However, in a statement yesterday, Cr Robertson cautioned that the recently announced Government funding to address the unwanted pines needed to extend for "several years" — otherwise, it could put the progress already made in the region at risk.
"We’re advocating for strong, ongoing government support for the National Wilding Conifer Control Programme," Cr Robertson said.
"This isn’t a forever job — the goal is to bring infestations to a level where landowners can manage them sustainably.
"This [funding] is a start but without a commitment to adequate funding for several years ahead the massive progress already made remains at risk."
Cr Robertson said 70% of Otago’s landscapes were classified as highly vulnerable.
The chairwoman’s comments come as Conservation Minister Tama Potaka this week outlined how the government would spend $30 million from the International Visitor Conservation and Tourism Levy to fund more than a dozen projects to boost biodiversity and the tourist economy.
The total investment was made up of $11m for upgrades to huts, carparks and facilities at Aoraki-Mt Cook as well as Rangitoto and Motutapu Islands in Auckland; safety upgrades to 116 cable structures, such as swing bridges; and a range of improvements at Goat Island, northeast of Warkworth.
And a further $19m for protecting biodiversity by reducing the spread of predators and invasive plant species.
The second tranche included "stopping and removing wilding pines from our iconic landscapes", a statement from the Beehive said.
Of the $3.5m announced for wilding control, $500,000 would go to the Otago Regional Council while the rest went to Canterbury and Marlborough, the council confirmed yesterday.
"ORC receives the funding and then distributes it to [Department of Conservation] Doc Whakatipu on behalf of the Whakatipu Wilding Control Group," a council spokesman said.
The wilding control funding was only for this financial year, the spokesman said. — APL
