What’s happening?
Thousands of Redlands households are among 64,000 across South East Queensland set to receive free fire ant treatment kits from this week. The Crisafulli Government is delivering the initiative through the Fire Ant Suppression Taskforce (FAST), giving residents in suppression zones the tools to protect their own backyards from one of the world’s most invasive pests.
Why it matters
Fire ants pose a serious threat to health, the environment, the economy, and Queensland’s outdoor lifestyle. Minister for Primary Industries Tony Perrett said: “Fire ants are a serious biosecurity threat to our health, environment, economy, and outdoor way of life, so we need as many people as possible to treat their properties as part of our fight against this insidious pest.”
By the numbers
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64,000 households across SEQ, including Redlands, will receive free treatment kits by mail.
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$24 million is being invested over the next two years for aerial treatment on larger properties in suppression zones.
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By mid-2026, 106,000 hectares will have been treated twice by helicopter or drone.
Local impact
Redlands residents within the suppression zone can register for the self-treatment kits and expect them to arrive by post. The kits contain granules that are sprinkled across yards during warmer months. Ants take the treatment back to their nests, stopping queens from producing viable offspring.
Zoom in
This is the first time residents will be able to treat their properties year-round. For households outside suppression zones, free nest treatment kits will also be available after suspect ants or nests are reported to the National Fire Ant Eradication Program.
Zoom out
The initiative supports the national goal of eradicating fire ants from Australia by 2032. Alongside Redlands, households across Logan, Ipswich, parts of Brisbane and the Gold Coast are also receiving kits. Aerial treatment is already underway in cane-growing areas on the northern Gold Coast including Alberton, Gilberton, Jacobs Well, Norwell, Pimpama, Steiglitz and Woongoolba. Treatment will then expand to Ormeau, Eagleby, the Logan-Albert River catchments and onto the Bremer River catchment.
What to look for next
Treatment efforts will continue across high-infestation areas through 2026, with Redlands households urged to register and take part in the program. Register HERE.
