This year sees the fifth anniversary of the UN Conference on
Environment and Development, and provides a time for taking stock of progress
and reporting to the Commission on Sustainable Development-greatly encouraging
the commitment of local government institutions to implementing recommendations
from UNCED. The Trust [now PAN UK] has been working with some local authorities in England
and Scotland committed to reducing or eliminating pesticide use from areas they
control. The move to create pesticide free urban zones is gaining momentum and
an overview is provided in this issue of Pesticides News.
UNCED also triggered a commitment to take action on hazardous
chemicals, which has led to negotiations to phase out the production and use of
certain pesticides, including DDT. An environment group in Tanzania is
alarmed to find sales of this highly persistent pesticide still being sold in
the country five years after the government banned it. The Journalists
Environmental Association of Tanzania is seeking support in their campaign to
have it removed from sale.
A Bhopal People's Health and Documentation Clinic has been
created with support from the Trust and others. An advertisement in the UK press
in December 1996 has so far raised funds of £15,000, to add to £70,000
transferred last year. The latest news reveals that the clinic is making a
profound difference to the health of many gas-affected survivors. The ayurvedic
(traditional) medical practitioner at the clinic registered over 700 new persons
in this period. The modern medical practitioners registered over 750 and 660 new
patients respectively. All reported improvements, ranging from small to
significant relief from the gas symptoms. Yoga is proving extremely effective in
relieving respiratory disorders and back ache commonly suffered. The clinic is
providing convincing evidence of the importance of primary health care through
neighbourhood centres.
Bhopal provides a dramatic example of the costs of pesticides
use. In most cases the costs are less explicit and less visible. Many articles
in this issue again draw attention to the ongoing burden on individuals and
communities of exposure to pesticide use. The point is made forcefully by the
Countess of Mar in an interview, and the report on a new study from the
International Labour Organisation showing that 14% of all occupational injuries
in the agricultural sector can be attributed to pesticides. Reports from
Thailand and India, and a series of articles on health impacts of
organophosphate pesticides further drive home the point.
[This
article first appeared in Pesticides News No. 35,
March 1997, page 2]