Thousands of pets could be killed and households hit with costs of more than $1 billion each year if fire ants are allowed to spread across Australia, new research from The Australia Institute suggests.
The invasive species, originally from South America, has been detected in several states, with Queensland so far the worst affected.
International data suggests 30% of people in fire ant-infested areas get stung each year, with risk of anaphylactic shock.
If allowed to spread across Australia, fire ant stings would result in an extra 624,000 medical visits for humans and 2.3 million vet visits for pets, the research warns.
“This could see over 30 people and thousands of pets die each year,” said Research Director of The Australia Institute, Rod Campbell.
“Fire ants are a potential economic and environmental disaster for Australia.”
The Institute says State and Federal Government funding to eradicate fire ants is well below the $300 million per year recommended by government experts.
“If a murderer said that they planned to kill 30 random Australians each year, the response would be enormous. That’s essentially what fire ants are doing – yet the response is minimal,” said Mr Campbell.
“Australia’s government isn’t doing enough to protect people or the economy from fire ants, but perhaps it will act to protect our pets.
“Prime Minister Albanese, a renowned animal lover, could save Australian households $1 billion a year and a lot of heartache by properly funding and prioritising fire ant eradication.
“Our research shows that investing in fire ant eradication is one of the best economic policies a government could adopt, as well as being good environmental and security policy.”
Read the report here.
