Farmers and residents in Lightning Ridge are calling for more support to control a growing infestation of a state-declared noxious weed in north-west New South Wales.
Hudson pear is a highly invasive cactus that was brought to Australia sometime in the 1960s.
Lightning Ridge Area Opal Reserve manager David Sullivan said attempts to control it on the 8,000 hectares of land managed by the community-run organisation have failed despite thousands of dollars in government funding to pay contract sprayers.
"Year-on-year we've been increasing our [weed spraying] but it's just not enough," he said.
"We need our resources increased dramatically."
'Couldn't get it all even if I sprayed every day'
About 80 kilometres from Lightning Ridge, more than half of Bryce Kelly's land has been rendered unusable for grazing by the Hudson pear.
Mr Kelly runs a few goats on his land and said he has been unable make a real dent in his infestation despite spraying once a week.
"Even if I were to go out everyday myself, I probably could never get on top of it, there's just too much."
Nick Deson, who runs a mixed farming operation between Lightning Ridge and Grawin, said he had also been unable to stop the spread of the cactus on his 20,000-hectare property.
The infestation has covered up to 40 per cent of his land.
Hudson pear near Narran Lakes
Mr Sullivan inspected Narran Lakes from a helicopter last week to see how far the cactus has spread.
"There are big areas that are heavily infested, visible from the sky, and it's less than five kilometres from the lake.
"Narran Lakes is a RAMSAR-protected site, it's definitely at risk," Mr Sullivan said.
He said the weed has been spreading partly because the control agents were not working and partly as a result of floodwaters.
"If it gets into the waterways, it could go from the Lightning Ridge area into the Barwon River, into the Darling and ultimately into the Murray River," Mr Sullivan said.
But not everybody agrees that more positions or more funding will solve the problem.
Landowners 'have biosecurity duty'
Castlereagh Macquarie County Council's senior biosecurity weeds officer Andy Fletcher Dawson said the Hudson pear is reducing thanks to its biocontrol agent, the cochineal bug.
She said the bug, which is distributed by the council, has been slowed by the rain but will improve when warm weather returns.
She said the solution was raising community awareness and ensuring farmers sprayed on their properties with enough follow-up to make sure the cactus was dead.
"Under the Biosecurity Act, all landowners and managers have a biosecurity duty to reduce the impact of all weeds on their land."
NSW Agriculture Minister Dugald Saunders responded to questions on this issue at Budget Estimates, saying Castlereagh Macquarie County Council and the LLS had full-time staff on the ground to address the problem.
He also said landholders shared a portion of the responsibility for dealing with weeds on their land and the solution was for everyone in the community to work together.
"If you're a landowner, you particularly need to be working with LLS," he said.
