Spray keeps Hamilton children from school

By ELIZABETH BINNNG and AINSLEY THOMSON

Hundreds of children will be kept home from school today if aerial spraying against the asian gypsy moth gets under way in Hamilton this morning.

Weather permitting, the spraying is due to start at 7am after a last-minute bid to stop it was rejected by the courts.

Justice Judith Potter yesterday declined an application brought by anti-spray group Watch to delay the three-month eradication programme. Watch is concerned about the health effects of the spray, Foray 48B.

The group has not decided if it will take further legal action.

Watch spokesman Hugh Ratsey said about half the group's 130 members were planning to leave the spray zone for the entire campaign, which is expected to involve eight treatments and last until the end of December.

Primary schools in the areas to be sprayed said more than half the pupils would be kept home.

St Columba's Catholic School principal Jan Pratt said a letter sent to parents before the school holidays gave them the choice of keeping children home, having them transported to another Catholic school out of the spray zone for the day or sending them to St Columba's as usual.

From a roll of 420 students at the Frankton school, 235 are being kept home, 50 are going to another school, 75 are going to St Columba's and 18 pupils' parents did not reply.

The children at school as usual will be kept inside.

"I think the parent community is saying they don't want this happening," Mrs Pratt said. "They don't want their children being sprayed on or having them cooped up in a classroom with the windows shut."

Rhode St School, in the suburb of Dinsdale, expects about half its 230 students to be kept home.

Principal Heather Ballantyne said the parents' strong reaction was surprising, but they obviously wanted what was best for their children.

Schools in the spray zone will be covering drinking fountains and, once the spraying is finished, washing down outside equipment.

A mother is taking her 10-year-old boy out of Frankton Primary School because of the lack of information from Maf.

The woman will probably enrol her son at a school in Wellington for the rest of the year.

Last month principals in the spray area met Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry officers to discuss the spraying.

It was agreed there would be no spraying at times when children are expected to be walking to school and having their lunch.

Meanwhile, at yesterday's hearing lawyer Cheryl Simes, representing Watch, asked for today's spraying to be delayed until a full hearing could be held on the matter.

Ms Simes said the decision to spray had been made on misinformation and was not backed by provisions in the Biosecurity Act.

She claimed evidence of health-related problems were played down by officials and that spraying restricted residents' freedom to move about as they pleased.

However, Crown counsel Una Jagose said spraying needed to start now because there was a limited window of opportunity to kill the moth in its caterpillar stage.

Delaying the process would mean spraying could not start until next spring, by which time the moth population could have increased and spread, making a successful eradication programme more difficult.

Because of the immediacy of the issue, Justice Potter gave her decision after submissions, but will give reasons for the decision in a later, written judgment.

The decision angered residents gathered at the High Court at Hamilton for the urgent hearing.

Some, like Anna Nicholson, planned to go straight home after the hearing to pack her bags and move her family out of the spray zone.

"That decision was too fast. It was unbelievable," she said.

Maf forest biosecurity director Peter Thomson said yesterday's decision confirmed that spraying was the right move.

Hundreds of people who registered with Maf's information line will receive text message or email notification about today's spraying plans.

Officials planned to meet at first light to make the decision, which could be delayed if fog was present.

If there is no fog or rain and the wind is less than 20km/h, a pilot will spend half the day spraying, stopping between 8am and 9am to allow children to walk to school, and stopping again at lunchtime.

Moth spray

* Foray 48B is sticky and can have an unpleasant smell. Some people may suffer temporary stinging to the eyes and throat. It also can trigger asthma and some allergies.

* An area of about 1250ha around Hamilton West will be sprayed. This area includes the suburb of Frankton and Lake Rotoroa. The wind is expected to carry some of the spray drift outside the zone.

* Hotline: People with health concerns can phone 0800 969-696.