1080 Part 2 - The Poison

In the previous post, I gave a brief overview of New Zealand, our flora and fauna and the problem that we face. In this one, I want to write a (slightly) more in-depth explanation of how 1080 works, what it is and why we use it.

What is it?

Sodium fluoroacetate is a white powder, which is the salt form of fluoroacetate, a toxin found naturally in around 40 different species of plants around the world. Fluoroacetate interrupts the citric acid cycle or Krebs cycle, an important part of respiration in the body, right before the electron transport chain. It achieves this by inhibiting enzymes, such as aconitase. Without the Krebs cycle, the body cannot turn food into energy and therefore cannot carry on normal functions, like breathing or pumping blood around the body, which leads to death. The result is similar in all animals and is deadly in the right amount. Because of course, THE DOSE MAKES THE POISON.

http://www.1080facts.co.nz/

Sodium fluoroacetate is easily dissolved into water and pelleted into bite-sized pellets, ready to be fed to pesky pest predators around the country. As shown in the infographic from the very helpful website, 1080facts, only a small part (0.15%) of the 1080 pellet is actually made up of the active ingredient, sodium fluoroacetate. The rest of the pellet is made up of different cereals, sugars, green dye and recently, cinnamon. 

1080 hasn't always been pellet shaped though. The delivery method has changed and been developed over the decades. Honed and fine-tuned. This is to avoid the deaths of non-target species. This has ranged from cereal baits to pastes or "jams", and carrot baits. Due to the study, monitoring and development of knowing which species eat the baits, the amount used has drastically decreased. In fact, in the past 40 - 50 years, the amount used has decreased from 20kg per hectare to around 3 or 4kg per hectare. Using deer repellents (ERPRO Deer Repellent, EDR), deer are deterred from eating the baits, while not deterring possums. Other deterrents, such as cinnamon, deter kea from eating the baits, but Robins will tend to be attracted to the cinnamon. Some, such as carrot baits, are used to control rabbits in wide open areas. The carrot baits are made too big for most non-target bird species. The green colour is also unappealing to most bird species.

Why do we use it?

http://www.purangikiwi.co.nz/possums/

As mentioned in the previous post, New Zealand has a unique ecosystem with unique native animals. Being a small island, the animals that live here have evolved to be flightless and make their nests at ground level. They never had pests or predators to worry about. With the introduction of predators to this country, this has worked against them. It is now estimated that 25,000,000 native birds' eggs are eaten a year by predators. With a range of our birds already extinct (one of the highest rates in the world of plants and animals) and many more endangered and threatened, the risk of losing our native birds is very real. 

1080 presents a cost-effective way of controlling the numbers of these predators. Control, not eradication. It has never been about eradication. 1080 pellets are dropped from helicopters over hard-to-reach, tough-to-access land, which New Zealand has a lot of. It costs an estimated $12 - $16 a hectare for aerial drops. Ground baiting costs vary from $4 in the easy-to-access land to $80 a hectare in hard-to-reach places. 

The target species are rats, possums and stoats. These all have an enormous impact on our ecosystem here in New Zealand.

How it works

Trapping alone will not be enough. Shooting and culling will not be enough. Just imagine how many people it would take to cover the amount of land one helicopter can cover in one drop. The cost, time and resources would be astronomical. Kind of like wanting to feed the world from your backyard, organic garden. Not gonna happen. 

It's a cliche, but 1080 is one tool in the shed that we need to keep using to control the predators here. Alongside other tools, such as trapping, and public awareness. This is the Battle For Our Birds.

What are the risks?

1080 is a poison. So, obviously, it comes with risks. These risks are very real and taken very seriously by those in charge of dropping poison over our land.

Farmers and other neighbours are told in advance of aerial drops and cordons and buffer zones are adhered to, to reduce the risk of dropping baits into land containing non-target species. GPS tracking is used in the helicopters to ensure that there is no crossover, or dropping baits onto farmers land and thereby killing stock, such as cows or sheep. 

Recently, 8 cows died shortly after a 1080 drop happened nearby. Of course, people are jumping to conclusions without knowing the facts. There are tests being done and at the time of writing this, we have a couple of weeks until we find out whether they died of 1080 or not. At the moment, the cows appear to have breached a fence near the drop zone and accessed the affected area. Even if it turns out that the cows did die of 1080 poisoning, the benefits far outweigh the costs. DOC seems to be supporting the farmer as well (as they rightly should).

The concerns about water are fair enough too. Nobody wants to have a poisoned water-supply do they? Concerns of 1080 leeching into or being dumped directly into rivers are being heard. But, does the science support this?

Well, not surprisingly, there have been numerous studies done on 1080 and water. The consensus shows that 1080 breaks down very quickly in water. When baits are unintentionally dropped into rivers, the poison is washed downstream. But, instead of making an entire poison river that kills everything in its path, instead, the poison is diluted as it moves down. As it is washed down the river, it biodegrades until there are no detectable levels at all. Detectable levels are as little as 1ppt. 1080 does not bioaccumulate. Water is continually monitored around and within dropzones though, as a precaution. Historically, no 1080 has ever been detected in drinking water catchments.

Whio and ducklings

Thanks for reading. Next time, I'll talk about the opposition. The abuse of DOC staff, the death threats, vandalism, science-denial, and fake news of the anti1080 brigade.

If there's anything you feel is incorrect, or you want to challenge something, then let me know. Or if there's anything you feel I missed and want it written about in the next one, or anything inparticular you feel I should include in the next instalment, don't hesitate. 

Stay sceptical.

Skeptical Kiwi.