Pesticides debated on Monday opener
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The use of pesticides in Europe will be debated by MEPs today. Being decided is a proposed Europe-wide regulation to set up an “approval system” for new pesticides, a political strategy and a directive on their use. A vote on Tuesday will follow the debate. Parliament’s Environment Committee has called for a 50% reduction in pesticide use within 10 years and a ban on aerial spraying of pesticides. The chemicals industry, farmers and environmentalists will be watching the result closely.
Pesticides – vital for food production
Pesticides can be vitally important in modern agriculture. They increase crop yields and protect harvests against bugs and pests. They can also protect fruit and crops from infestation by fungi and bacteria and thus reduce the risk of natural toxins for consumers.
This protection has important economic consequences for farmers and consumers. Large harvests, requiring less labour, makes farming more economically viable. It also makes for a cheap and reliable food source for people in Europe.
Pesticides - health and contamination fears
However, pesticides by their definition interfere with the growth of living organisms. This means they can also impact adversely on human health and the environment. Despite current rules, pesticides in unwelcome amounts are still being found in the soil, the air and Europe’s food supply (pesticide residues).
Another worry is contamination of surface and ground water. As well as the impact this can have on plants and animals it can also potentially enter the human food supply. Given that food is no longer produced for an exclusively national market, (your local supermarket will have goods from all over Europe and the world), it is clear that common rules could benefit everyone.
Finally, scientific research has shown that exposure to even low levels of pesticides can disrupt the functioning of the human endocrine system which produces hormones.
3 proposals before MEPs;
Report on a pesticides strategy
The first item under consideration will be Parliament’s response to a general “Pesticides Strategy”. This is laid out in a report drafted by Slovak non-attached MEP Irena Belohorská. The report calls for countries to encourage low pesticide farming and give priority to the use of non-chemicals. It also calls for reduction targets to be set.
2. Regulation on an approval system for pesticides
This report calls for an approval system for pesticides before they go on sale. It envisages a Europe-wide list of key ingredients for pesticides, which would act as a checklist from which national governments authorise pesticides.
It also envisages banning certain specific substances such as those harmful to genes (genotoxic), potentially cancerous (carcinogenic), harmful to human reproduction (reprotoxic) or those that impact adversely on hormone production (endocrine-disrupting).
Hiltrud Breyer is the German Green MEP who drafted the report for the first reading stage of this proposed regulation (for which Parliament and the Council of ministers have joint decision making powers). Mrs Breyer also wants a complete ban on pesticides that are toxic for nerves (neurotoxin) and highly detrimental to the human immune system (immunotoxic).
3. Report on a proposed directive on the use of pesticides
Thirdly and finally, German MEP, Christa Klass (EPP-ED) has prepared a report on a proposed directive on the use of pesticides. The report, which already has the backing of Parliament’s Environment Committee, calls for a 25% reduction in pesticide use within 5 years and a 50% cut within 10 years.
It also calls for the almost complete ban of the aerial spraying of chemicals - used extensively on winegrowing and forestry. MEPs believe the risk of pesticides contaminating neighbouring eco-systems to be too great.
The report supports the European Commission’s proposals to establish “buffer zones" where pesticides may not be used or stored. MEPs specify that these zones should be at least 10 metres wide. Finally, it calls for steps to be taken to increase the awareness of the risks amongst users of pesticides and for the regular inspection of equipment used in the distribution of pesticides.
What are pesticides exactly?
Pesticides work by destroying, suppressing or altering the life cycle of a pest by physically, chemically or biologically interfering with their growth and reproduction.
Some of the most common pesticides are those that attack the breathing of animals – effectively choking them. Others such as herbicides affect seed germination and plant growth - mainly of weeds.
MEPs will be debating those pesticides used to protect plants in farming and forestry. Not covered by the proposed legislation are “Biocides” - which are used for instance for killing lice and rats.