KEY POINTS:
An inquiry which found people were "human collateral" of the painted apple moth spraying project has been rejected by Biosecurity Minister Jim Anderton.
The People's Inquiry was set up in 2005 after 2-1/2 years of spraying Foray 48b in urban Auckland by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF).
The spraying was intended to eradicate the moth, considered a major threat to biosecurity.
The inquiry involved a range of west Auckland residents, scientists and others appearing before a panel of four commissioners from New Zealand and abroad.
Recommendations go to the Government.
The report said the community became the "human collateral" of the spray campaign, and the lack of government response was disturbing.
But Mr Anderton said the campaign was vital to protect the iconic native forest of the Waitakere Ranges and rejected findings that the community was seriously damaged.
"The community had been involved in the programme from the start, and all steps had been taken to avoid aerial spraying, which had prolonged the programme," Mr Anderton said.
Ground spraying was unsuccessful but the subsequent aerial programme succeeded in eradicating the painted apple moth, he said.
Green MP Sue Kedgley said the report showed the need for an urgent overhaul of biosecurity laws as under the Biosecurity Act, officials were not required to acknowledge or compensate people for impacts on their health or livelihood.
"This must change, and the Ministry of Health must be given explicit responsibility for assessing and overseeing the public health impacts of any future biosecurity programme," she said.
"I congratulate the community for taking the initiative and undertaking the first-ever People's Inquiry in New Zealand into the impacts and effects of the 2-1/2 years of aerial spraying over urban areas of Auckland."
Pesticide Action Network Aotearoa New Zealand co-ordinator Merial Watts also welcomed the report and said there must be a formal inquiry.
"It is completely unacceptable to spray an urban population more that 50 times with a brew of a biological insecticide and chemicals, and prevent the community from knowing what chemicals they are being sprayed with. This is a fundamental abuse of human rights," Dr Watts said.
"There must now be a formal apology by the Government to the community and compensation for the effects they experienced. The report described the experiences suffered by some people at the hands of MAF and its contracted doctors as `brutalising'.
"This situation must never happen again."
The inquiry in March last year received 125 submissions and heard from 70 people.
One of the commissioners, Joanna Goven from Canterbury University, said the spraying caused extensive disruption to people's work, education and family lives.
"There were various kind of respiratory (problems), skin complaints, and various aggravation of pre-existing conditions," she told Radio New Zealand.
"What was more significant for me was the pattern of treatment people received when they sought assistance for these (complaints)."
Dr Goven said the people who tried to get help felt "hurt, anger, mistrust, and alienation" because they were told they did not meet the standards set for health assistance.
Residents felt powerless because officials had promised health support and yet they were not able to access it, she said.
The report said recommended the Government make an official apology, compensate victims and review the Biosecurity Act.
Waitakere deputy Mayor Penny Hulse said she hoped the government would take notice of the report.
"We said all along the painted apple moth spray programme put our community under huge stress and impacted on their health both mental and physical. This report confirms what we said.
"Nobody knew what the physical and psychological effects were going to be from such a sustained spraying. There was no precedent, yet MAF said they knew what the health effects would be, and refused to acknowledge health effects that erupted on every spray day."
- NZPA
