| European Parliament votes on pesticides |
| 23 October 2007 |
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The European Parliament plenary session vote on two pesticide dossiers did not result in the clear reduction of pesticide use in the European Union that health and environmental groups had hoped for. NGOs expressed disappointemt that the Members of the European Parliament had given in to pressure from industry in the vote on the Framework Directive on the sustainable use of pesticides, by dropping important gains achieved in the earlier vote in the European Parliament Environment Committee. E.g. proposals for a 20 percent reduction in pesticide use over ten years were rejected. However on a more positive note the Committee improvements on the Regulation on the placing on the market of pesticides were largely upheld. MEPS confirmed a ban on the sale of pesticides that may cause cancer, damage our reproductive, immune and neural systems, or affect child development as well as severely restrict pesticide spraying in and around sensitivge areas, such as residential areas, playgrounds and healthcare facilities. NGO Press release |