July 2015—therefore no surveillance wasscheduled or undertaken during the third quarter.

It should be noted that total area of infestation at 31 March 2016—which is yet to be cleared—remains at 43 hectares (Appendix 1). There has been no change to this figure since the firstquarter of 2013–14. Surveillance of the 2 km Treatment Zone (Version 2.0) will be undertakenin July 2016.



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Budget – On track


The total available budget for 2015–16 is $1,608,223 and expenditure to 31 March 2016 is$312,326, which represents approximately 19.5% of the available budget.

A Financial Report for the Program for the third quarter of 2015–16 is provided as Appendix 3.








None of the five review trigger points identified in the response plan2 were activated during thethird quarter of 2015–16.



1 The 2 km Treatment Zone and the restricted area follow the same boundary. This area includes sites that are unsuitable for baittreatment, e.g. sites that are covered by water. These areas will not be aerially treated.2 Version 2.0

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Table 1 - Treatment and surveillance schedule4

2013–14 2014–15 2015–16





August


October


December Detection








Buffer and targeted, and verification surveillance was conducted in July 2015—no fire antswere detected. No surveillance was scheduled or undertaken during the third quarter.

In June 2016, a final round of verification surveillance will be conducted to confirm eradicationand provide the evidence required to support reinstatement of pest free area status for theGladstone Regional Council area.






3 Only suitable habitat is surveyed.4 Treatment and surveillance schedule taken from the Response plan: Eradication of the red imported fire ant – Yarwun 2013 (Version2.0, September 2014)5 This figure includes reports from the areas of: Gladstone Regional Council, Rockhampton Regional Council, Livingstone Shire Counciland Bundaberg Regional Council.

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There were 25 Approved Risk Management Plans in place for persons carrying out acommercial activity in the restricted area involving the movement of restricted items.

No audits were conducted during the third quarter of 2015–16. Resources have been divertedto the Brisbane Airport (2015) response in the interim. However audits are likely to beconducted during the next quarter prior to the end of the Program.

There are 25 current inspector’s approvals issued to businesses in Yarwun for movement ofrestricted items outside the restricted area— two new approvals were issued for green wastematerial and soil to move to a waste facility.







The strategy for 2015–16 in Gladstone continues to be ongoing high-level engagement of keyindustry stakeholders and Gladstone residents to assist in continuing to confirm the absenceof fire ants outside of the restricted area.

This strategy includes a campaign in March and April 2016 to generate passive surveillancereporting outside the 6 km area—providing further evidence of absence of fire ants.

During January 2016 the communication and engagement plan for the March and April 2016campaign was developed which included identifying target areas, audiences and establishingtimeframes for engagement opportunities.

A television commercial, Facebook advertising and brochure was developed for this purpose.Variable message signs (VMS) used on several high traffic roads also during this period.

The ‘Join the Ant Hunt’ campaign in Gladstone commenced on 16 March 2016.

The Department’s mobile office unit was used at key spots including the Stockland ShoppingCentre and Bunnings Warehouse; and other sites during the week 17–23 March 2016.

An industry briefing with 23 participants and training for 31 participants was held on 17 March2016.

Facebook advertising commenced 16 March 2016 and will finish 24 April 2016.

Television commercial advertising commenced 21 March and will finish 24 April 2016.

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The communication and engagement campaign has so far proven very successful. Some ofthe highlights are provided below in Table 2. The full evaluation of the campaign will bereported next quarter.

Table 2 – Highlights from the recent communication and engagement campaign

Results Estimated audience reach, estimated $ value

Media announcement was conducted with the Hon. Leanne DonaldsonMP6 and Gladstone MP Glenn Butcher outlining upcoming Programactivities for eradication.

