New Zealand pledges to eliminate rats, possums by 2050
New Zealand announced a new goal Monday to be free of rats, possums and other predators by 2050.
Prime Minister John Key said these nuisance animals, including stoats, kill 25 million native birds every year — including the national bird, the kiwi — and prey on other native species such as lizards.
Key said the predators are one of the greatest threats to wildlife and cost the economy about $3.3 billion a year.
The Independent reported about 20 kiwi die each week, according to government estimates.
The government has pledged $28 million in initial funds for a company, Predator Free New Zealand, to head the campaign. The funding is in addition to more than $60 million spent annually on pest control in the island nation.
Rob Fenwick, who chairs Predator Free New Zealand, said the company would allow a military-level response to the problem for the first time, The New Zealand Herald reported.
"It's a real game-changer. We've been killing predators now for decades and in the past it's been quite an unstrategic approach to this campaign," Fenwick told the Herald.