However in March 2018 the board voted to delay implementation of the rodent eradication program until winter 2019 as it had not yet received a new permit from the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority. She is now busily laying eggs. The island will be monitored for two years, and if no rats or mice are spotted, the area will be declared rodent free. The spokesperson said the board had assured the community that the program would not proceed without all necessary safeguards and regulatory approvals in place. Rodent numbers fluctuate depending on the seasons and it is difficult to give an accurate estimate of numbers, the board spokesperson said. Fifth generation island resident and Mr Thompson's niece, Bonny Thompson acknowledged there is a rodent problem on the island. For the very first time tonnes of rat poison will be dropped on the pristine Lord Howe Island to exterminate a plague of 360,000 rats, but the decision has deeply divided the community. Weed mapping and strategy documents have been prepared and local residents have been trained to systematically comb the forest and remove weeds. The island now has about 300 Woodhens. The last set of baits was distributed in November. There was a rapid reduction in the number of rodents at first, and then a few little blips of activity. The long-running dispute over a planned rodent eradication program on Lord Howe Island appears no closer to resolution. The low numbers may be because these insects only eat one plant, Melaleuca howeana. After a prolonged process of research, impact assessment, economic analysis and discussion with residents the Lord Howe Island Board got the go ahead for the rodent eradication program – see STEP Matters Issue 191.. Over the next seven years a draft plan was prepared to carry out a rodent eradication on Lord Howe Island, using the experience and science from what had been achieved around the world since 1980. A strict plant importation policy, and a sound biosecurity policy with cargo and ship movements, is in place to ensure no unwanted plant or animal pests arrive to the island. In the 1970’s, environmental surveys identified the damage being done to the island’s flora and fauna species through introduced mammals – pigs, cats, dogs, goats and rodents. This is an award winning program that is conserving the World Heritage values of Lord Howe Island. The current rodent control baiting program remains in place to control the rodent population. ! "Lord Howe Island is home to some of the rarest species including the Woodhen. "We want the island to be rodent-free but not at the risk of the island's wildlife and water source. Mice arrived around 1860 and rats came to the island as a result of a shipwreck in 1918. The program had to be much more comprehensive. Greener Places Design Guide - Many Objectives but is there the Will and Money for Action? First mooted about a decade ago, island residents have formed a concerned citizens group while the board charged with the responsibility of governing the island also appears split on the matter. "Dropping tonnes of a poison that will cause widespread deaths in non-target species is counter-productive and puts at risk the World Heritage environment on the island.
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