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Department of Agriculture

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  1. Home
  2. Biosecurity and trade
  3. Pests, diseases and weeds
  4. Pest animals and weeds in Australia

Sidebar first - Pests diseases weeds

  • Pests, Diseases and Weeds
    • Report a pest or disease concern
    • Animal pests and diseases
      • Avian Influenza or Bird Flu
        • Bird biosecurity
        • Global avian influenza outbreak situation update
        • Information for recreational shooters
      • Ehrlichiosis in dogs
        • Guidelines for dog owners
        • Dog rescue and rehoming
        • Travelling with your dog in Australia
        • Veterinary guidelines
      • Emergency and Exotic Animal Diseases - Bulletins and Alerts
      • Equine Influenza Inquiry - the Government's response
      • Foot-and-mouth disease
        • A review of Australia's preparedness for the threat of foot-and-mouth disease
          • National foot-and-mouth disease vaccination policy
        • Potential for wind-borne spread of FMD in Australia
        • Advice on FMD requirements within the maritime, air and mail pathways
      • International arrangements for emergency animal disease outbreaks
      • Japanese encephalitis
      • Japanese encephalitis information for veterinarians
      • Keeping African swine fever and foot-and-mouth disease out of Australia
        • Non-English speaking background communities and swill feeding project
      • Lumpy skin disease
        • Disease facts
        • Government actions
        • Livestock producers
        • Veterinarians
        • National Action Plan
      • National List of Notifiable Animal Diseases
      • National List of Reportable Diseases of Aquatic Animals
      • State and Territory Notifiable Animal Diseases lists
      • Wildlife Exotic Disease Preparedness Program
      • White nose syndrome
    • Aquatic animal diseases
    • Bees and bee pests and diseases
      • Honey bee and pollination continuity strategy
        • Statement of research and development priorities
      • Honey bees, crop pollination and varroa mite frequently asked questions
      • Status of Asian honey bee in Australia
    • Exotic weeds
    • Forests and timber: a field guide to exotic pests and diseases
    • Fruit flies in Australia
      • Managing fruit flies in Australia
        • Sterile Insect Technique use in Australia
      • The Smart Fruit Fly Management Measure
        • Fruit fly economic studies
        • Strengthening Australia’s Fruit Fly System Research Program
        • Technical and scientific projects and activities
    • Locusts
      • Australian locusts
        • Locust and grasshopper identification guide
          • Description of adults
            • 1. Australian Plague Locust: Chortoicetes terminifera
            • 2. Spur-throated locust: Austracris guttulosa
            • 3. Migratory locust: Locusta migratoria
            • 4. Small plague grasshopper: Austroicetes cruciata
            • 5. Other Austroicetes species
            • 6. Eastern plague grasshopper: Oedaleus australis
            • 7. Yellow winged locust: Gastrimargus musicus
            • 8. Bermius brachycelus and other Bermius species
            • 9. Giant or Hedge grasshopper: Valanga irregularis
            • 10. Heteropternis obscurella
            • 11. Peakesia hospita and other species
            • 12. Urnisa guttulosa
            • 13. Aiolopus thalassinus
            • 14. Caledia captiva
            • 15. Wingless grasshopper: Phaulacridium vittatum
          • Description of nymphs
            • 1. Australian Plague Locust: Chortoicetes terminifera (nymph)
            • 2. Spur-throated locust: Austracris guttulosa (nymph)
            • 3. Migratory locust: Locusta migratoria (nymph)
            • 4. Small plague grasshopper: Austroicetes cruciata (nymph)
            • 5. Other Austroicetes species (nymph)
            • 6. Eastern plague grasshopper: Oedaleus australis (nymph)
            • 7. Yellow winged locust: Gastrimargus musicus (nymph)
            • 8. Bermius brachycelus and other Bermius species (nymph)
            • 9. Giant or Hedge grasshopper: Valanga irregularis (nymph)
            • 10. Heteropternis obscurella (nymph)
            • 11. Peakesia hospita and other species (nymph)
            • 12. Urnisa guttulosa (nymph)
            • 13. Aiolopus thalassinus (nymph)
            • 14. Caledia captiva (nymph)
            • 15. Wingless grasshopper: Phaulacridium vittatum (nymph)
        • About locusts
        • Australian plague locust
        • History of locust and grasshopper outbreaks in Australia
        • Links to related websites
        • Migratory locust
        • Spur throated locust
      • Current locust situation
      • Role of the Australian Plague Locust Commission
        • APLC documents
        • Area of operation
        • APLC activities
        • APLC Commissioners
      • Information for landholders
        • APLC strategic control - commencing or ceasing operations
        • APLC offices and contacts
        • Locust control agents-livestock and crop residues
        • Reporting locusts
      • Locust bulletins
        • Terms and Descriptions used in the Locust Bulletin
    • Marine pests
      • Marine Pest Sectoral Committee
      • Review of National Marine Pest Biosecurity
        • Marine pest network
      • Emergency Marine Pest Plan
    • Pest animals and weeds in Australia
      • Supporting Communities Manage Pest Animals and Weeds Program
      • Supporting Australia’s regions to manage established pest animals and weeds
      • Control tools and technologies for established pest animals and weeds competitive grants programme
      • Environment and Invasives Committee
      • Funding innovation to tackle pest animals and weeds
      • National Carp Control Plan
    • Plant pests and diseases
      • National action plans
      • Barley stripe rust
      • Begomoviruses and vectors
      • Brown marmorated stink bug
      • Citrus canker
      • Cyst nematodes of grains and vegetables
      • Exotic bees
      • Exotic stem borers of sugarcane
      • Exotic tree nematodes
      • Fire blight
      • Fruit flies
      • Giant African snail
      • Myrtle rust
      • Grape phylloxera
      • Spongy moths
      • Hessian flies
      • Huanglongbing
      • Internal and external mites of bees
      • Khapra beetle
        • Urgent actions to protect against khapra beetle
          • Requirements for high-risk plant products to protect against khapra beetle
          • Requirements for other-risk plant products to protect against khapra beetle
          • Requirements for sea containers to protect against khapra beetle
          • Requirements for seeds for sowing to protect against khapra beetle
        • Khapra beetle in imported goods
        • Khapra beetle bulletin
        • The khapra beetle story
      • Karnal bunt
      • Leaf miner
      • Panama disease tropical race 4
      • Plum pox virus
      • Potato cyst nematode
      • Potato late blight
      • Sudden oak death
      • Xylella and exotic vectors
        • International Symposium on Xylella fastidiosa
      • Tobamoviruses
      • Exotic invasive ants
      • Ug99
      • Wheat stem sawfly
      • Zebra chip
    • Protect your animals and plants from pests and disease
      • Biosecurity engagement
      • Bird biosecurity
        • Avian Influenza (bird flu)
        • Bird flu and our health
        • National Biosecurity Manual - Exhibition poultry
        • National Farm Biosecurity Manual - Poultry production
        • Protect your birds against bird flu and diseases
        • National Water Biosecurity Manual - Poultry production
      • Plate it. Don’t plant it.
      • Vital information for travelling farm workers
      • Biosecurity videos and audio
      • Biosecurity and farmers' markets

