Call to halt methyl bromide use
 

Call to halt methyl bromide use
By NAOMI MITCHELL - The Nelson Mail | Tuesday, 9 October 2007

Soil and Health Association is calling for an urgent moratorium on methyl bromide fumigation, following a television documentary about the potential health risks of the gas.


The 60 Minutes documentary, which screened on TV3 Monday night, examined the use and effects of the toxic gas, which is used to fumigate export timber and container cargo at New Zealand ports.

Its safety has been questioned in recent years after a group of Nelson women claimed their husbands' deaths from motor neuron disease were linked to the odourless chemical.

Soil and Health spokesman Steffan Browning said the organisation supported Canterbury University toxicologist Ian Shaw's recommendation for a moratorium.

"A moratorium on further large-scale release of methyl bromide gas to the environment would allow risk-free consideration of health implications."

Mr Browning, who is standing for the Marlborough mayoralty, said a moratorium would also encourage a faster switch to alternatives.

Soil and Health also wanted to see an "urgent" compliance audit of fumigation company Genera; the Environmental Risk Management Authority to immediately reassess the fumigant's use; and for all local authorities to require resource consents for fumigation discharges.

A Nelson City Council proposed air quality bylaw, which would require port fumigations to have resource consent, has been hamstrung by appeals by Genera.

Mr Browning said Soil and Health had been concerned about methyl bromide use nationwide for a long time. Earlier this year, it called for the gas to be moved up the list of chemicals to be looked at by Erma.

Mr Browning said the issue would be around for longer than the local body election campaign, and any extra publicity generated during the campaign would be "well and good".

Genera technical adviser Alan Perry said there would be major health, conservation and forestry implications if methyl bromide could not be used to fumigate incoming goods, which could carry disease-carrying insects.

Use of the gas had almost halved in recent years because of the introduction of other fumigants such as phosphine, but methyl bromide was still the most widely accepted means of fumigating infestations, he said.

There were no approved alternatives to methyl bromide for some types of fumigation, he said.

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