Over 26 500 people

Gladstone Facebook post Estimated reach of almost 34 000 people

Cost of $2257

Gladstone Facebook video Estimated reach of over 13 300 people

Cost of $282

Media activities with six radio stations, one print and two televisionarticles

Estimated reach of almost 35 000

Advertising space of $3685



- Genetics analysis








Support services provided during the third quarter of 2015–16 included provision of spatial andmapping products for treatment and surveillance activities; upkeep, maintenance and managementof information/data management systems; travel and accommodation arrangements for response

6 Department of Agriculture and Fisheries.

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staff; resourcing and logistics including contract labour hire; procurement of materials andequipment; and administration and management of budget and financial systems.

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National Red Imported Fire AntEradication Program – Yarwun (2013)Annual Report 2015–16

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NRIFAEP Annual Report 2015–16 – Yarwun (2013)

Executive SummaryThe National Red Imported Fire Ant Eradication Program - Yarwun 2013 (the Program) is beingimplemented by Biosecurity Queensland, Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries(DAF) in accordance with the nationally agreed Response plan: Eradication of the red imported fireant – Yarwun 2013 (Version 2.0, September 2014) (the response plan). Reporting is undertakenon a quarterly basis in accordance with this response plan and this is the annual report for2015–16.

Extensive surveillance activities were undertaken during June 2016. No red imported fire ants (fireants) were found during this final surveillance round. This is an excellent result and demonstratesthat the treatment, surveillance and movement control activities undertaken by the Program cansuccessfully eradicate fire ant. Infestation site status will now be removed from all infested sites inaccordance with the agreed protocol and the restricted area will be revoked. The Program willprepare a pest-free area report (for the Yarwun/Curtis Island area) mid-late 2016 for submissionand approval by the national cost-share partners.

The total available budget for 2015–16 was $1,608,223 and expenditure to 30 June 2016 totalled$604,350, which represents approximately 37.6 % of the available budget.

No broadcast bait treatment was undertaken during 2015–16. The final treatment round wasundertaken in April 2015, and covered the entire 2 km Treatment Zone, as well as the wastefacilities where risk items from the restricted area can be moved.

During this quarter, audits were conducted on eight businesses (including one business holding aninspector’s approval) during the fourth quarter of 2015–16. All were found compliant.

Ongoing community engagement activities with key stakeholders in the Yarwun area havecontinued to result in a high level of stakeholder investment in the Program. This has allowed theProgram to undertake eradication activities with little disruption including the recent extensivesurveillance of the region. The high level of stakeholder investment in the Program can be alsoseen by the ongoing level of compliance with movement controls.

The final stage of eradicating fire ants in Gladstone media campaign was launched during thefourth quarter 2015–16. This included television coverage on the Seven Network and WINTelevision in Rockhampton, an interview with the Program’s Director on Radio 4CC CentralQueensland in Gladstone, broad TV coverage on WIN Television including New South Wales,Victoria, Australian Capital Territory and Tasmania—all reaching an audience of approximately83 000.

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ContentsContents ......................................................................................................................................... iiEradication Program .......................................................................................................................1Program management and governance ..........................................................................................1


Treatment and surveillance.............................................................................................................3Containment and movement controls..............................................................................................4Community and Stakeholder Engagement......................................................................................4Science...........................................................................................................................................5Policy and planning.........................................................................................................................6Support services .............................................................................................................................6Appendix 1 – Cleared area of infestation 2014–15..........................................................................7Appendix 2 – Restricted area..........................................................................................................8Appendix 3 – Financial report .........................................................................................................9Appendix 4 – Key statistics for the Program.................................................................................. 10Appendix 5 – Treatment (Restricted Area) and Surveillance Zones – Yarwun as at 30 June 201611Appendix 6 – Surveillance undertaken in Yarwun in June 2016 .................................................... 12

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The Program, which will run until 31 August 2016, and has an indicative budget totalling$3,804,077.













Verification surveillance of over 1250 hectares was undertaken during the quarter (over 1390hectares in 2015–16) in the 2 km Treatment Zone (Version 2.0) in June 2016.

Buffer and targeted surveillance was completed in July 2015—therefore no surveillance wasscheduled or undertaken during the quarter.

It should be noted that total area of infestation at 30 June 2016—which will formally beannounced as cleared—remains at 43 hectares (Appendix 1). There has been no change tothis figure since the first quarter of 2013–14.

