Queensland Licenced Spray Contractors Transparency
Background
Queensland chemical application laws that allow in some regions hand-pumped herbicide and pesticide application for horticultural use without a Commercial Operators License. There are many garden maintenance operators that apply spray herbicides on customer properties without either a Commercial Operators License or a Ground Distribution License.
Despite their intent many are applying chemicals unsafely, without keeping documentation, and without understanding the environmental impacts. This is sometimes due to simple ignorance about the requirements or a direct intent to subvert the law.
Biotao has requested that the Queensland Government make more easily available Chemical Application License data via the Queensland Government Open Data portal to encourage a majority of compliance increase education in the importance of record-keeping and the environmental impacts of spray applications.
The Benefits
Digital Certificate
A benefit of the recent pandemic health orders has meant an increased literacy in the use of QR codes. An early-stage use case for this open data is to utilise QR codes to allow biotao to link directly to the "Digital Certificate" to allow customers to quickly verify a valid license.
Once initial testing has been completed for practical implementation Biotao will encourage key landscaping and garden maintenance businesses to include direct links and QR links to licenses in both letterheads and promotional materials to remind clients to only uses licensed chemical application providers.
The utilisation of this kind of industry lead promotional activities will encourage smaller operators who have been flying under the radar of government bodies and clients' knowledge to become licensed in order to remain competitive within the market.
Broader licensing will also provide a direct avenue for the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries to communicate options other than a chemical application such as Integrated Pest Management, and improved landscape designs.
Licensed Spray Provider Directory
A second use case will be the development of a "use a licensed spray contractor" brand and website that will return the name of a commercial spray application provider in the requested postcode.
This will further encourage landscaping and gardening contractors to seek a suitable license and associated training.
The information displayed will initially be the already searchable data. Future updates to the website will allow for licensed contractors to "claim" and provide additional information for clients to contact them.
Digital Wallet Spray License
The third use case will allow licensed users to add the License as a pass on Apple and Google devices with a QR code to the "digital certificate" on the government website. This may be combined with a "use a license spray contractor" associated app or as a part of a Biotao planned separate "Spray Contractor Management" app for spray record management.
Ideally, this will transition to either the QLD Government Digital License App and/or technology like Apple ID cards.
Additional Uses
It is our hope to integrate this functionality with other Australian state and territory data to continue the "use a license spray contractor" type branding and website to encourage both industry education as well as public education. We plan to use QLD as a test case as it is our base of operations.
How to help
Customers and the public can support this initiative by;
- Signing up to the Queensland Government Open Data Portal,
- Following the open data requests below,
- Contacting your local Queensland Government member of parliament, and by
- Sharing this post on social media platforms.
Chemical Application Licence - Validation
https://www.data.qld.gov.au/datarequest/529fd31a-f972-4602-ada8-430ac6f25cdd
Chemical Application Licence - Licensed Spray Provider Website
https://www.data.qld.gov.au/datarequest/82e78e88-f87b-4f8b-8976-34b747b9fc2d
Chemical Application Licence - Smart Phone Licensed Spray PASS
https://www.data.qld.gov.au/datarequest/ebafd0d7-48e7-4eaf-967a-01801cd77984