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Spraying chemicals
Off-target damage and spray drift
It is an offence to undertake agricultural spraying which injures any plants or stock outside of the target area, or which injures any land outside the target area so that growing plants or keeping stock on the land would result in contamination.
Strong controls relating to damage due to off-target spray drift have been in place for some time. In 2001, these controls were extended to cover situations where spray drift not only causes injury to any plants or stock, but also in situations where off-target chemical application is likely to cause unacceptable residues in harvested produce. This amendment is designed to enable the control of the off-target application of fungicides or insecticides, where visible damage may not occur, but livestock or crops exposed to such spray drift may contain unacceptable residues. This includes situations where the off-target spraying adversely affects plants that are not agricultural produce at the time of the spraying (e.g. when wheat or barley plants are subject to spray drift and the resulting grain contains unacceptable residues as a result).
Chemical users should also be aware of the higher potential of certain herbicide formulations to drift and cause off-target damage.
Spray maps and other information given to spray contractors should be accurate and contain all the relevant details.
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Notification when spraying near schools, hospitals, aged care services or children’s services
Legislation requires certain notifications when applying agricultural chemicals by air or mister within 200 metres of a school, hospital, aged care service or children’s service (e.g. kindergarten or child care centre).
At the time a person is employed or contracted to carry out agricultural spraying by aerial spraying or mister (excludes standard boom spray), the land manager must:
- advise the employee or spray contractor in writing whether there is a school, hospital, aged care service or children’s service within 200 metres of the land to be sprayed, and
- provide the employee or spray contractor with details relating to the location of the school, hospital, aged care service or children’s service.
The employee or spray contractor must not begin spraying without this information.
At least 24 hours before spraying is to occur within 200 metres of these facilities, the spray employee or contractor must provide the land manager with the name of the agricultural chemical product to be used and the proposed time, date and duration of the spraying.
At least 12 hours before spraying is to occur within 200 metres of these facilities, the land manager must make every reasonable effort to inform the school principal or site manager of the agricultural chemical product to be used, the location of the proposed spraying and the proposed time, date and duration of spraying.
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Aerial spray equipment
Under the Agricultural and Veterinary Chemicals (Control of Use) Regulations 2007, one or more of the following methods must be used immediately before and during aerial spraying:
- a smoke generating device used at ground level at or near the point of spraying
- an aircraft fitted with a smoke generating device that is operating
- a windsock is operating and is clearly visible to the pilot at ground level at or near the point of spraying, or
- an automatic weather station is located at or near the point of spraying, and information about the wind speed and direction is available to the pilot.
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Spray maps
It is an offence for a person to provide false or misleading information to their spray contractor regarding the target or surrounding area to be sprayed, where the information would lead the spray contractor to cause off-target spray damage. This legislation is in place so that maps and diagrams provided to agricultural spraying contractors or agricultural pilots contain accurate information on the location of all relevant aspects of the target area and its surrounds.
Maps and diagrams provided to contractors should contain the following information:
- The type of crops or vegetation in the target and surrounding area
- The type of agricultural enterprises surrounding the target property (e.g. beef, dairy, aquaculture)
- Any buildings surrounding the target area and their purposes (e.g. houses or schools)
- Any waterways dams or channels near the target area.
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