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The Gladstone Fire Ant Restricted Area (restricted area) remains unchanged. The most recentrestricted area was declared under s49 of the Plant Protection Regulation 2002 on12 November 2014. The restricted area follows the same boundaries as the 2 km TreatmentZone1 (Appendix 2). The 2 km Treatment Zone (Version 1.0) was expanded as a result of aninfestation of fire ants found outside this zone in July 2014.

Following the successful round of surveillance undertaken in June 2016, the restricted areawill be revoked.

Budget – On track


The total available budget for 2015–16 was $1,608,223 and expenditure to 30 June 2016totalled $604,350, which represents approximately 37.6% of the available budget. This surplusis a result of the resources required to complete the last two rounds of surveillance beingsignificantly less than the original estimate. Efficiencies were also gained by using establishingoperational resources from the National Red Imported Fire Ant Eradication Program in SouthEast Queensland.

This Program is managed under the National Environmental Biosecurity Response Agreement(NEBRA). The funding arrangement under this agreement is for reimbursement of eligibleexpenses (up to the approved indicative budget) paid in arrears. A reimbursement claim for2015–16 will be prepared in July 2016 and submitted to the National Biosecurity ManagementGroup (NBMG) Secretariat for processing.

A Financial Report for the Program for 2015–16 is provided as Appendix 3.





1 The 2 km Treatment Zone and the restricted area follow the same boundary. This area includes sites that are unsuitable for baittreatment, e.g. sites that are covered by water. These areas will not be aerially treated.

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None of the five review trigger points identified in the response plan2 were activated during2015–16.

Treatment and surveillanceResponse plan – Eradication of fire ant at Yarwun was achieved through a scheduled seriesof prophylactic bait treatments and surveillance across two zones:



Table 1 - Treatment and surveillance schedule4

2013–14 2014–15 2015–16





August


October


December Detection






June Verification surveillance both dogand field teams

As of 30 June 2015, the full complement of scheduled treatment rounds (1–6) wascompleted—therefore no treatment was conducted during 2015–16.

2 Version 2.03 Only suitable habitat is surveyed.4 Treatment and surveillance schedule taken from the Response plan: Eradication of the red imported fire ant – Yarwun 2013 (Version2.0, September 2014)

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Buffer and targeted, and verification surveillance was conducted in July 2015—no fire antswere detected.

In June 2016, a final round of buffer and targeted, and verification surveillance was conductedto confirm eradication and provide the evidence required develop a pest free area report forthe Gladstone Regional Council area (Appendix 6) for approval by national cost-sharepartners. Over 1250 hectares were surveyed during the quarter with a total of over 1390hectares undergoing surveillance in 2015–16. Two odour detection dog teams conducted thefinal round of validation surveillance over the actual area of infestation and no fire ants weredetected.








The restricted area, following the same boundary as the 2 km Treatment Zone (Version 2.0),controls the movement of restricted items within and out of the area. Over 4600 hectares arecurrently under movement restrictions. However the restricted area will be repealed followingthe successful round of verification surveillance undertaken in June 2016.

No new Notices of Infestation were required for owner/lessees/occupiers of land infested withfire ants during this quarter. Existing Notices of Infestation will be repealed following thesuccessful surveillance undertaken in June 2016.

There were 25 Approved Risk Management Plans in place for persons carrying out acommercial activity in the restricted area involving the movement of restricted items. Once therestricted area has been repealed Approved Risk Management Plans will no longer berequired.

Audits were conducted on eight businesses (including one business holding an inspector’sapproval) during the fourth quarter of 2015–16. All were found compliant.

There are 25 current inspector’s approvals issued to businesses in Yarwun for movement ofrestricted items outside the restricted area. Inspector’s approvals will no longer be requiredonce the restricted area is repealed.

Maps showing the 5 km Interstate Plant Quarantine (IPQ) zone around the confirmed fire antinfestation at Yarwun will no longer be required.


