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Green Teams To Pick Weeds From Roadsides

Roadside weeds would be used to make biodiesel under another loopy Greens policy, Shadow Minister for Energy and Resources Philip Davis said today.

By Phillip Davis - 16th October 2006 - Back to News

Mr Davis said The Greens’ Upper House candidate for Northern Victoria Region Jennifer Alden told a recent forum that her party would pick roadside weeds and use them to create biodiesel.[1]

"It is little wonder that farmers at the forum thought this policy was a joke," Mr Davis said.

"Because not all plants on roadsides are weeds, in fact most are protected because they are native vegetation, The Greens are proposing is to selectively harvest weeds from the sides of all Victorian roads.

"How many thousands of people are The Greens proposing be employed by the State Government to inspect roadside vegetation around Victoria and hand pluck individual plants of Patterson’s Curse, Ragwort and other weeds?

"This is yet another loopy policy by The Greens."

Mr Davis said the policy of any State Government must be to eradicate weeds, not harvest them.

"The extensive resources that would be needed to harvest weeds in this manner, including expenditure of fuel and labour intensity makes this policy not only unsustainable but completely laughable," Mr Davis said.

"We need to eradicate these roadside weeds, which are often a source of infestation for farms."

Mr Davis said a Liberal Government would introduce measures to ensure Crown Land was clear of weeds which would infest neighbouring farms.

"Farmers are held to account if they fail their legally responsibility to control weeds on their property, but this can be frustrated by lax management on Crown lands," Mr Davis said.

"A Liberal Government will empower the Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability to name and shame government agencies that fail to control weeds, and clean-up teams will be sent in to clear weeds from public land where they are directly impacting neighbouring farms.

[1] "Humane approach to pests pushed", The Border Mail, 28 September 2006

Source: http://gippsland.com/

Published by: news@gippsland.com

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