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 PAN International Website |
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Pesticides
News No 59
The Journal of Pesticide Action Network UK
An international perspective on the health and
environmental effects of pesticides
Quarterly/March 2003
UK regulation
UK progress towards a
pesticide reduction plan 3
A new pesticide strategy to be formed by the UK
government during 2003 endorses the European Union aim of reducing dependence on
chemical control. The plan will be launched later in the year, and PAN is
hopeful that the outcome will lead to a significant reduction in pesticide use.
By David Buffin.
Developing country hazards
Chemical crustaceans: pesticides and prawn farming 4
Prawn or shrimp farming is a massive industry located largely on the coasts
of developing countries. As the demand for farmed shrimp has increased, the
industry has proliferated and use of chemicals has intensified. Mike Shanahan
and Steve Trent of the Environmental Justice Foundation report.
Japanese cut pesticide aid 5
The Japanese government has announced a change of policy that will end its
regular pesticide donations to Africa. Supplied on the assumption that they
increase food production, the chemicals were causing hazards in their use, and
problems of disposal. By Barbara Dinham.
Pesticide monitoring
Tracking pesticide use in urban areas
6
No information is available about levels of pesticide use in urban areas. Lars
Neumeister of PAN Germany argues that efficient reporting systems on
application of non-agricultural pesticides are essential in the European Union,
and sets out the basis of a possible model.
Promoting safer pest management
Outcomes
from comparative assessment conference 7
In November 2002 PAN UK held the Pesticide Challenge Conference
attended by over 100 regulators from Europe and developing countries,
representatives from farming organisations, food importers and suppliers, public
interest NGOs and researchers. The delegates discussed the limitations of modern
pesticide regulatory systems, and the benefits of introducing the concept
‘comparative assessment’ when evaluating the risks of pesticides. David
Buffin highlights some of the main conclusions.
Organic
Going organic – the Welsh experience
8
During the late 70s and 80s, farmers and producers developed initiatives
that have made Wales a front-runner in the development of organic food and
farming. However, it was only in the latter part of the 1990s that organic
farming in Wales received publicly funded support to any great degree. Tony
Little reports on its success.
Alternatives
Pheromones fall foul of EU Pesticide Directives
10
Even though the European Union is revoking 320 active ingredients from the
pesticides market starting in July this year, alternative methods of pest
control face many obstacles before they can become readily available and
affordable to farmers. John Chandler reports on the difficulties of
getting pheromone products registered in the EU.
Pesticides in court
Nicaraguan banana workers win compensation from US companies
11
In December 2002, a Nicaraguan judge ordered three US companies, Dow
Chemical, Shell Oil and Standard Fruit, to pay US$490 million to 583 banana
workers1. The judgment is part of a long-running court case by thousands of
Central American banana workers seeking compensation from exposure to the
pesticide Nemagon. By Barbara Dinham.
Sustainable agriculture
Farmer Field Schools slash pesticide use and exposure in Iran
12
Many Iranian farmers have become reliant on toxic pesticides and their excessive
use leads to dangerously high exposure levels for farmworkers and consumers in
fruits, vegetables, nuts and field crops. Hossein Heidari describes
pesticide exposure patterns in Iran and current work in helping farmers to
reduce use through IPM training.
IPM guides for African crops 14
An excellent new set of four Integrated Pest Management Extension Guides has
been produced in Ghana. The guides will fill the huge gap in illustrated
reference material for extension agents on IPM methods and the ecological
principles underlying sustainable crop and pest management. By Stephanie
Williamson.
Progress in Farmer Field School IPM in
Ethiopia’s lowlands 15
Participatory IPM training is helping more Ethiopian farmers to shift from
reliance on pesticides to cheaper and environmentally benign pest management
practices and reverse their deteriorating standard of living. Mulugeta Seyoum
Ademe reports.
Genetic debate
Latest on GM dilemma 16
As the agricultural biotechnology industry continues its struggle to expand
the use of commercially grown GM crops and livestock, arguments are escalating
about their safety to health and the environment, and to developing countries.
By Simon Ferrigno.
Wildlife
More pesticide impacts on birds 17
Yellowhammers and skylarks can be added to the list of British birds
affected by pesticides. A recent study by the Royal Society for Protection of
Birds (RSPB) finds evidence that the use of pesticides on farmland may be
contributing to declines in both these species. By Roslyn McKendry.
Organic cotton
More interest in US organic cotton 18
A recent analysis by the Organic Trade Association (OTA) of North America has
found that, while more and more companies are using organic cotton, farmers in
the region need a more predictable market before production can steadily expand.
Sandra Marquardt reports on an encouraging trend in the US, but points
out the need for stability.
Obsolete pesticides
Disposal in Central
and Eastern Europe 19
A major conference on obsolete pesticides in Central and Eastern Europe is to be
held in Kiev in June this year, to call for concerted international action. It
is not yet widely recognised that this problem is posing a major hazard from the
former East Germany in the west to the Central Asian Countries bordering China. John
Vijgen, of the International HCH and Pesticides Association, reports.
UK news
Veil of secrecy to
lift 20
There are encouraging signs that the removal of a longstanding obstruction to
the public disclosure of health risks of chemicals, including organophosphate
sheep-dips, could be ‘fast-tracked’, ahead of the UK Freedom of Information
Act, due to come into force in 2005. John Verrall of the Food Ethics
Council, reports.
New voice for family farmers 20
By 2005, the government expects up to a quarter of the UK’s farms to close
or merge. 50,000 farmers could be forced to leave the land. But a new group,
farm, aims to reverse the decline, reinstating independent family farmers at the
heart of sustainable agriculture in Britain. By Alison Craig.
Health
Worker study finds evidence for cancer risk from atrazine
21
Regulators often rely on occupational health studies on the assumption that
higher than average exposures experienced by agrochemical factory workers can
provide early warnings of harmful effects. A long-term study of atrazine, one of
the most widely used herbicides in the world, indicates just such a hazard, but
its findings are disputed by manufacturers Syngenta. By Alison Craig.
Body burdens – new ground 21
With almost identical timing, two new reports from the United States (US)
reinforce growing concerns with chemical body burdens. By Alison Craig.
Book reviews and resources 22-23
New publications from PAN UK