5 This figure includes reports from the areas of: Gladstone Regional Council, Rockhampton Regional Council, Bundaberg RegionalCouncil, Fraser Coast Regional Council and Bundaberg Regional Council.

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The strategy for 2015–16 in Gladstone was ongoing high-level engagement of key industrystakeholders and Gladstone residents to assist in continuing to confirm the absence of fireants outside of the restricted area.

This strategy included a campaign in March and April 2016 to generate passive surveillancereporting outside the 6 km area—providing further evidence of absence of fire ants.

The communication and engagement campaign proved very successful. Some of thehighlights are provided below in Table 2.

Table 2 – Highlights from the recent communication and engagement campaign

Results Estimated audience reach, estimated $ value

3rd Quarter2015–16

Media announcement wasconducted with the Hon. LeanneDonaldson MP6 and Gladstone MPGlenn Butcher outlining upcomingProgram activities for eradication.

Over 26 500 people

Gladstone Facebook post Estimated reach of almost 34 000 people

Cost of $2257

Gladstone Facebook video Estimated reach of over 13 300 people

Cost of $282

Media activities with six radiostations, one print and two televisionarticles

Estimated reach of almost 35 000

Advertising space of $3685

4th Quarter2015–16

Media launch7: with televisioncoverage on Seven Network andWIN Television in Rockhampton,interview with Program’s Director onRadio 4CC Central Queensland(Gladstone), broad TV coverage onWIN Television including NSW, Vic,ACT and Tas.

Estimated reach of 83 000

Gladstone Facebook post Estimated reach of over 26 000

Displays by local fire ant volunteer atGladstone EcoFest and Bunnings

Approximately 340 people



- Genetics analysis

6 Department of Agriculture and Fisheries.7 Final stage of eradicating fire ants in Gladstone

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1. Ants collected at Yarwun since November 2013, either during Program surveillance or frompublic reports, have been diagnosed at the Brisbane laboratory of the National Red ImportedFire Ant Eradication Program in South East Queensland. Since December 2013, 71 sampleshave tested positive as fire ant. There were no detections of fire ants during this quarter andnone in 2015–16. There have been no positive detections of fire ant since July 2014 whichresulted in changes to the response plan.






Support services provided during the third quarter of 2015–16 included provision of spatial andmapping products for treatment and surveillance activities; upkeep, maintenance and managementof information/data management systems; travel and accommodation arrangements for responsestaff; resourcing and logistics including contract labour hire; procurement of materials andequipment; and administration and management of budget and financial systems.

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For Official Use Only

DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND WATER RESOURCES


AUSTRALIAN AGRICULTURE MINISTERS’ MEETING

MEETING REPORT

19 November 2015

Venue: Marriott hotel, Brisbane

1. Introduction

a. Welcome/apologies

In attendance

Ministers: The Hon. Barnaby Joyce MP (Chair) Minister for Agriculture and Water Resources The Hon. Anne Ruston Assistant Minister for Agriculture and Water

Resources The Hon. Jaala Pulford MLC Minister for Agriculture and Food The Hon. Kenneth Baston MLC Minister for Agriculture and Food The Hon. Mia Davies—via teleconference Minister for Forestry; Water, Sport and Recreation

(Agenda item 1-3 only) The Hon. Leon Bignell MP Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries;

Forests The Hon. Bill Byrne MP Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries The Hon. Jeremy Rockliff MP Deputy Premier Minister for Primary Industries

and Water

Officials

Australian Government Mr Daryl Quinlivan, Secretary Department of Agriculture and Water Resources Mr Phillip Glyde, Deputy Secretary Department of Agriculture and Water Resources Ms Lyn O’Connell, Deputy Secretary Department of Agriculture and Water Resources Mr Tony Slatyer, First Assistant Secretary Department of Agriculture and Water Resources Ms Melissa Brown, A/g Assistant Secretary Department of Agriculture and Water Resources Mr Richard Hyett, Senior Adviser Office of Minister for Agriculture and Water

Resources Mr Sam Harma, Assistant Adviser Office of Minister for Agriculture and Water

