Greens will check up on moth spray check-up

The Green Party today welcomes a Health Ministry announcement that it will conduct an independent inquiry into the health effects of the painted apple moth spray programme.

But Green MP Ian Ewen-Street said the Greens would be keeping a watching brief on the inquiry, and would undertake on behalf of Auckland residents to ensure the inquiry was truly independent.

"We will closely monitor the inquiry to guard against it being another Government whitewash," Mr Ewen-Street said.

"The residents of West Auckland being bombarded with the toxic chemical cocktail Foray 48B deserve to be listened to, and to have their concerns treated seriously and objectively. They also deserve to have their concerns over the detrimental health effects of the spray campaign fully addressed."

Mr Ewen-Street said the inquiry was significantly overdue.

"The Greens have long been calling for an independent inquiry into the health effects of the spray," he said. "The inquiry would carry even more weight if it included full disclosure of the contents of Foray 48B."

Mr Ewen-Street said he would continue to call for a separate inquiry into the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry's mishandling of the biosecurity breach, which led to the moth infestation and the subsequent health problems of a significant population group.

"And we must reduce the chances of any further Foray 48B spray campaigns, by tightening up our biosecurity border controls; particularly by introducing full inspection of sea containers," he said.

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