Uproar As Risks Dock

office(at)ausbuy.com.au

Changes to Australia's cargo inspection regime pose a serious threat to biosecurity, according to orchardists and bee keepers.

The Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service ceased inspecting every container arriving at the nation's ports this month.

AQIS said it had moved to a "risk-based" inspection regime instead of checking cargo of “negligible risk".

But beekeepers have slammed the changes, arguing the Varroa mite, which kills indigenous and honey bees, could arrive from any country.

Victorian Farmers Federation beekeepers branch president Bob McDonald said the industry was” totally opposed" to the AQIS changes.

"Varroa is in every country in the world except Australia (so) I wouldn't define any country as being low risk," Mr McDonald said.

“A lot more money has to be put into port surveillance as far as the beekeeping industry is concerned.”

Leading Goulburn Valley orchardist and former SPC Ardmona chairman John Corboy said the Federal Government was "shirking its responsibility".

"What they are saying is illogical because if they are going to inspect less, the risks will be greater," Mr Corboy said.

"I think you will find this is a resource issue."

Mr Corboy said Australia had "had reasonable success in keeping pests and diseases out and our inspection regime has contributed to that success".

"The Government is shirking its responsibility very clearly on this."

Controversy over AQIS's inspections follows claims it had stopped inspecting containers leaving the Port of Melbourne at night.

A truck driver who transports containers from the port claimed last week that AQIS had told him no containers would checked between 10:00pm and 6am.

The Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry has so far not responded to that claim.

But a DAFF spokeswoman said the inspection changes meant "more resources being targeted at more serious biosecurity risks"

"This is not about reducing biosecurity vigilance or reducing staff,'' the spokeswoman said.

"This should... offer better ways to move cargo without compromising Australia's biosecurity.

This article, by Paul Sellars, appeared in the Weekly Times on 19th May 2010.

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