South Australia is bolstering its defences against one of the world's most invasive pests by pouring $17 million into the National Fire Ant Eradication Program.
While Red Imported Fire Ants - that cause extensive agricultural and ecological damage - have not yet been found in SA, they have been detected in Qld and spread southward to NSW.
Five nest were found at Murwillumbah in northern NSW in November, and last month they were detected in Ballina, south of Byron Bay.
The ants have the potential to destroy crops and machinery and make paddocks unusable. They can also damage electrical equipment and inflict a painful sting that can cause fatal allergic reactions in people, livestock and pets.
Nearly all of Australia is at risk of invasion so any extra funding is welcomed to stop the spread, said Invasive Species Council advocacy manager Reece Pianta.
"Fire ants are one of the world's worst super pests and if they are allowed to spread across the continent their economic impact will be greater than cane toads, rabbits, feral cats and foxes combined," he said.
"They will devastate Australia's environment and agriculture, cost our economy billions annually and we could see hundreds of thousands of extra medical visits every year as they sting Australians at the park or in the backyard.
"Fire ant eradication is still possible if Australia's state and federal governments ensure that the level of resources meets the needs on the ground."
Primary Industries Minister Clare Scriven said a united effort in fighting fire ants was vital in stopping their spread.
"Red imported fire ants represent a serious risk to our health, environment, livestock, and economy with the potential to also limit our outdoor lifestyle and damage our precious native flora and fauna, which is why we must do whatever we can to stop them spreading into our state," she said.
"It's crucial the eradication program maintains momentum given the risk this high priority pest poses. Other countries have given up in the fight against fire ants but given the success of the response in containing the spread to date, I'm confident we can continue to stop them in their tracks."
The state government's $17.1m funding commitment adds to the $6.5m it had already budgeted to the National Fire Ant Eradication Program.
The program includes a four-year response plan, worth a total of $592.8m to scale-up efforts towards eventual eradication.
The primary way fire ants spread is through human activity.
Moving potential host materials such as containerised plants, potting media, soil, organic mulch, turf, hay, straw, agriculture machinery or used containers can spread fire ants over many kilometres, and they can rapidly establish new colonies.
Federal Agriculture Minister Murray Watt said state, territory and commonwealth governments were all united in stopping the spread of the imported ants and they had had relative success thus far compared to other nations.
"Since the start of the ten-year plan, the program's efforts have kept RIFA's spread rate in SEQ at approximately 4.9 kilometres per year - compared to 48km per year in the USA and 80km per year in China," he said.
