Campaigners Decry UK’s Failure To Ban 36 EU-Prohibited Pesticides

News in brief: Environmental campaigners in the UK are protesting the government’s authorization of 36 pesticides, which they deem highly toxic and carcinogenic, and have already been banned in the EU.

Environmental campaigners in the United Kingdom (UK) have decried the government’s continued authorisation of using pesticides already banned in the European Union (EU).

They insist on the prohibition of the use of 36 pesticides that they describe as highly toxic and carcinogenic. Pesticide Action Network, one of the groups at the forefront of the campaign, say that the UK’s government’s refusal to ban the use of the pesticides is making the country the toxic poster child of Europe.

Thirteen of the 36 chemicals are considered highly hazardous under UN definitions. Four of them are highly toxic to bees, one contaminates water and one is highly toxic to aquatic organisms.

The UK government granted automatic three-year extensions to the licenses of pesticides that were due to expire before December 2023, a coverage of the story said. This has allowed some highly hazardous pesticides to remain on the market.

Campaigners are calling on the government to bring pesticide standards back in line with the EU to protect human health. Additionally, they say the measure would protect the environment, and the agriculture industry.

However, the government defended its position on the matter, saying that the pesticides are only authorised for use after rigorous scientific assessment. In the permitted areas, they are expected not to harm people or pose unacceptable risks to the environment.

A spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said expert regulators authorise their use. Furthermore, the department stated that the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is developing a programme to review pesticide approvals so it can take action to review them at any time where there are serious concerns.

Subsequently, campaigners have called on the ban on highly hazardous pesticides as over 400 million farmers and farmworkers are poisoned every year from exposure to the chemicals. This has resulted in over 11,000 deaths owing to the toxicity of the pesticides.