Resources Mr Gerard McManus, Senior Media Adviser Office of Minister for Agriculture and Water

Resources Mr Con Poulos, Adviser Office of Assistant Minister for Agriculture and

Water Resources

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New South Wales Mr Scott Hansen Director General Department of Primary Industries Mr Scott Barrett, Senior Policy Adviser NSW Minister for Primary Industries and Minister

for Lands and Water Mr Gavin Hanlon, Deputy Director General Department of Primary Industries Water Victoria Mr Luke Wilson, Lead Deputy Secretary Department of Economic Development, Jobs,

Transport and Resources Dr Emily Phillips, Deputy Secretary Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources Ms Cassandra Meagher, Executive Director Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources Ms Megan Berry, Chief of Staff Office of the Minister for Agriculture and Food Western Australia Mr Rob Delane, Director General Department of Agriculture and Food Mr Mike Rowe, Director General—via Department of Water Teleconference, agenda items 1-3 Mr Vern Ferdinands, Principle Policy Adviser Office of the Minister for Agriculture and Food South Australia Mr Scott Ashby, Chief Executive Primary Industries and Regions SA Mr Roger Paskin, Acting Executive Director Primary Industries and Regions SA Ms Cathy Parker, Ministerial Adviser Office of the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries; Forests Northern Territory Mr Alister Trier, Chief Executive Officer Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries Mr Darryl Day, Executive Director Department of Land and Resource Management (representing Mr Alastair Shields, Chief Executive Officer) Queensland Mr Jack Noye, Director General Department of Agriculture and Fisheries Mr Malcolm Letts, A/g Deputy Director General Department of Agriculture and Fisheries Dr Jim Thompson, Chief Biosecurity Officer Department of Agriculture and Fisheries Mr Elliot Stein, Chief of Staff Office of the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries Tasmania Mr John Whittington, Secretary Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water

and Environment Mr Ashley Bastock, Senior Adviser Office of the Deputy Premier Minister for Primary

Industries and Water Australian Capital Territory Mr Phillip Perram, Executive Director Territory and Municipal Services Directorate Dr Annie Lane, Executive Director—via Environment and Planning Directorate Teleconference, agenda item 3 (representing Ms Dorte Edelund, Director General) Mr Matt Kendall, Senior Manager—via Environment and Planning Directorate Teleconference, agenda item 3 (observer)

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Secretariat Ms Bronwyn Edwards Australian Department of Agriculture and Water

Resources

Ms Kylie Johnson Australian Department of Agriculture and Water Resources

Apologies

The Hon. Willem Westra van Holthe MLA Minister for Primary Industry and Fisheries (represented by Mr Alister Trier, Chief Executive Officer Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries)

The Hon. Niall Blair MLC Minister for Primary Industries, Minister for Lands

and Water (represented by Mr Scott Hansen Director General, Department of Primary Industries)

The Hon. Shane Rattenbury MLA Minister for Territory and Municipal Services Mr Richard Bolt, Secretary Department of Economic Development, Jobs,

Transport and Resources (represented by Mr Luke Wilson, Lead Deputy Secretary Department of Economic Development, Jobs, Transport and Resources)

Mr Alastair Shields, Chief Executive Officer Department of Land and Resource Management Invited guests The Hon. Lisa Neville Minister for Environment, Climate Change and

Water

The Hon. Mark Bailey Minister for Energy and Water Supply The Hon. Ian Hunter Minister for Water and the River Murray Deputy Chief Minister Simon Corbell MLA Minister for Environment Mr Paul Simshauser, Director General Department of Energy and Water Supply,

Queensland Ms Sandy Pitcher, Chief Executive Officer Department of Environment, Water and Natural

Resources

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1. Confirmation of agenda

Ministers agreed to the agenda with the discussion on Red Imported Fire Ants moved to item six, immediately following

s.73 Irrelevant information


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6. Red Imported Fire Ants interim review and future funding

Ministers noted the interim National Red Imported Fire Ants Eradication program review and agreed that it remains in the national interest to eradicate red imported fire ants and that it is technically feasible to do so.

