The Environmental Protection Authority is seeking views on an application to import Method 240 SL Herbicide to control wilding conifers and other woody weeds.

Bayer CropScience Pty Ltd has applied for approval to import the herbicide.

The active ingredient aminocyclopyrachlor would be a new substance to New Zealand. It has been approved in Australia, Canada and the USA.

If approved in this country, Method 240 SL Herbicide would be used to control wilding conifers and other woody weeds such as gorse, broom, blackberry and thistles.  It would be sprayed on non-crop farmland and conservation land such as native bush, recreational and tourist areas and on industrial sites such as railways and roadways.

The applicant says the risk associated with the product is low, and is proposing a 9.1D classification (slightly harmful to the aquatic environment).

Views of the public are sought on the potential beneficial or adverse effects additional to those described by the applicant.

Submissions close at 5pm on July 31.

The application documents can be found  here.

Source:  Environmental Protection Authority