Assignment task: In Diamond Brook, a town next to Rainbow Forest, organic farming is also the norm. However, Diamond Brook's organic farmers are protected more than those in Rainbow Forest because the State Government recently enacted the Genetically Modified Organism Free Areas Act 2019 (WA) ('the Act'). The Act allows the Minister for the Environment to declare, from time to time, certain parts of the state as areas into which Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) must not be knowingly or recklessly introduced.
During the Second Reading Speech leading to its enactment, the Minister stated that 'the Act will allow organic and bio-dynamic farmers in certain areas of the state to pursue lucrative markets for their products without having to be concerned about contamination by GMOs. The Act has also been designed to respond to growing public demand for organic, biodynamic, and GM-free products.'
The GMO Free Areas Act provides, inter alia, that:
'Within a declared GM Free area, no person will knowingly or recklessly grow or otherwise introduce crops, livestock, products or organisms that have been genetically modified.'
Shortly after the Act was passed, the area of Diamond Brook was declared as a GMO free area, pursuant to the Act.
Hippie Dave, a well-known farmer, TV celebrity chef, and environmental activist in Diamond Brook, recently discovered that GM canola was growing among his organic wheat. As a result, the organic certifying body that certifies Dave's wheat as organic, withdrew their certification. Dave then lost the profits he would otherwise have made selling his wheat as organic.
Hippie Dave traced the source of the canola to his neighbour, Montie Santos. Montie had come into possession of GM canola seed under licence from the supplier who had supplied Montie with the seed believing it would be planted on Montie's other farm (in neighbouring Rainbow Forest, which is not a declared GM Free area).
Would Dave be likely to succeed in an action against Montie for breach of statutory duty?