The Queensland Minister outlined how the ants are currently being controlled in the state, and explained the implications of an infestation would be significant with serious implications for horticulture in Australia.

All jurisdictions, with the exception of Western Australia, agreed to fund the program for 2015-16. All ministers agreed to discuss funding arrangements past 2015-16 to eradicate red imported fire ants at its next meeting.

Minister Byrne advised that Western Australia’s contribution $762, 783, would be left in the budget, but would be considered a deficit.

Minister Byrne explained due to its location and tropical climate, Queensland is often the first place in Australia to face serious pest incursions and appreciates the financial support from those jurisdictions that continue to assist with the eradication of the red imported fire ants.

8. Summary of decisions

Ministers agreed to a communique highlighting the key decisions from the meeting. The document was published on the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources website immediately following the meeting.

9. Next meeting

Ministers agreed to meet in Hamilton, New Zealand in early June 2016 pending availability. The meeting will be timed to coincide with the New Zealand National Agricultural Field Days.

The meeting finished at 1.15 pm.



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For Official Use Only DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE AND WATER RESOURCES


AGRICULTURE MINISTERS’ MEETING 20 May 2016

Agricultural primary industries ministers met in Auckland, New Zealand on 20 May 2016. The meeting was chaired by the New South Wales Minister for Primary Industries, the Hon. Niall Blair on behalf of Deputy Prime Minister and AGMIN Chair, the Hon. Barnaby Joyce.

Attending ministers addressed a number of key priorities for the agriculture portfolio. The meeting began with a review of key biosecurity issues relevant to Australia and New Zealand. The discussion included examining the resilience of existing biosecurity systems and opportunities where both countries could work together to further improve capability, trade opportunities and align some programmes.

Ministers noted recent amendments to the Biological Control Act 1984 (Cth), and discussed next steps to support a nationally consistent approach for control programmes across all Australian jurisdictions. An update on the national programme for the biological control of rabbits and proposal for European carp was also discussed.

Ministers noted the Commonwealth’s continued work on preparedness activities for foot-and-mouth disease. Ministers noted that the efforts of biosecurity measures, whilst led by agriculture portfolios, deliver significant benefits the environment as well as community amenity benefits. These need to be promoted to all parts of the community in the context of future funding options and engagement with a broader range of risk creators and beneficiaries.

Ministers discussed other preparedness activities and opportunities for Australia and New Zealand to work together. This included the final report on the National Livestock Standstill Exercise – Exercise Odysseus, in particular the next steps to assist with implementation of its recommendations. The discussion identified areas where further improvements to Australia’s animal disease preparedness could be made, noting the very large contribution of biosecurity to our animal export industries. The report is available on the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources website.

Findings of an Independent Review Panel’s final report into Red Imported Fire Ants (RIFA) were considered, in particular, that it remains in the national interest to eradicate the ants and that it is technically feasible and cost beneficial to do so. Ministers agreed to continue to cost share the RIFA South East Queensland eradication programme in 2016–17 in accordance with the nationally agreed 2013–18 Response Plan. Funding of a 10 year eradication plan or transition to a management plan for the SEQ Programme will be considered at the next AGMIN meeting.

Ministers then discussed the development of approaches to farm debt mediation. Other items discussed include challenges related to the branding of agriculture nationally and internationally, progress of renewing regional forest agreements and other forestry related matters, as well as adopting new technologies and techniques in agriculture.

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Ministers agreed to new national rural research, development and extension priorities that aim to increase productivity in primary industries that were initially released through the Agricultural Competiveness White Paper.

Commonwealth officials agreed to discuss with the incoming Government a proposal to safeguard the welfare of racing greyhounds exported to countries that do not meet Australian welfare standards.

The next face-to-face meeting of the Agriculture Ministers’ Forum will be held in 2017, with a date and location for the meeting still to be determined.

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national red imported fire ant eradication program – south ... · no fire ants being detected....

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