Bay of Plenty Regional Council says an aquatic weed which could block waterways and create problems on farms has been found in Tauranga.
Alligator weed - or alternanthera philoxeroides - was discovered in a pond in Gordon Carmichael Reserve in the suburb of Bethlehem about a week ago.
It has spread over 1.5 hectares of pond edges and land.
Alligator weed - an aggressive plant that can be devastating to crops if it gets onto farmland - is already a problem in Northland, Auckland and Waikato.
The regional council says it is working with Tauranga City Council to get rid of the weed, which may have arrived in the area on contaminated machinery.