Pest animals and weeds in Australia

Pest animals and weeds not only reduce agricultural productivity, they also cause damage to the environment and natural resources.

Everyone plays a role in helping farmers, industry, communities and governments tackle this problem.

Managing pest animals and weeds

Pest animal management

Many vertebrate animals introduced to Australia have become pests. Pest animals are a significant social, economic and environmental burden for Australia, negatively impacting on Australia’s agriculture, biodiversity, natural and built environments, public health and productivity.

Effective pest animal management involves a combination of preventing their entry to Australia, wherever possible, eradicating those that do enter, when feasible, and managing the negative impacts of those that become established.

Australian Pest Animal Strategy

The Australian Pest Animal Strategy was developed in 2007 to provide national guidance on pest animal management, which is primarily the responsibility of landholders and state and territory governments. It was revised in 2017 and is available below.

Download

Document File size
Australian Pest Animal Strategy 2017 to 2027 PDF 914 KB
Australian Pest Animal Strategy 2017 to 2027 DOCX 2.0 MB

If you have difficulty accessing these files, visit web accessibility for assistance.

Weeds management

Weeds are one of the most serious threats to Australia's environment and primary production resource base, reducing farm and forest productivity, displacing native species and contributing to land degradation. The cost of weeds to agricultural industries is estimated at $4 billion a year. The cost of weeds to the environment is difficult to calculate but could be greater.

Nationally, pest plants continue to invade the land, with ​exotic species currently accounting for about 15 per cent of flora. Many were originally imported for use as garden ornamentals, although Australia’s current biosecurity arrangements have significantly reduced this risk.

About one-quarter of these species are, or have the potential to be, either serious agricultural and​environmental weeds. Almost all of Australia's native vegetation has been, or could be, affected by weeds, with the potential to change the structure, species composition, fire frequency and abundance of native ecosystems.

Australian Weeds Strategy

The Australian Weeds Strategy was developed in 2007 to provide national guidance on best practice weed management. It was revised in 2017 and is available below.

Download

Document File size
Australian Weeds Strategy 2017-2027 PDF 719 KB
Australian Weeds Strategy 2017-2027 DOCX 1.7 MB

If you have difficulty accessing these files, visit web accessibility for assistance.

