You can protect kauri

Kauri grow in the Northland, Auckland and Waikato regions of Aotearoa, and in parts of the Bay of Plenty.  If you’re in a natural bush area in the upper North Island, it's likely you’ll be near kauri.

Kauri are threatened by a soil-borne pathogen called Phytophthora agathidicida (PA for short). This pathogen infects kauri trees through their roots and restricts their ability to transport water and nutrients between their roots and their leaves, causing the condition known as kauri dieback disease, which eventually starves the kauri. 

The PA pathogen can infect kauri of any age, and symptoms of disease can take years to become outwardly visible.

The PA pathogen can be spread by:

• Footwear and other clothing/equipment that touches the forest floor
• Vehicles driven through infected areas
• Animal hooves/feet – including of wild pigs and stock
• Rainwater run-off.

The survival of kauri depends on all of us taking actions to protect kauri and reduce the spread of the PA pathogen. 

1. Use all wash stations you come across

• Wash stations are available at the entry to some forests. Watch this video from the Department of Conservation on how to use the cleaning stations:

It’s vital that footwear and other gear is cleaned and disinfected before going near kauri, and again before leaving an area with kauri, regardless of how long it has been in storage.

2. Clean your gear

• Clean your footwear and any items/gear that will touch the floor of a kauri forest so they're free of all dirt/organic matter before you enter and leave the forest.

3. Follow signage instructions

• Forest signage provides information about how to help protect kauri and prevent the spread of disease.

4. Stay on wooden and gravel tracks

• Staying on wooden and gravel tracks reduces the chances of spreading the PA pathogen.

5. Avoid kauri root zones

• Staying away from kauri roots is vital.  Kauri root zones extend outwards about 3x the radius of the tree's canopy.