People's Inquiry Hears Auckland Residents Poisoned by Moth Spray

WAITAKERE, New Zealand, March 22, 2006 (ENS) - "Something happened to my beautiful New Zealand. People were hurt and harmed so much and nobody was there to hear it," a West Auckland resident testified at the Peoples Inquiry into aerial spraying for moth control in Waitakere today.

The citizens of the West Auckland area are conducting The People’s Inquiry to give residents affected by aerial spraying a forum where they can give evidence of the spray’s impact to a panel of national and international commissioners. This morning, the first of the hearings opened in the Waitakere City Council Chambers. They will continue through March 28.

The first day of the week-long People's Inquiry opened this morning in the Waitakere City Council Chambers. (Photo courtesy People's Inquiry)

This morning, commissioners to the People's Inquiry heard oral testimony of chemical burning of the lungs, numerous hospitalizations for breathing problems, and the exacerbation of numerous serious health conditions, as well as huge disruption in the lives of families’ rights across West Auckland.

A violent coughing condition known as the "moth cough" was described as common among residents.

Skin conditions which were so severe that the skin swelled and split, and severe eye irritation which only occurred during spray episodes were often attributed by MAF and some doctors as generic or work related allergies.

At the start of the hearings the Inquiry paused to remember those people that were involved in the community efforts to get recognition of the health effects of the spray who have since died. Two of the named people had pre-existing but stable liver conditions which the inquiry organizers say accelerated into a chronic condition with exposure to the spray. Three of the involved community people died of motor neuron disease.

"They will be remembered not only for their efforts, but for their concern and care for others in the face of their own declining health" says Inquiry Convenor Hana Blackmore.

Map of New Zealand shows the location of Waitakere City (Photo courtesy Waitakere City Council)

Over the past eight years the New Zealand Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) has conducted three major eradication campaigns against incursions of alien moths - the white spotted tussock moth, the painted apple moth and the gypsy moth.

In 2001, MAF said the aerial program, which it called "a targeted, low level spraying operation over very selected areas," is a "world first."

MAF said the spraying was planned for "maximum results to eradicate the pest with minimum impact on the smallest number of residents." The campaigns aimed to eradicate the painted apple moth caterpillar from the western Auckland suburbs of Glendene, Kelston, Titirangi, Glen Eden as well as Traherne Island and the Auckland City suburb of Avondale.

"Aerial spraying to complement ground spraying is necessary to eradicate the pest from hard-to-reach areas and tall trees. Foray 48B, a Btk-based spray will be applied. It has been used before in New Zealand and overseas to eradicate similar pests. It specifically affects caterpillars and does not harm other animals, fish, birds, plants or humans," said MAF's Director of Forest Biosecurity in 2001, Dr. Ruth Frampton.

But the Peoples' Inquiry organizers say residents of sprayed areas have been harmed. All these spraying campaigns have involved intensive aerial spraying of insecticide over heavily populated urban areas. The extent and duration of all three eradications have been in excess of any urban aerial spraying program anywhere in the world.

West Auckland experienced 48 discrete aerial spray events over 70 days. These occurred during school and working hours over a period of 29 months.

The spraying of Western Auckland to eradicate the painted apple moth for MAF BioSecurity (Photo courtesy Wanganui Aero-Work)

The insecticide used was Foray 48B, a formulation containing the active ingredient Bacillus thuringienis kurstaki, a bacterium, and a number of adjuvant chemicals. Because this insecticide is based on a biological organism it has been widely assumed to be safe for people. As a result monitoring of adverse health effects has been grossly inadequate, despite our repeated requests for proper surveillance.

During the most prolonged and intensive of the campaigns, that of the spraying of West Auckland for the painted apple moth from January 2002 to May 2004, over 400 people have reported to a community health research project that they had symptoms of ill health resulting from the spray. Several university based studies have also identified adverse health effects resulting from the spray.

In spite of these studies, and the evidence accumulated by the community, all requests for an official inquiry or review into the impacts and effects of the spraying programs have been denied.

The initial Health Risk Assessment (HRA) for the 1996-97 campaign, upon which all subsequent HRAs were based, was "clearly deficient," Peoples' Inquiry organizers claim. They fault the government for "failure to fully characterize the extent of exposure and failure to characterize the risk of adjuvants - including the effects of mixtures of chemicals."

"Additionally our own assessment of some of the adjuvants, such as propylene glycol, lead us to believe that significant health effects should have been expected, and these adjuvants may account for some of the effects reported by members of the community," the organizers said.

The painted apple moth was first found in New Zealand in 1999 in Glendene and Mt. Wellington. Agricultural officials say the moth probably arrived as egg masses on shipping containers from Australia. (Photo courtesy CSIRO)

A number of people had been forced to relocate from Waitakere at great personal cost and often at the last minute, being informed between 3 am and 4:30 am on spray days that they had to pack up and leave. Others were not informed until it was too late.

MAF set up a Help Desk, but some residents did not find it helpful.

"I was told by the MAF Help Desk to leave the area. I had to leave my family and my animals. I had to buy accommodation and food. It was terribly inconvenient to relocate my life" one resident said.

As one resident said " We have all the letters the doctors, the MPs we approached, we tried to go through all the channels and do the right thing but got no help from specialist Doctors contracted by MAF."

"We have been lied to," another said, "and the cruelest thing is that there has been no apology or acknowledgement."

A number of residents with ongoing symptoms felt they were being treated as victims of psychosomatic delusions and all were critical of the information provided to them about the effects of the aerial spray. Several were told by doctors contracted by MAF, "You did it all to yourself," and that the spray was safe.

Many people giving testimony are now so chemically sensitized that any exposure to chemicals such as in supermarket aisles full of chemically based products or roadside sprays cause a recurrence of some severe symptoms.

Another resident told the Inquiry that a huge injustice had been done to the people of West Auckland. And that MAF and AerAqua, the medical contractors, are perpetuating a huge denial of that injustice.

"It is terrible to hear the stories of previously healthy people experiencing such severe symptoms and the way they have been treated when they have appealed for help," said Dr. Meriel Watts from the People's Inquiry. "These people feel utterly betrayed by the government and some senior health professionals."

MAF Director-General Murry Sherwin came to the job in November 2001 from 25 years at the Reserve Bank of New Zealand. (Photo courtesy MAF)

On May 13, 2004, MAF declared an end to the aerial spraying operation in West Auckland for painted apple moth.

Then Biosecurity Minister Jim Sutton said that in July 2002, the government "made the tough decision to support a major aerial spraying operation to ensure the eradication of the painted apple moth by the Agriculture and Forestry Ministry."

"MAF was aware the medical conditions of some people could be exacerbated by some of the components in Foray 48B so they set up an independent health support service to mitigate any impacts for a small section of the population in the painted apple moth zone. Aerial spraying has disrupted people’s lives, but we have been heartened by the support we have received from the majority of the people in western Auckland," said Sutton.

Justifying its use of Btk, Biosecurity New Zealand says the bacterial spray has been used in commercial pest management for over 30 years in Canada and the United States.

"This moth is a serious threat to our urban, native and commercial trees with an estimated economic impact of about $258 million, Sutton said.