Coroner & Legal
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Damages awarded for spray drift case
By Mitch Grayson
Tuesday, 06/07/2010
A southern Queensland cotton farmer has been awarded $467,000 in damages after spray drift killed his crop.
The decision was handed down in the Supreme Court in Brisbane against Meandarra Aerial and Lachlan Hill.
They had applied chemical from an aircraft to kill wattle trees on a property almost 20 kilometres away from Condamine cotton grower Ash Geldard.
“We had some yellowing developing in our cotton that we had never seen before and as time moved on it became more apparent that it was herbicide damage,” Mr Geldard says.
He has also had a swipe at the former DPI, now known as DEEDI, for not doing enough about punishing people who break the rules.
“History has shown that hey have taken virtually no action in Queensland against any breaches of their legislation.
“It sends a pretty ordinary message to the people who do the wrong thing.”
Cotton Australia CEO Adam Kay has shared his concerns at the lack of follow up from state departments.
“We certainly have problems in New South Wales and Queensland with these control of use agencies.
“They seem to have real problems in following through on prosecutions,” he says.
The pilot and owner of the aerial company based in Meandarra has refused an interview with the ABC.
The Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation had not replied to the Country Hour but says it will issue a written statement.
In this report: Ashley Geldard, Noonameena, Condamine; Adam Kay, CEO, Cotton Australia
And,
Wingecarribee Reservoir – polluted with Triclopyr in August 2007 at possibly the highest herbicide level in an Australian domestic water supply over the past 20 years. Eight times over the Australian Drinking Water Health Guideline. Was anyone informed at the time?
Agricultural Pesticide Issues Australia Snapshot
“It was also noted that the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry have directed APVMA (Australian Pesticides Veterinary Medicines Authority) not to include the Precautionary Principle…” Meeting Notes for CCC32 – August 26th 2004.
Pesticide in Sydney Water Supply Worst Ever in Australia? (August 20 2007). Triclopyr detected at 0.08mg/L (8 times Australian Drinking Water Guidelines Health Limit) at inflow to Wingecarribee Water Filtration Plant. Triclopyr is used in melon farms and for blackberry control. Water from Wingecarribee is used to supply local communities (eg Picton, Bargo) and to supplement other Sydney catchments in times of drought (Sydney, Penrith and lower Blue Mountains, Warrangamba, Campbelltown). Source: Sydney Catchment Authority. Appendix D Water Quality Incidents and Exceptions 2007-08 [2007-2008 Annual Water Quality Monitoring Report].