Protect NSW from toxic pesticides
Locals gather to make a human ‘SOS’ sign at pesticide-poisoned Hearnes Lake, Woolgoolga.
When you reach for fresh fruit and vegetables in the supermarket, you expect them to be safe. Unfortunately, many are grown using toxic chemicals that are linked to cancer, infertility, developmental disorders in children, and degenerative diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s. These chemicals don’t just affect our food, they leak into our drinking water and leach into soils and waterways, impacting our health and the health of natural ecosystems.
We call on NSW Minister for Planning and Public Spaces, the Hon. Paul Scully, to amend relevant State Environment Planning Policies (SEPPs), the Standard Instrument (Local Environmental Plans) Order 2006, and Environmental Planning and Assessment Regulation 2021, as to:
- Enforce minimum standards for horticultural developments, such as mandatory vegetation buffers, to better contain chemical drift and runoff into neighbouring properties and ecosystems.
- Require mandatory development application (DAs) for new and modified horticultural operations in RU1, RU2, and RU4 zoned land.