Independent views By Brendan Horan

I'm writing to draw attention to a local issue I first became aware of when my son and wife went for a walk down the beach. They came back sneezing, with eyes and noses running.

I thought this was very strange. Then I ran into a group of enraged locals who complained to me about council contractors spraying pesticides and herbicides among the dunes.

They pointed out the destruction of fragile ecosystems, involving plants, grasses, geckos, bumblebees, and other flora and fauna.

Council contractors are spraying agrochemicals like Grazon; a herbicide banned in Norway and South Africa.

The manufacturer's own product sheet says it is 'very toxic to aquatic organisms, harmful to terrestrial vertebrates”.

That is to animals – and to humans? 'May cause skin irritation, may cause organ damage from repeated oral exposure.” On and on, the warnings go.

Look it up on the internet and also look up the health hazard information for Gallant, Pulse Penetrant, Round Up. You will be shocked.

No wonder we're see increasing numbers of children and adults suffering allergies, asthmas and other respiratory illnesses throughout the Bay of Plenty. Surely there's enough spray in the air without the councils contributing to it.

Seeing the dune destruction happening on our beach first-hand is a sad sight. A once-colourful dune landscape along our beach has turned into a grey, trashed-up strip of desert. No carpet of flowering plants, no chirping birds, no buzzing bees, no pheasants, no butterflies, no geckos. No kingfishers feasting on a multitude of insects. Silent and dull.

Why? Because the local councils are waging war against ‘introduced species'. A Norfolk pine, growing in the dunes, had to go. Why? 'They don't belong here,” says a regional council officer. Excuse me; most private gardens have introduced species. And the acts of pollination and germination dispersal by wind and bees will obviously see these plants spread right across Tauranga and the Bay of Plenty.

Is this the environment we want to see our children and grandchildren grow up in? I don't think so.

There are less harmful ways to control unwanted growth. Hot water and steam, and a fork and a spade do good jobs in many parts of the developed world. To me it seems we need to rethink the ways we want our local councils to manage our environment.

If you'd like to share your thoughts on this, or any other issues that concern you, please contact me.

Facebook.com/Brendan.horan.336 twitter.com/brendanhoran or Phone Brendan on 07 574 0253.