Biosecurity officers mistakenly destroy rare plant specimens

Australian biosecurity officers mistakenly destroyed historic plant specimens on loan from France after a paperwork mix-up.

A box of rare daisies from the 1850s had been sent to Brisbane from the National Museum of Natural History in Paris. But the pressed plant samples were incinerated because accompanying documents were filled out incorrectly. Australian quarantine authorities have ordered a review into the incident.

The plants were destroyed in March 2017 due to missing information such as details of the specimens, quarantine authorities said.

The French museum was upset that the "irreplaceable collection" had been destroyed, said Professor Michelle Waycott, chair of the Council of Heads of Australasian Herbaria. She said the flowers may have come from a habitat that no longer existed. "Sometimes they [the collections] may be the last remaining examples of species," she told the BBC. "I don't think that was the case in this instance, but they are certainly highly valuable, particularly because they were collected so long ago."

Australia's Department of Agriculture and Water Resources, which oversees biosecurity, has asked for a review. "The department acknowledges the significant value as a botanical reference collection," a spokesperson told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. "The destruction of the specimens should not have proceeded while communication between the department and the intended recipient was ongoing."

Australia has some of the strictest quarantine regulations in the world. Arriving passengers must declare for inspection by quarantine officials all food, plant and animal materials and products to ensure that they are free of pests and diseases. This is maintained by the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources. In addition, no plant material, such as dried flowers, can be posted to Australia as they are usually destroyed by quarantine officials.

The Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) import and export inspection and certification is essential to maintain Australia’s high quarantine controls at the country’s borders to minimise the risk of exotic pests and diseases to protect Australia’s agriculture industries and environment. AQIS does this by specialist Federal law enforcement officers known as Quarantine & Exports Inspectors, or 'quarantine officers' or ‘biosecurity officers.’

Biosecurity Australia is an agency within the Australian Government Department of Agriculture and Water Resources. Biosecurity Australia provide policy advice to AQIS concerning the importation of quarantine risk materials to Australia when requested by AQIS. Under the Quarantine Act 1908, AQIS (and not Biosecurity Australia) has responsibility for setting the rules concerning the imports into the country.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-australia-39777196?ocid=global_bbccom_email_08052017_top+news+stories+australia

MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

2016 update on Rike Park, Tbilisi: from construction to busy park

From a flat patch of uninteresting dirt, Rike Park in Tbilisi, Georgia, has transformed in four years (from 2014-2016) into a busy park full of trees, flower beds, sculptures, fountains, and events. Rike (Rikhe) Park is on the left bank of the Mt’k’vari River (the Kura River) near the Old City of Tbilisi. The Peace Bridge links the right bank to Rike Park. Rike Park is below the hillside Presidential Palace and, via cable car, it is the starting point for the ride to Sololaki Ridge (with the Narikala Fortress and the Mother of Georgia statue). The glass box-shaped cable car terminus was opened on 23 June 2012, and since then the park has continually developed into a ‘people’s park’ where people can walk around, eat at the nearby restaurants, sit next to the statue of American president Ronald Reagan, climb the steps to Avlabari district, and access the sights of Meidan Square, the Peace Bridge, the Metekhi Church, the Old City, the waterfall, the sulphur baths, and t...

Pir-E-Kamil - The Perfect Mentor by Umera Ahmed: book review

The Perfect Mentor pbuh (2011) is set in Lahore and Islamabad in Pakistan. The novel commences with Imama Mubeen in medical university. She wants to be an eye specialist. Her parents have arranged for her to marry her first cousin Asjad. Salar Sikander, her neighbour, is 18 years old with an IQ of 150+ and a photographic memory. He has long hair tied in a ponytail. He imbibes alcohol, treats women disrespectfully and is generally a “weird chap” and a rude, belligerent teenager. In the past three years he has tried to commit suicide three times. He tries again. Imama and her brother, Waseem, answer the servant’s call to help Salar. They stop the bleeding from his wrist and save his life. Imama and Asjad have been engaged for three years, because she wants to finish her studies first. Imama is really delaying her marriage to Asjad because she loves Jalal Ansar. She proposes to him and he says yes. But he knows his parents won’t agree, nor will Imama’s parents. ...

Hop on hop off bus tourism comes to Tbilisi, Georgia

City Sightseeing buses have arrived in Tbilisi. The iconic red double-decker buses, a feature of many cities around the world since the company was established in Seville, Spain in 1999, is now in six continents and almost 100 cities. The company established its Tbilisi business in November 2013, with its operations commencing in February 2014. The 90-minute tour stops at 11 major locations in Tbilisi (with 2 to 5 minute waiting times at each location): the Old City (where it commences), Freedom Square, Rose Revolution Square, Marjanishvili Square, the Dry Bridge, Konka, Avlabari, Metekhi, Akhundov Museum, the Sulfur Baths, and European Square. Passengers can hop off at any stop and see the sights, hopping back onto the next bus at any time. Alternatively, passengers can remain on the bus for the whole tour and take photographs when the bus stops at each location. There are one day (24-hour) passes (for 35 lari – about $20) and 48-hour passes for 55 lari, with family d...

FEAST OR FAMINE

Search This Blog