WA’s agricultural lobby groups have condemned the Labor State government and the Greens WA for supporting an inquiry investigating compensation for farmers contaminated by genetically modified (GM) material.
The inquiry will be conducted by an Upper House standing committee which will examine mechanisms for compensation for WA farmers who suffer economic loss caused by GM contamination.
It comes after Greens member Diane Evers MLC tabled a petition in State Parliament earlier this year, prompted by the high-profile Marsh versus Baxter case.
Kojonup farmer Steve Marsh lost his organic certification after GM canola from Michael Baxter’s neighbouring farm was found on the Marsh property in 2010.
Mr Marsh took Mr Baxter to court seeking more than $80,000 in compensation, but after a six-year battle the case was dismissed in the Supreme Court.
Ms Evers said while the petition stemmed from the Marsh versus Baxter case, other WA growers had raised concerns about GM contamination.
“Other people have been concerned about it over time as well as to what would happen because we’ve seen what has happened overseas,” Ms Evers said.
“There is an association of GM-free farmers and I’ve had representatives from there come to see me specifically.
“Sometimes when a farmer has grown something and the GM material comes onto their property, they’re no longer able to sell their produce at the same level that they would have been in the past, so in Steve Marsh’s case he actually lost his organic standing.
“In other cases it could just be that they may have had organic canola and now they can’t sell it as organic.
“It’s really just putting in place should this event be likely to occur in the future that there would be some sort of compensation for it.”
Agriculture and Food Minister Alannah MacTiernan has expressed her support for the inquiry and it was an important step to ensuring that GM and non-GM farming could co-exist.
“Growing GM crops makes financial sense for some farmers but if neighbouring farmers growing organic crops lose money as a result of contamination, we need to look at whether that financial burden should be shared,” Ms MacTiernan said.
“We will await the outcome of the committee’s inquiry and encourage stakeholders to make a submission.”
WAFarmers Grain Section president Duncan Young said he was disappointed at the lack of industry consultation prior to the inquiry initiation.
Mr Young said the inquiry was a step backwards following the repeal of the GM Crops Free Areas Act 2003 last year, and a Federal review into the Gene Technology Act 2000 in 2005.
He said non-GM growers were already protected under common law and the inquiry was an unnecessary “waste of resources”.
“The Federal government has already completed a review in GM gene technology, it is already covered under common law so we question why it would need changing,” Mr Young said.
“Why would the State government duplicate something that has already been done?”
“While we understand the State government is intending to look at this issue to ensure peaceful co-existence rather than necessarily changing current legislation, bringing GM canola back into the spotlight after the difficulties faced by industry in getting the GM Free Areas Bill 2003 repealed last year seems like a backward step.
Mr Young said other than the Marsh versus Baxter case, he was not aware of any major issues surrounding co-existence between GM and non-GM canola growers in WA.
“GM canola is a legal and safe crop, so we are unsure as to why it is being made an example of and what the precedent is for this inquiry,” Mr Young said.
“While anti-GM groups and individuals will carry on vocalising their concerns, WAFarmers will continue to support giving growers the option to use GM cultivars if that is a choice they wish to pursue.”
Pastoralists and Graziers Association of WA Grain Committee chairman Gary McGill has questioned the motives of those pushing for the inquiry, saying it was the last option left for the anti-GM movement.
Mr McGill said the introduction of compensation mechanisms could deter WA growers from using GM technology – a result those opposed to GM crops were hoping for.
“They’ve resorted now to this tactic to create a circumstance where growers are nervous, they’re afraid,” Mr McGill said.
“They’re conservative people and they’re worried about being pursued, they’re worried about being charged with some sort of negligence.
“I would have thought this Labor government would have had some very important economic decisions to worry about in this State other than to be tampering with mainstream agriculture production.”
Mr McGill said the PGA had been in contact with State government officials and would continue to advocate for the continued use of GM technology in WA.
“We’ve already undertaken some very serious lobbying, we’ve prepared a document, we’ve got a paper that was submitted to the government and we are ready to rock and roll and defend this technology again if we have to,” Mr McGill said.
Public submissions to the Environment and Public Affairs Committee will be accepted until February 16, 2018.