Page 3253 - Week 11 - Wednesday, 21 September 1994

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .

to replace imported paper. Theoretically, at least - certainly, in practical terms in getting it up and running - cannabis fibre may serve to replace wood pulp for paper production in Australia. It could be used for paper products that are currently imported. To refer to the question that Mr Stevenson asked me at question time, that would certainly have quite significant environmental benefits.

Alternative fibre crops for paper production have been investigated in Australia by CSIRO in Queensland - notably, kenaf, a relation of cotton. It has been suggested that cannabis could achieve a better result if impediments to its use were removed. But we should not imagine that those impediments are not significant. As Mr Stevenson said, cannabis for fibre production is sown at very close spacing, which is designed to produce tall, straight stems suitable for mechanical harvest. Little leaf and inflorescence material is produced in the fibre crops. It appears that cannabis has a wide tolerance of soil types and requires no pesticide treatment, as the crop itself tends to smother weeds and deter insects. These things have further encouraged the use of the crop in Holland. There have been trial fibre crops in Tasmania, and research is being conducted at the Hobart university into commercialisation of cannabis fibre production. I know that that process has aroused quite a degree of interest from a wide variety of community people. For example, there have been inquiries from Europe for the purchase of cannabis fibre, based on news of those Tasmanian trials. It could be that the crop is better suited to semitropical conditions, where a number of crops could be produced each year. In the Canberra region, only a single annual crop would be possible.

I mentioned the impediments to developing full-scale production. They must be considered. One of those impediments is that our legislation currently does not differentiate between the low-drug cannabis form and cannabis for illegal use. Certainly, that is a matter that is capable of legislative change, and it has been well debated today. There is also the impediment that public opinion often - in fact, almost always - associates the crop, regardless of drug content, with illegal use. In this region, a further impediment would be the climatic conditions, which may limit the productivity of broad-scale crops. As I understand it, on mainland Australia there is also a lack of suitable infrastructure to process cannabis fibre. Again, I suppose, that is a chicken-and-egg situation. You would not get that unless there was the crop to process. Obviously, the two factors would go together. On my advice, a very significant impediment is that we cannot produce a totally non-drug crop. There is always some residual drug content. As evidenced today, I believe, a further problem is that the plant naturally, inevitably, will revert to type; so there would need to be a constant process of ensuring that the crop that is growing is of the very low-drug type. The tendency of plants to go back to their natural or original status would present a very serious problem. Mr Stevenson has raised this issue before in the Assembly. He ran a seminar last year, which I was interested in; but I was not able to be there. Obviously, Mr Stevenson will continue the debate. Over a period, as it becomes aired in the public and as more and more data becomes available, there may be processes to go through and public education to be undertaken. While, obviously, we would not be in a position to see crops in the ACT by any established date - we could not predict what might happen - certainly, it is appropriate that the debate should continue and that all aspects of the matter should be thoroughly examined.

MR DEPUTY SPEAKER: The discussion is concluded.

21 September 1994

32243223

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . .