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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2025-10-30 Daily Xml
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Algal Bloom

Mr TELFER (Flinders) (14:55): My question is to the Premier. Can the Premier guarantee the people of the West Coast, which is currently free of the harmful algal bloom and the associated brevetoxin, that the movement of oysters from algal bloom areas happens with zero risk to the local environment and industry, and what conditions have been placed on those movements?

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS (Croydon—Premier, Minister for Defence and Space Industries) (14:55): I thank the member for Flinders for his question on this subject again. I can advise the member for Flinders in a bit more detail. Firstly, in regard to the SA Oyster Growers Association, I am advised that there was consultation that took place with them. They advised themselves, that is, the SA Oyster Growers Association, and I quote:

…[SA Oyster Growers Association] recommend to PIRSA that relay requests should begin to be processed and then allowed where at least one method of risk mitigation is used prior to movement.

That goes to the matter that we were discussing earlier about consultation and engagement with the industry more broadly. So a comprehensive risk assessment has been undertaken, consistent with national standards. The oyster transfer arrangements were standards that were developed nationally and there was a review that was undertaken in 2023 regarding biotoxins.

South Australia updated its guidelines last year to align with those national standards, which is worthy of note. A comprehensive risk assessment has been undertaken consistent with the national standards, and an independent review further concluded that the likelihood of translocation causing a bloom is low. I am advised that the oysters will be kept out of the water for 24 hours, cleaned, rinsed and equipment properly washed down and changed. The oysters will be quarantined under strict conditions until brevetoxin levels drop to a food-safe level under 0.8 milligrams per kilo. Then I mentioned what was said about the consultation.

What I would say to the member for Flinders is when the member for Flinders contemplates the position that he will take on this matter, as he is entitled to do and indeed has a responsibility to do as the member for Flinders, I would invite him to look at the big picture here. Because of course it is open to the member for Flinders to pursue a political path and go around and whip up fear and seek to critique—

Mr Telfer: I am not whipping up the fear.

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: I am not accusing you of that.

Mr Telfer: The fear is there; you have started it.

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: Exactly. I know that fear is there and it is open to you to whip that up. Or it is also open to you to seek to engage with those people who have a degree of concern with the fact that the people who are the regulators and the authorities who are custodians of the science regarding all of this have done the work and made judgements accordingly. We know in government—and this was discussed in the task force meeting, of which I am present—that there are people who are opposed to this, but we also know there is a genuine need for other oyster growers.

Our view is that we have got a responsibility to think about them too and make balanced decisions in the interests of the industry as a whole. So, yes, we could focus on the fear but we could also focus on the science that should assuage people of any of those fears, bearing in mind that the more people beat the drum about this I don't know how it is doing the industry any favours. The truth is that eating South Australian oysters is an excellent thing to be doing at the moment. They're absolutely magnificent eating. In fact, I had more on the weekend—they were pretty good—that I bought from Samtass—

Mr Telfer interjecting:

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: —because I want to support people eating oysters. You should too. And that means having a discussion based on the science.

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