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Chemicals ordered for war on locusts

Chemicals ordered for war on locusts

The Brumby Labor Government has ordered $4.2 million in locust-spraying chemicals for public land to help combat what looms as one of the worst locust plagues in living memory.

The investment forms part of the Government’s $43.5 million war on locusts and complements a 100 percent rebate for farmers and local councils who purchase and use chemicals to spray locusts on their land.

In Mildura, Agriculture Minister Joe Helper said the Department of Primary Industries (DPI) would need enough chemicals to treat an estimated 600,000 hectares of public land such as state parks.

“The Brumby Labor Government is taking action now to fight a forecast locust plague which has the potential to cost Victoria’s agricultural sector $2 billion if left untreated,” Mr Helper said.

“Leading experts are predicting the scale of this plague could be as bad as we experienced in 1973 and 1974 when locusts swarmed through much of Victoria.

“Prior to that the last outbreak of this scale was in 1934 so we are facing a once-in-a-lifetime plague and it is vital we work with all other landholders to minimise the locust impact this spring.

“Part of this is ensuring we have the right types and the right volume of chemicals to spray on public land so we’re working effectively side-by-side with farmers and Local Government in this war on locusts.

“We will be doing our bit to spray infestations on public land, working with farmers who will be spraying on their private properties and working together with local councils to ensure they have the tools and chemicals they need to spray their land.”

Mr Helper said three different chemicals had been ordered by the Government for spraying on public land, including;

* metarhizium, based on a naturally occurring biological pesticide that is used in environmentally sensitive areas and leaves no residue in meat or crops;
* fenitrothion, which has been used extensively by the Australian Plague Locust Commission and can also be found in household garden products and;
* fipronil, a residual chemical that can be used to produce a barrier into which locust hoppers move and be killed.


DPI will monitor the environmental impact of spraying on private and public land as part of compliance assessments.

Mr Helper said there was a total estimated area of 2.4 million hectares in Victoria that could be affected by locust infestations. Of this one quarter was on public land.

“If left untreated, approximately 9.6 million hectares could be affected by locusts, with a potential for 35 per cent loss of returns from cereal production, a 30 per cent loss in horticulture and a 20 per cent loss on dairy and other livestock industries,” he said.