Tony Zappia (Makin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

And farmers, certainly. I appreciate the interjection, because it was in fact a local farmer who took us through his farm and gave us a firsthand demonstration of what he was doing with respect to trying to minimise the effects of chemicals being washed out into the waterways and into the coastline.

I said just a moment ago that only a week or so ago some members of this House were briefed by the World Wide Fund for Nature. The effect of that briefing was to highlight the concern that they had about the use of chemicals in the growing of fruits, vegetables and other crops in this country. One of the things that concerns me as a result of their presentation—and I assume that their presentation was factual—is that it quite often takes many years for a chemical about which concern has been expressed to be reviewed, sometimes between five and 10 years, and I understand that there are some cases where reviews have been underway for something like 13 years or more. That seems to be an extraordinarily long period of time.

We were also advised that there are chemicals which have been banned by the European Union but which we continue to use in Australia. Again, those kinds of statements are of concern, and I am pleased to see that Minister Tony Burke is in the chamber because I am sure that he will take them on board. Those kinds of concerns are being put to me by the very people I represent, and it would be reassuring to know that we have the systems and review processes in place to provide some level of comfort to the people of Australia that chemicals being used are in fact not a risk to their health.

In closing, I want to also point to some very good and responsible examples of gardening and agricultural practices in Australia. The example I will use is an example of something that I know is occurring right around Australia in many local communities. On 5 June, I visited the Wynn Vale Community Garden in the electorate of Makin. The concept of community gardens is not new to me, and I know that many communities around Australia have similar gardens in place. What most impressed me about the Wynn Vale Community Garden was just how well-organised it was and the diversity of fruit, vegetable and flower plantings that the 25 or so members had grown, and how well each of the garden beds was being cared for. Half of the garden is devoted to individual plots, and the other half to communal plots of herbs, ornamental vegetables and native varieties.

There is a strong emphasis throughout the garden on saving water and, in that respect, there was a water harvesting wetlands area located adjacent to the garden where the water is collected, and there are discussions underway between the community garden and the local council to pipe water directly from those wetlands and then use it on the garden. Produce from the garden is shared or donated to charity, so a great deal of the members’ work benefits others. For children who visit the garden, it becomes a fascinating educational experience about how food is grown.

Planning for the Wynn Vale Community Garden commenced in 1994, with land donated by the city of Tea Tree Gully. Since then, it has received grants from the federal government and local government and has been recognised for its work, with awards from the Heart Foundation and KESAB. In 2004, the garden was featured in a segment on the popular ABC television show Gardening Australia. In fact, the group has had to limit membership numbers, and I understand that there is a waiting list. The group regularly invites in gardening experts to speak about gardening to members, and on the day that I visited there was one such expert doing exactly that—teaching people how to grow flowers, fruit or vegetables with minimal use of any chemicals whatsoever.

Perhaps what impressed me the most was that the membership appeared to be fairly evenly split between men and women, and they all equally contributed to the gardening activities. It was terrific to see that it was evenly split between men and women, and it reminded me very much, I suppose, of what I would refer to as a men’s shed, a place where men could go out and do what they wanted to do. But in this case it was a men’s and women’s shed, and they did have a shed on the property—in fact they had several sheds, which they obviously used to assist them with their activities.

I say to the Wynn Vale Community Garden members: I congratulate you on what you have achieved. I thank them all for their welcome to me on the day and their hospitality, and I particularly thank Graham Douglass, whom I have known for several years, for providing me with a guided tour of the garden. As I have said from the outset, I think this bill makes common sense in respect of the administration of the labelling laws relating to the chemicals used in the production of agricultural products in this country, and I commend the bill to the House.

See this speech in context