Anne McEwen (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

At the request of Senator Urquhart, I move:

That the following matter be referred to the Environment and Communications References Committee for inquiry and report by 22 June 2016:

The risks and opportunities associated with the use of the bumblebee population in Tasmania for commercial pollination purposes, including:

(a) the existing distribution and population density of exotic bumblebees;

(b) productivity and economic benefits of the commercial use of bumblebees for agricultural producers;

(c) the potential environmental impacts associated with the commercial use of bumblebees, including whether their use is likely to:

(i) impact the conservation status of a species or ecological community,

(ii) impact biodiversity,

(iii) cause unintended ecological impacts, and

(iv) contribute to a wider distribution of bumblebees;

(d) the implications for Australia’s biosecurity regime of any approval to use bumblebees in Tasmania for commercial purposes;

(e) the potential economic outcomes;

(f) the effectiveness of alternative pollination options; and

(g) any other related matters.

Question agreed to.