Overview of Petitions - live exports and GM crops

Extract from Hansard
[COUNCIL — Wednesday, 23 November 2011]
p9624b-9624b

Standing Committee on Environment and Public Affairs —
Twenty-second Report — “Overview of Petitions”— Motion

Resumed from 9 November on the following motion moved by Hon Brian Ellis —
That the statement be noted.

The CHAIRMAN: Before we start, I point out that there are only 49 minutes remaining on this particular
motion.

Hon LYNN MacLAREN: Several of the petitions are of great interest to me. As I indicated in my previous
remarks, they contain quite topical issues. I began my speech by talking about a petition that was tabled before I
came to Parliament. It was on the meat industry. I wanted to provide a quote to give members some perspective
on how far we have come over time. This is a quote from one of the submissions relating to the abattoir industry.
It states —

Currently there are no export abattoirs operating above Geraldton in the Northern part of WA. In the
past there were abattoirs in Wyndam, Derby, Broome and Carnarvon, and with these facilities now
closed, it leaves pastoralists very dependent upon the live export trade which is under threat from a
number of fronts.

That has come up several times in this house and it will continue to come up as a topical issue. It is worthy to
know that the committee spent considerable time looking at the abattoir industry.

The committee also looked at a petition about Jarrahdale. We looked at logging around Jarrahdale. I feel that the
committee was quite successful in achieving some limitations on where it was going be logged. We visited the
community and we came to this conclusion —

Following consideration of the information available and with benefit of the site visit, the Committee
agreed that the petitioners’ concern regarding the provision of adequate buffers around walk trails and
the town was legitimate. Consequently, the Committee wrote to the Forest Products Commission to
recommend a buffer of 100m around walk trails be preserved wherever possible as well as a significant
buffer around the town. The Committee resolved to otherwise finalise the petition on 5 May 2010.

We all shared a sense of achievement that we were able to help that community protect some of the amenity
around Jarrahdale.

Before we break, I would like to refer to a petition on genetically modified crops. In reviewing this petition about
GM crops almost as soon as we were elected, we came across some very interesting evidence. One of the
submissions stated —

The WA National Party went to the State election with a policy commitment to not introduce GM food
crops in WA.

It has certainly come a long way from that policy stance. We received a submission from Bee Winfield who
stated that there were 22 plants and vegetables that canola could crossbreed with.

Committee interrupted, pursuant to temporary orders.

[Continued on page 9634.]

Sitting suspended from 4.15 to 4.30 pm