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Newcastle Herald
Newcastle Herald
National
Matt Carr

Hunter varroa eradication zone to expand after two new sites found

A varroa mite, right, attached to a bee.

VARROA mites continue to elude measures to stamp out the invasive parasite, with two new detections in the Hunter.

The NSW Department of Primary Industries (DPI) on Friday confirmed tracing and surveillance work had added two new sites to the list of infected premises, which the department said now stands at 109 since the mites were first detected at the Port of Newcastle in June.

Chief plant protection officer Satendra Kumar said the Bishops Bridge and Mulbring detections were within the eradication zone.

"The boundary of the Hunter eradication zone will be slightly extended as a result of one of the cases and a new emergency order is now in place," Mr Kumar said.

"Surveillance remains an ongoing priority - to date we have tested close to 12,000 hives within the zones and more than 30,000 hives state-wide.

"Finding new mites through this phase is not unexpected and we remain committed to delimiting the spread of Varroa mite and eradicating it from NSW."

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