Important information about DOC’s Pesticide Summary
Understand the details included in the Pesticide Summary and read the disclaimer.

What’s included in the Pesticide Summary

The Pesticide Summary lists pesticide operations run on land administered by DOC. This includes operations carried out on:

  • offshore islands where the public has access
  • DOC administered waterways for the control of pest fish.

The Pesticide Summary is updated daily.

The Pesticide Summary does not include:

  • pesticides for rodent control in huts, buildings or other structures
  • cyanide paste baits for possum skin or fur recovery
  • operations on offshore islands where public access isn't allowed
  • pesticides laid on land which is not administered by DOC
  • localised use of insecticides such as for individual wasp nest destruction.

Timing of operations

The Pesticide Summary groups operations by when they are expected to take place.

  • Proposed application: an application of pesticides is planned, but the details of the operation aren’t confirmed. It may not go ahead.
  • Will be laid: an application has DOC permission to go ahead. The exact timing of the operation may change.
  • Have been laid: pesticides have been or are about to be laid. Local warning signs are the best indication of when pesticides are present.

Urgent reactive operations may be added to the Pesticide Summary at short notice. For example, for pest incursions.

The ‘expected time to warning sign removal’ is an estimate only. We will extend it if bait or carcass monitoring shows that pesticide residues may still be present. Until this period is finished, warning signs will stay in place and the operation will stay listed on the Pesticide Summary.

Staying safe

Always check the latest Pesticide Summary or with your local DOC office before entering any area. Printed or downloaded copies of the Pesticide Summary may be out of date.

Eating animals or fish from areas where pesticides have been laid

  • Do not eat animals from areas while warning signs are present and operations are listed on the pesticide summary (except for areas where only cyanide and/or cholecalciferol and/or insecticides have been laid).
  • Do not eat trout for seven days after aerial application of 1080 baits.
  • Do not eat animals from within the ‘buffer zone’ outside of the operational area boundary, as listed below. There are no buffer zones for cyanide, cholecalciferol or insecticides.
Buffer zones by poison group

Poison group

0

1

2

3

4

Poison

  • Cholecalciferol
  • Hydrogen cyanide
  • Phosphorus
  • Potassium cyanide
  • Sodium cyanide
  • Zinc phosphide
  • Para-aminopropiophenone
  • Sodium nitrite
  • Any other poison not covered in groups 0, and 2 to 4 

 

 
  • Diphacinone
  • Pindone

 
  • Coumatetralyl
  • 1080

 
  • Brodifacoum
  • Difethialone
  • Bromadiolone
  • Flocoumafen
  • Difenacoum

 

 

Caution period 

(all species) 

 

None

1 month

2 months

4 months

3 years

Buffer zone 

Rabbits

0 m

200 m

200 m

200 m

200 m

Hares, tahr, wallabies and possums

0 m

1 km

1 km

1 km

1 km

Goats, chamois, deer and water buffalo

0 m

2 km

2 km

2 km

2 km

Pigs and other species

0 m

2 km

2 km

2 km

5 km

Source: MPI Animal Products Notice: Production, Supply and Processing (2023)

Disclaimer

While the information in these pesticide summaries is provided in good faith, any person using the information does so at his or her risk solely, and neither His Majesty the King, nor the Minister of Conservation, nor Director-General of Conservation, nor any employee or agent of the Department of Conservation shall be liable for any errors or omissions in these summaries.

Any person who takes any animal from land administered by the Department of Conservation does so at his/her own risk and no warranty, express or implied, is given as to the fitness for human or other consumption of such animals.

Notice

The Department of Conservation’s pesticide summary notification process has been approved by the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) as a poison use statement for the purposes of presenting wild animals for processing to a MPI registered processor.