Duck River Flood Monitoring Reveals 42 Contaminations from 48 Tests in Just One Month

KEEP CHEMICALS OUT OF OUR WATERWAYS!
Duck River Flood Monitoring Reveals 42 Contaminations from 48 Tests in Just One Month
Tim Morris MP
Greens Water spokesperson

The Tasmanian Greens today called on Labor to admit that its regulatory regime of the last 12 years to oversee the use and application of dangerous agricultural chemicals has failed, and to commit to reforming the system to prevent the ongoing contamination of Tasmania’s rivers and waterways with these toxic chemicals, after flood testing revealed that the Duck River was contaminated with extremely high levels of the herbicide MCPA during June and July this year.

Greens Water spokesperson Tim Morris MP said Minister Bryan Green’s attempt to describe Tasmania’s regulatory regime to keep agricultural chemicals out of waterways “world’s best” would be laughable if it wasn’t so serious, given that under this regime there have been increases in pesticide contaminations, increases in the duration of the contaminations, and increases in the levels of pesticides being detected.

Mr Morris also said that the Duck River feeds into Duck Bay where oyster farming is undertaken.

“Between the 18th of June and the 18th of July five distinct events triggered 48 tests from the flood sampling equipment in the Duck River, and 40 of those revealed the presence of MCPA, some at very high levels, while another two revealed 2,4-D,” said Mr Morris.

“Minister Green surely cannot be serious in his description of this system as ‘world’s best’ when the number and duration of contaminations, and the level of detected pesticides, are all increasing.”

“The Greens believe that the best possible regulatory system is one that places the onus on the user, as outlined in our proposed Chemical Trespass legislation.”

“Critically, MCPA has a specific label requirement that it not be allowed to enter waterways, yet it keeps on being detected in Tasmanian waterways and especially in the Duck River, which means that the current system is obviously failing abysmally.”

“Bryan Green is in denial about the significance of this problem, and the flaws in the regulatory regime that are allowing contaminations to not only continue, but to actually worsen.”

“Clean water is a basic human right and if Minister Bryan Green cannot guarantee that the current regime will protect our waterways from pesticide contaminations, which he cannot, then he should be implementing the Greens’ Chemical Trespass legislation and appointing a Water Quality Commissioner with the power to prosecute those people who are causing the contaminations to occur,” said Mr Morris.

EVIDENCE OF HARM CAUSED BY TRIAZINES IS MOUNTING
Greens Table 2nd Petition Calling for Triazine Ban
Tim Morris MP
Greens Water spokesperson

The Tasmanian Greens today tabled a second petition this week calling for a ban on the dangerous group of Triazine herbicides in Tasmania and containing 1,962 respondents, which brings the total number of petitioners tabled this week against the use of Triazines to 3,098.

Greens Water spokesperson Tim Morris MP said there have been more than 139 detections of Triazine herbicides in Tasmanian waterways in recent years, including at drinking water treatment plants for Hobart and Launceston, the evidence about the harmful effects of Triazine herbicides on health and reproduction is mounting rapidly, and Tasmanians are increasingly concerned about the Government’s apparent negligence and lack of concern.

“After tabling an e-petition with 1,136 signatures yesterday, I am today tabling a written petition with another 1,962 respondents calling for the government to ban the use of the dangerous Triazine group of herbicides from use in Tasmania,” said Mr Morris.

“Increasing numbers of scientific studies are finding serious health and reproductive issues being caused by low-level exposures to these herbicides.”

“Just last year the Tasmanian Government acknowledged that Triazines persist in the Tasmanian environment for far longer than in warmer environments.”

“The reproductive abnormalities caused by low-level exposure to these herbicides are extremely concerning.”

“After more than 139 Triazine contamination events in Tasmanian waterways and drinking water supplies, evidence that Triazines persist in Tasmania’s environment for far longer than label warnings, and increasing numbers of studies proving that low-level exposure causes reproductive abnormalities, it is high time that these dangerous herbicides were banned from Tasmania.”

“The Tasmanian Greens will continue this campaign until the government heeds our calls and moves to protect and clean up our contaminated water supplies,” said Mr Morris.