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Parliamentary Questions


Question Without Notice No. 715 asked in the Legislative Council on 25 June 2020 by Hon Diane Evers

Parliament: 40 Session: 1

AGRICULTURE — GLYPHOSATE USE

715. Hon DIANE EVERS to the Minister for Agriculture and Food:

Today I learned that the chemical company Bayer has reached a $US10 billion settlement in the Roundup litigation in the United States.

(1) Can the minister advise what impact this may have in Western Australia?

(2) Will the minister consider the restricting the use or sale of glyphosate in Western Australia?

Hon ALANNAH MacTIERNAN replied:

I thank the member for the question.

(1)–(2) Yes, there has certainly been a lot of media coverage about this decision. The member is probably aware that access to Roundup, or glyphosate, is regulated at a federal level. It is important to note that the cases that have been settled—a huge amount, some $A15 billion, has been allocated to settle these cases—do not relate to the consumption of produce after glyphosate use, but, rather, relate to people who applied the chemical and who have contracted non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. I think that it is clear that farming communities will need to be very, very careful about their and their families' health and safety when applying this chemical. We need to ensure that we always help farmers understand exactly what they need to do to protect themselves when applying chemicals. I think the settlement will probably have a consequence for local governments that use this product on parks, where people, their residents, are potentially directly exposed to it.

However, one interesting thing about this decision is that Bayer, in conjunction with the litigants, will establish an independent science panel, which over the next two or three years will investigate the claims and concerns that this product may be implicated in non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. That is a very positive development. I also note that Bayer is saying that it has to have a plan B, so it has committed �5 billion over a 10-year period to develop additional products and new methods and products to manage weeds as part of an integrated approach to sustainable agriculture.