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Ceremonial disposal of pesticides |
A number of villagers and outsiders had used
pesticides to kill and catch fish and prawns in the river of the Manggamat area.
A large proportion of the local diet consists of fresh water fish and prawns,
and villagers observed a rise in health problems with alarm, attributing these
to increased exposure to pesticides and their residues. Among the cases reported
were young people (aged around 20) whose teeth fell out, and many cases of
disturbed vision. Although the community recognised that using pesticides to
kill fish was not a recommended use, the observed health impacts led them to the
conclusion that it would be preferable to reduce all exposure to pesticides.
The governor of Aceh has now declared 13,000 ha of the
national park area a conservation forest zone. While smaller than the 18,000 ha
proposed by the community, it will include designation as an eco-friendly
agricultural zone and offers opportunities for exporting organic forest produce.
Certification for organic patchouli for export to the US, involving 56 farmers
from Manggamat, is underway.
The initiative to reject pesticides, which took place in
August 1996, was partly prompted by the work of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF),
in close collaboration with PAN Indonesia, through a Conservation Project in the
national park area.
To dispose of the pesticides, the community built a secure
concrete silo to a prepared WWF design, taking precautions to ensure there will
be no leakage into the environment.
The chemicals targeted were those currently in use in the
village-including pesticides and fertilisers-and do not include any which
have been widely banned or severely restricted. For example, they did not
include paraquat, once common in the area, but apparently no longer used by
local farmers. PAN Indonesia believes this is partly as a result of its
educational work about the product. Farmers received no compensation for the
disposal.
Although the overall quantities were small they included all
the pesticides used by the 25 villagers. The action thus marks an important
rejection of chemically-based agriculture. The products disposed of were: 1 kg
fipronil (a relatively new insecticide, licensed to a Rhône Poulenc subsidiary,
Agrocarb); a bottle of the organophosphate profenofos; 50 bottles of the
carbamate oxamil; and 4 bottles of Obat Cor, a home made cocktail of 14
active ingredients. The other chemicals sealed in the silo were
surfactants, fertilisers and growth regulators.
Obat Cor, which means 'liquid medicine', is particularly
notorious in the area, being a mixture of insecticides, fungicides, herbicides,
molluscicides and fertilisers sold by one of the villagers and widely used by
other farmers. The formulator said he mixed between eight and 14 chemical
substances for two types of formulation, mainly for use against diseases of
nilam (Pogostemon cablin or patchouli). He sold it in beer-size
bottles with a hand-written label, for about Rupees 4,500 (around US$2) a
bottle.
Growing organic
The Manggamat farmers have opted for organic
agriculture. Their decision was helped by a three month workshop run by PAN and
WWF in 1995, where farmers shared experiences and expertise. A buyer of organic
produce-linked to an Australian certification organisation-has now carried
out two field inspections for patchouli. Nearby communities in the conservation
forest zone export organic nutmeg to the US. The community has been granted the
right to harvest non-timber products from the forest, including resin.
Wider recognition
The community now plans to build a small monument
above the storage place. Although the provincial department of agriculture did
not openly support the action it praised the villagers' determination to
achieve a chemical-free environment. The department of health, on the other
hand, has not acknowledged the health problems and merely insisted on the need
for further studies on the health impact of pesticides on young people in the
area.
The villagers' determination, and support from the Governor
of Aceh province with the designation of a community conservation forest zone
and eco-friendly agricultural zones, shows how local action can lead to change
and promote ecological farming.
Report from Riza Tjahjadi, PAN Indonesia, December 1996.
[This
article first appeared in Pesticides News No. 35,
March 1997, page 9]