Pesticide and the Reef

2SER's Razors Edge

This week the federal government lifted its ban on the pesticide Diuron after the federal pesticides authority cleared it for use at what they called reduced levels. However conservationists say the decision by Australia's chemical regulator to allow the continued use of the toxic weed killer could kill the Great Barrier Reef. Diuron is classified by the US Environmental Protection Agency as a likely carcinogen and research has linked it to coral bleaching and the death of seagrass on the Great Barrier Reef. Nick Heath from the World Wildlife Fund spoke with 2ser’s Rory O’Gorman.