In the last few years northern NSW has been smashed by major floods. To rebuild and recover landscaping supplies from south east Queensland were shipped south of the Tweed. Late last year some of this material probably caused northern NSW’s first infestation of red imported fire ants.
Red imported fire ants infested south east Queensland 20 years ago and we have not been able to get rid of them yet. Red imported fire ants have made their way to Gladstone on two separate occasions over the past decade but these infestations were eradicated.
Fortunately they have not led to a wider outbreak across Australia but their continuing presence risks one. If an outbreak were to occur it would devastate our agricultural sector and even cause harm to human and animal health. A broader outbreak would be devastating to Central Queensland’s cattle industry.
The mucous in a cow’s eyes and nostrils are attractive to red fire ants. Stings can cause pain, blindness and extreme cases suffocation. Even if not killed, the ants will stress a cow causing it to gain less weight than normal. Red fire ants have become endemic in Texas and some estimates put the cost to an affected grazier at $100 a head, an enormous impact.
Australian Governments have spent $690 million to contain and eradicate red imported fire ants from south east Queensland since they were first observed in 2001. But this has not been enough and it has not been spent wisely.
Australia’s red imported fire ants response has been hampered by shortfalls in funding, excessive bureaucracy, insufficient coordination between different levels of government, a lack of transparency and a reluctance to involve industry and the private sector in solutions. A major review in 2021, concluded that an extra $200-300 million of funding a year for ten years was needed and recommended changes to the governance of the red imported fire ant response.
For the last few months I have chaired a Senate inquiry into the lack of action on these recommendations. Perhaps it was a coincidence but within weeks of the establishment of the Senate inquiry, State and Federal Governments finally announced an additional $593 million of funding and a new governance model to oversee this funding.
Notwithstanding this funding boost, there has been less progress on the transparency, governance and coordination reforms needed to eradicate red fire ants. For example, state and federal governments have yet to publish the new Fire Ant Response Plan 2023-2027.
There is no logical and coherent reason for this plan to be hidden from the public, especially given how crucial the plan is to the livelihoods of many farmers and small businesses in south east Queensland.
Unlike other biosecurity responses there is no formal involvement of industry in the response to red imported fire ants. The private sector has significant experience and on-the-ground know-how that should be used to guide a more effective red fire ant response.
Expertise in the academic and private sectors that could improve eradication efforts are under-utilised. To date, the red fire ants response has been too tightly held within government departments without the wider involvement of other government agencies, universities and the private sector.
To highlight just one example, the CSIRO has been provided just $100,000 a year across ten years to conduct research on red fire ants.
Fortunately that outbreak in northern NSW has been contained so far. In this case, there was good cooperation between the federal, state and local governments.
It should be a template going forward so that when Beef Week 2027 rolls around we do not end up sharing red imported fire ant war stories with our visiting Texas ranchers.
