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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2013-04-09 Daily Xml
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BIOSECURITY

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY (15:30): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries a question about our strong biosecurity measures.

Leave granted.

The Hon. R.P. WORTLEY: The government has announced, as one of its seven strategic priorities, premium food from our clean environment. I am sure all South Australians are proud of our clean environment and want to maintain this competitive edge. My question is: can the minister advise the council of the research project that is helping to maintain our clean environment?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, Minister for Forests, Minister for Regional Development, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for State/Local Government Relations) (15:30): I thank the honourable member for his most important question. Indeed, there has been a strong theme of water quality and biosecurity today, and this speaks further to the quality assurance program that came from a question asked by the Hon. David Ridgway earlier on. South Australia has a national and international reputation as a supplier of premium food and wines that are clean, safe and produced in a sustainable and ethical manner.

The commercial fisheries of South Australia are certainly no exception. Some of our shellfish are amongst the world's most highly sought after. One of the factors underpinning the success of the shellfish industry is the world renowned South Australian Shellfish Quality Assurance Program (SASQAP). This program was established as a joint initiative between Primary Industries and Regions (PIRSA) and the shellfish industries 16 years ago, so it has been in place for a very long time and has been very successful.

SASQAP has successfully provided public health protection for the consumption of South Australian shellfish. The program strives to ensure the sustainable development of a shellfish industry capable of exporting shellfish to any country. I am pleased to advise the council that, in recognition of the program's success, PIRSA's SASQAP team leader, Clinton Wilkinson, was recently invited to speak at the ninth International Conference on Molluscan Shellfish Safety, which was held in Sydney in March of this year. This conference brought together more than 210 delegates, including prominent scientists and partners from over 30 different countries, to share in the very important exchange of knowledge and ideas on the latest scientific advances.

Shellfish farming in South Australia is unique to Australia as shellfish are grown in intertidal and subtidal oceanic conditions within shallow embayments around the coast. Shellfish are fed by nutrient-rich upwellings—we have heard a lot about upwellings today as well—originating from the continental shelf and are not impacted by contaminants normally associated with freshwater inputs in estuarine conditions. I am advised that currently, in South Australia, there are 17 shellfish growing areas, consisting of 28 harvesting areas. I understand that Mr Wilkinson's presentation to the international conference focused on how 'risk assessments underpin the effectiveness of the South Australian shellfish program'.

I understand Mr Wilkinson informed the conference that SASQAP, in assessing the risk associated with safe harvest of shellfish, interpret environmental factors that may distribute contaminants, collect and analyse water quality, determine appropriate classification of the shellfish growing area, produce ongoing reviews of the shellfish growing area classification and management strategies, and respond to environmental events and disease outbreaks should they occur.

This state is rightly viewed as a world leader in fisheries management and sustainability, and this is something the government has committed to building on with our premium food and wine from our clean environment initiative. Obviously, I am very proud of the contribution my department makes. I am also informed that earlier on this year, an emergency management response scenario (Exercise Sea Fox) was undertaken with the oyster industry, and the industry was very happy with the preparedness and planning that Biosecurity SA and the industry had in place. Following this emergency management exercise, an emergency response plan is being prepared and Biosecurity SA has advised me that it is well prepared should there be any outbreak. As I said, I commend those officers for their incredible hard work and commitment to this very important policy area.

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