Mrs PADGHAM-PURICH - 1995-11-23
In view of the rogue outbreaks of citrus canker at Lambells Lagoon a couple of years ago, Thrips palmi in the Northern Territory and the pawpaw fruit fly in Queensland, can the minister assure me that all wooden crates containing machinery parts from Asian countries that enter Darwin for a business in Winnellie, as well as the wooden crates that other industrial supplies are imported to the Northern Territory in, are adequately inspected for pests and insects by personnel of the Department of Primary Industry and Fisheries which acts as the agent for the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service in the Northern Territory?
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ANSWER
This is a good question, Mr Speaker, because we have been concerned for some time about the quarantine arrangements in place in the Northern Territory. Let me say that, with the outbreak of the papaya fruit fly in Queensland, I was concerned for the future of the industry here. Obviously, I took steps to find out what was happening. I was disappointed to read in the NT News a quite irresponsible editorial in relation to the quarantine restrictions that were in place at the time. Having been at Darwin Airport on the previous day and seen the sniffer dogs in action, my department responded very quickly in relation to the papaya fruit fly.
There have been outbreaks of other pests here. Citrus canker broke out at Lambells Lagoon. That has since been eradicated. It has been more than 2 years since citrus canker has been found at Lambells Lagoon. Thus, the area has been declared pest-free and the quarantine restrictions have been lifted. We have had pests like Thrips palmi and melon thrips. We have had outbreaks of poincetta white fly, a pest that has spread pretty well throughout Europe, the Americas and Asia. We were one of the few places in the world that was free of that disease.
I have not asked about timber crates specifically. However, I have spent some time in the last couple of days with Ian Kilduff, my senior quarantine man, inquiring of him as to the import requirements for timber products from Asia. He assured me that all timber products imported from Asia were sprayed with pesticides to ensure that no exotic pests entered Australia by that means. I assume that that would apply also to timber packaging. However, to reassure the member, I will make further inquiries and report back to her later.
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ANSWER
This is a good question, Mr Speaker, because we have been concerned for some time about the quarantine arrangements in place in the Northern Territory. Let me say that, with the outbreak of the papaya fruit fly in Queensland, I was concerned for the future of the industry here. Obviously, I took steps to find out what was happening. I was disappointed to read in the NT News a quite irresponsible editorial in relation to the quarantine restrictions that were in place at the time. Having been at Darwin Airport on the previous day and seen the sniffer dogs in action, my department responded very quickly in relation to the papaya fruit fly.
There have been outbreaks of other pests here. Citrus canker broke out at Lambells Lagoon. That has since been eradicated. It has been more than 2 years since citrus canker has been found at Lambells Lagoon. Thus, the area has been declared pest-free and the quarantine restrictions have been lifted. We have had pests like Thrips palmi and melon thrips. We have had outbreaks of poincetta white fly, a pest that has spread pretty well throughout Europe, the Americas and Asia. We were one of the few places in the world that was free of that disease.
I have not asked about timber crates specifically. However, I have spent some time in the last couple of days with Ian Kilduff, my senior quarantine man, inquiring of him as to the import requirements for timber products from Asia. He assured me that all timber products imported from Asia were sprayed with pesticides to ensure that no exotic pests entered Australia by that means. I assume that that would apply also to timber packaging. However, to reassure the member, I will make further inquiries and report back to her later.
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Last updated: 09 Aug 2016