In recent years in Brazil, different economic sectors have been acting to modify Brazilian pesticides legislation, which would have serious impacts on human health and the environment. The COVID-19 pandemic slowed down legislative discussions; however, several sub-legal changes published by regulatory agencies have been put into practice. As a result, pesticide products that had already had their ban announced in Brazil, such as the herbicide paraquat, now do not have a definitive decision for use. Additionally, new pesticide products have been commercially released without proper and thorough information on the safety of chronic exposure; in particular, on the toxicological interactions of the mixture of active principles present in the formulated products.
The ABRASCO (Associação Brasileira de Saùde Coletiva) NGO in Brazil has undertaken a study examining the damages to health and the environment that may result from this deregulation scenario, focusing on the most vulnerable groups in both rural and urban use of agrochemicals. The findings are presented via an overview of these breakdowns during the time of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Panel recommends many household chemicals and pesticides be exempt from scrutiny and agricultural chemicals’ approvals be fast-tracked
Saturday, 03 April 2021
(The Guardian, AUSTRALIA)
Environment and health groups have fiercely criticised proposals to relax the regulation of chemicals and pesticides in Australia, saying they are “totally at odds” with public health and safety expectations.
This document aims to offer information on the characteristics of the glyphosate molecule and the collateral impacts it has on the health of people, the environment, and other non-target organisms. It also presents a series of alternatives within an agroecological transition strategy to the integrated management of weeds, both for agricultural production systems and for areas where their use is common.
Informe de la Red de Acción en Plaguicidas y sus Alternativas para América Latina advierte de los impactos de estas sustancias en la salud humana, animal y ambiental.
This report gives an overview of the current situation of highly hazardous pesticides (HHPs) in Jordan and describes the national pesticide registration and control policy framework, the pesticides in use in Jordan and general data on volume, threats of pesticide use to public heatlh, and more. It concludes with the recommendations that Jordan needs to:
Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) is an organo-chlorine that was synthesized in 1874, but its insecticidal properties were discovered in 1939. DDT was first used during World War II to combat malaria and typhus among civilians and troops. Subsequently it was used as an agricultural and household pesticide. DDT is currently listed in Annex B of the Stockholm Convention, with its production and/or use restricted for disease vector control purposes in accordance with related World Health Organization (WHO) recommendations and guidelines.
National Association of Professional Environmentalists (NAPE) carried out this project in Uganda and it involved, among other things, a desk study and field work. The desk study revealed various aspects regarding the use of DDT in the country including where it was used, when it was used and why it was used. The field work involved moving from the office to visit different stakeholders to gather information on DDT and its use in Uganda. Data was collected from Kampala-based institutions, including:
The overall objective of this project was to reveal the ongoing proliferation of DDT pollution in manufacturing and use and cite important non-chemical alternatives to increase pressure for acting on this ongoing use in Zambia, one of the countries that had registered an acceptable purpose for DDT use within the Stockholm Convention and is considering re-registering.
