Spraying Programme Update

It’s been a very frustrating week for the Society as it nervously watches the weather and the willows around the catchment. This summer has been a very difficult one to predict and work in due to the changeable nature of the conditions. At this stage its a matter of “wait and see” as to when we will get a start on the control programme. Last Saturday Paul Pope measured south westerly wind speeds of between 20-30 knots with occasional gusts of nearly 40 knots in Dunedin. That’s not conducive to any aerial control programme, let alone enjoying the last few days of the school holidays.

2011 Weed Control Programme Update

The Society has experienced some delays in its weed control programme principally due to weather conditions. These delays have been unavoidable and beyond the control of the project team. The Society hope to be able to begin the helicopter operations next week at this stage. Paul Pope will keep you posted as to any changes to the likely start date as information becomes available.

2011 Weed Control Update Notice

Happy New Year to you all. Welcome to 2011.

The Society have spoken with Graeme Gale today regarding the conditions for spraying. With the rain and cool weather we’ve had the willow is still in good shape and the salinity levels should be low with the rain we’ve had. Graeme Gale has flown over the area and felt that the willow was still healthy. At this stage spraying should begin next week. However, like everything its a matter of watching the conditions. The MetService forecast keeps these westerly winds here until Monday. The Society will meet with Graeme Gale on Monday to reassess and I’m meeting Steve Bryant at Sinclair Wetland’s on Tuesday morning. Here’s the 7 day wind forecast from Taieri Station.We’ll keep everybody posted.