Related Links

  • Weeds in Australia
  • Weeds of National Significance (WoNS)

The Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment supports the management of pest animals and weeds in Australia by:

  • providing national leadership and coordination
  • investing in pest animal and weed management, where it is in the national interest
  • conducting research and development into new and improved control tools and technologies, including biological control
  • participating in emergency responses to exotic incursions.

We work with the state and territory governments, industry and the community to protect Australia from pest animals and weeds.

Investment includes:

  • Established Pest Animals and Weeds Management Pipeline program
  • Communities combating pest and weed impacts during drought program (round 2)
  • Prickly Acacia Weed Management program
  • National Landcare Program

Areas of national leadership and coordination include:

  • The National Carp Control Plan
  • The National Wild Dog Action Plan
  • National Feral Pig Management Coordinator
  • ABARES Surveys – Pest animals and weed management survey and Tableau Dashboard

The Australian Government also funds established weed and pest animal research through:

  • Rural Research and Development Corporations
  • Cooperative Research Centres
  • Centre for Invasive Species Solutions
  • other research organisations.

Previous investment includes:

  • Agricultural Competitiveness White Paper
    • Established Pest Animals and Weeds Measure
  • Managing pest animals and weeds in drought affected areas (round 1)

Supporting Communities Manage Pest Animals and Weeds Program

The Australian Government has allocated $49.1 million over four years (2021-22 to 2024-25) through the Supporting Communities Manage Pest Animals and Weeds Program.

  • Read more about the program

Established Pest Animals and Weeds Management Pipeline Program

The Australian Government is providing $30.3 million through the Established Pest Animals and Weeds Management Pipeline Program (2019-20 to 2022-23). This funding will help combat some of Australia’s worst established pest animals and weeds and reduce their impact on Australian farmers, communities and the environment. The objectives of the program are:

  • Objective 1: national prioritisation, information and coordination
  • Objective 2: priority pest innovative solutions
  • Objective 3: farm ready management techniques, national coordination and delivery

In line with these objectives, $30.3 million has been allocated to various programs to deliver a lasting legacy to farmers, land managers and the wider community in the fight against established pest animals and weeds.

Current initiatives include:

  1. The advancing Pest Animal and Weed Control Solutions Competitive Grant Round. A $13 million competitive grant round to advance a range of breakthrough control solutions that challenge traditional approaches for the control of established pest animals or weeds, by researching and developing new practices, methods and tools, or adapting existing ones for use in new or different ways.
  2. $1.4 million to implement the National Feral Pig Management Coordinator Program through Australian Pork Limited. The national coordinator will lead the development of a National Feral Pig Management Action Plan and ensure reliable feral pig control methodologies are accessible and adopted by farmers, land managers and the wider community.
  3. $1 million to both South Australia and Western Australia in 2019-20 for their state wild dog fencing projects.
    1. The funding to South Australia, together with $9 million from other Commonwealth sources, will deliver on the $10 million election commitment to the South Australia wild dog fence project, from 2019-20 to 2022-23.
  4. $160,000 to CSIRO to undertake a pilot project to explore the possibility of delineating sub-populations of feral pigs in Australia, using DNA samples from northern and southern Australia.
  5. Two projects building on work undertaken through the Agricultural Competitiveness White paper – Established Pest Animals and Weeds Measure:
    1. $291,500 to the CSIRO to continue research into a biological control option for fireweed.
    2. $299,830 to the University of Queensland to undertake research using bioisostere technology, to develop herbicides to target weeds, including WoNS.

Established Pest Animals and Weeds Measure

The Established Pest Animals and Weeds Measure was a $50 million investment to improve the tools, technologies, information and skills farmers and their communities need to tackle pest animals and weeds.

This measure was part of the Agricultural Competitiveness White Paper, the Australian Government’s plan for stronger farmers and a stronger economy.

Areas of investment included:

  • the acceleration of research and development projects delivering new and improved tools and technologies for controlling established pest animals and weeds
  • on-the-ground state and territory government projects that build the skills and capacity of farmers, industry and the community to fight pest animals and weeds
  • providing landholders and communities useful information about the benefits of management and the costs of inaction, through a national pest animal and weed management survey of farmers and landowners
  • new or improved pest animal and weed control tools and technologies by providing $10.5 million through the Control tools and technologies for established pest animals and weeds competitive grants programme
  • national coordination and collaboration

National Landcare Program

The department invests in pest animal and weed management through the National Landcare Program.

Centre for Invasive Species Solutions

The Department contracts the Centre for Invasive Species Solutions, to undertake nationally collaborative research, development and extension to address the ongoing threat from invasive species.

The Centre’s PestSmart Portal provides farmers and land managers with information on current best practice management based on rigorous research to help in making informed decisions.

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Last updated: 30 June 2022

© Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of country throughout Australia and recognise their continuing connection to land, waters and culture. We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.