Pesticide Information

Aspects of UK pesticides policy in the UK will require reconsideration after Mr Justice Collins allowed an application in the High Court from campaigner Georgina Downs for a review of current policy. She has argued that exposure to crop chemicals caused illness.

A frequently expressed concern is that the main potential losers from the proposed changes in pesticide rules might be various fruits and vegatables such as peas, cabbages and carrots.  The relatively small volumes of production might not justify the commercial effort to find replacement products. Although customarily referred to as ‘minor uses’ of plant protection products, they are important components of a healthy diet. Less well off consumers might particularly be affected by an increase in their price as a result of reduced availability of supply.

Those who claim that reports like that by the UK Pesticides Safety Directorate (PSD) exaggerate the likely impact of proposed changes to EU pesticides legislation often point to the existence of a derogation in the Council’s common position. This would allow the continued use for up to five years of pesticides that would otherwise be banned, if there are no alternatives available. In other words, the impact is postponed and notionally it would allow the development and registration of new products, except that this process normally takes more than five years.

In this month’s Monthly Review ecologists John Bellamy Foster and Brett Clark write an in-depth piece on the world renowned naturalist and scientist Rachel Carson and author of Silent Spring. Read the review.