EMOTIONS ran high on Monday night as those affected by former Victorian Lands Department chemical use gathered in Ballarat for the first parliamentary inquiry information session.
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About 30 people attended the session at Jacksons and Co, including former Victorian Lands Department employees from the Ballarat region, descendants of employees now deceased, and many from other regions entirely.
The inquiry, chaired by former WorkSafe chief executive Greg Tweedly, was announced following a series of stories by The Courier highlighting the plight of former employees who worked with chemicals including 245T and 24D.
But many at the information session were employees, or descendants of employees, from other regions not included in the inquiry’s scope.
Questioning Mr Tweedly about the ability for the inquiry to cover an area larger than just the Ballarat region, an emotional Yvonne Smith said she believed her father, John Jeitz, died from cancer after working with the chemical known as 1080 while employed by the Lands Department at Rainbow, in Victoria’s north-west.
“Where am I going to get answers?” Ms Smith said, wiping away tears.
“As a kid of 14, with a younger brother of 10, we were devastated when dad died, and I have been searching for answers ever since.”
John Daniel, of Swan Hill, said his father, a former Lands Department employee in the Swan Hill region, had also died.
“I want answers, too,” Mr Daniel said.
“Surely this (inquiry) can’t be focused solely on Ballarat?”
Mr Tweedly said he would pass the feedback on to Environment Minister Lisa Neville, who will receive the final report.
Former Lands Department employee Les Rivett praised The Courier reporters David Jeans and Jordan Oliver for their coverage of the issue.
“A lot of credit should go to The Ballarat Courier,” he said during the session. “They (the reporters) went where others refused to go, for many years. They deserve credit.”
patrick.byrne@fairfaxmedia.com.au