A mayoral candidate in Adelaide's suburbs who is looking to reduce public exposure to chemical weed killers in green spaces has put forward a left-field alternative: using goats instead.
The former child protection minister Rachel Sanderson, who is now running for the position of mayor of Prospect, made a pitch as part of her campaign.
The city of Prospect will consider a motion by current councillor Kristina Barnett to investigate steam methods as an environmentally friendly alternative to toxic chemicals.
If the cost of that option was deemed prohibitive, goats could be used to keep weeds under control in playgrounds and dog parks, according to Ms Sanderson.
In 2018, I wrote to the council about the dangers of glyphosate and nothing has happened since that time, Ms Sanderson said.
The Port Adelaide-Enfield Council, for seven years, has been using steam technology that is also available, and I would ask that they Prospect look into that, and if that is too expensive, the other options would be hand-weeding or to use goats.
Ms Barnett questioned the practicality of using goats rather than existing steam methods when she shared Ms Sanderson's concerns about chemicals.
She said I don't want my motion trivialised, which appears to be happening now, and I think it deserves a serious response.
We would have trouble with the goat's droppings in a playground, and I don't know if one ties a bag around its rear end and captures its compost.
The city of Prospect said in a statement that it aimed to minimise the use of herbicide wherever possible Despite ongoing investigations, a viable alternative to herbicides has not yet been found that would be cost effective or efficient.
The council said weed spraying at playgrounds occurred between 7: 30 am and 8: 30 am to avoid peak usage times and only if there were no members of the public on site.
The council said that glyphosate is approved by the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority, which has deemed that councils can continue to use it safely in accordance with label directions.
Ms Sanderson says that the science is still contested about whether glyphosate is a carcinogen, and that it is always best not to use poisons around children.