Fire ant infestations along the Logan River are “exploding” and pose a “catastrophic” threat to eradication efforts nationwide.
New nests have been found along the river at Cedar Grove and Waterford by Cedar Grove Landcare, who were contracted to do restoration works on large sections of the river on private land.
One of the country’s leading environmental advocacy groups said the consequences could be devastating if the infestation is not “urgently” acted on.
Cedar Grove Landcare, a not-for-profit, was contracted by conservation organisation Healthy Land and Water.
“As a contract services team working in fire ant suppression zones, we encounter fire ants daily, which has required significant adjustments to how we operate,” president and director Rachel Hughes said.
“Our task on the Logan River was to plant 450 tube stock along the river, normally a very easy task. However, in this instance, we had to rethink our entire methodology to mitigate the issue of fire ants.
“All team members are trained to identify, treat, and adapt their practices to prioritise the safety of our staff, landholders, and livestock. But our ability to do our work efficiently is becoming increasingly difficult.”
The contracted work involves weed treatment, brush cutting and foliar spraying of herbicides, planting and watering.
Ms Hughes said the team applies approved fire ant bait where possible, but in cases of dense infestations, restoration work can’t go ahead.
“In this case we engage outside contractors to inject nests,” she said.
“However, this approach requires nests to remain undisturbed for several days post-treatment, which can delay progress.”
Advocacy manager Reece Pianta from the Invasive Species Council said the spread of fire ants downstream would be catastrophic if there was flooding.
“It looks like we have a very high density fire ant infestation along the Logan River in some key locations and this is a big problem for the property owners, who are more likely to be stung by fire ants, for their pets, and for wildlife trying to access watersources,” he said.
“It is also a problem because fire ants form rafts and use that to float to new locations, so people who didn’t have fire ants on their property could find themselves with a mature colony landing on their land.
“It is also a big problem because there are quite a few turf farms, landscape supply companies, hay productions and soil productions along the length of the Logan River going all the way out to the Cedar Grove and Scenic Rim areas.”
He said these companies were all “high-risk” carry materials for fire ants.
“Something needs to be done pretty urgently in the next few months,” Mr Pianta said.
Logan falls under what is called a ‘suppression area’, in which the local council and residents are responsible for treating fire ants on their own properties.
The Invasive Species Council wants more state and federal government support in that area.
“We want to see that ramped up to support the large landholders along the river area, to make sure we are fighting and destroying these nests before they spread to new areas,” Mr Pianta said.
He said there needs to be provision of bait, more aerial and ground surveillance, and more “boots on the ground to find and destory nests’.
Ms Hughes said collaboration with landholders was essential to suppress and eradicate fire ants effectively, but these efforts “can be hindered if neighboring properties or industries do not persistently address fire ant control”.
Mr Pianta hopes the new government will take “real action sooner rather than later”.
“The warnings have been there – it is now crunch time,” he said.
“We know how fire ants work.
“The unpredictable factor is humans spreading them around.”
