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Possums, rats and ferrets are now the target of the Provincial Growth Fund under a $19.5 million proposal announced by Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones and Conservation Minister Eugenie Sage.
Mr Jones says the investment will be to develop innovative approaches to expand predator control as well as maintain predator free environments using innovative techniques once initial eradication has been achieved.
This will reduce the need to use 1080 in these areas.
The funding will be used by Predator Free 2050 Limited, a Crown-owned company, to contract projects that will bring tens of thousands of hectares of rural and forested land under predator control, create regional jobs and stimulate demand for education at regional training institutes.
Ms Sage says the project will help stimulate rapid innovation in the design of products such as more effective traps, lures, remote sensing, surveillance and data management technologies.
Predator Free 2050 Limited will seek expressions of interest in ambitious, predator eradication projects from local authorities and community-backed entities in the PGF surge regions of Northland, Bay of Plenty, East Cape, Hawke's Bay, Manawatū-Whanganui and the West Coast.
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