Public perceptions of 1080 poison use in New Zealand

Abstract Environmental policies are often contentious because of the public nature of their effects which individuals are typically unable to avoid. This paper provides evidence about the level of public support for and opposition to aerial 1080 (sodium fluoroacetate) application to control vertebrate pests, and the role of beliefs about related factors that influence individuals’ positions on aerial 1080. Data are analysed from a 2019 survey of New Zealand adults which assessed participants’ views on 1080-related matters, gained their opinions about pest impacts, pest control and the role of science, and gauged their acceptance of 1080. Priors were that opposition to 1080 would be negatively related with education, trust in science and government, and negative beliefs about outcomes of using 1080. We apply factor analysis, cluster analysis, logistic regression and the potential for conflict index to gain insight into the level, strength, drivers for and heterogeneity of beliefs about aerial 1080 use.