Regulatory services
Regulatory functions are aimed at:
- husbanding natural resources;
- monitoring product during production, processing and marketing to avoid pest and disease problems which could jeopardise local and export sales;
- administering the various Acts which apply to the agricultural industries.
The Griffith Centre for Irrigated Agriculture maintains facilities for regulatory programs, particularly the Fruit Fly Control Program. A new facility for this work has been constructed to provide storage and preparation areas. Based at the Centre, the facility is ideally strategically placed to assist the management of the ‘fruit fly free’ status of the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area (MIA) and surrounding districts.
There are four Regulatory Officers located at this site. Their responsibilities include the following:
- ICA (interstate certification arrangement) — the establishing, maintaining and auditing of the intrastate and interstate movement of produce;
- CA (certification assurance) arrangements — the establishing, maintaining and auditing of the movement of certain produce (vine material, winegrape, wine must, vine hot-water treatments) for both intrastate and interstate movement of that produce, because of Phylloxera;
- maintaining exotic pest and disease quarantine surveillance within the MIA;
- seasonal crop inspections for the movement of produce for export and interstate movement;
- issuing plant health certificates for interstate movement of fruit, vegetable and propagation material;
- issuing health certificates for the interstate movement of apiary produce and materials;
- issuing Livestock Transport Permits for the interstate transport of livestock;
- maintaining the Fruit Fly Exclusion Zone (FFEZ) to protect South Australia, Victoria and NSW from Queensland fruit fly incursions;
- maintaining rice quarantine for pest and disease incursions and outbreaks.
