March 18, 1996
Denmark and Sweden Move to Further Restrict Pesticides
As of January 1, 1996, following approval by the European
Commission, the government of Denmark raised national
pesticide taxes from 3% of the retail price to as high as
37%. According to the Danish Environmental Protection Agency,
an average 15% increase in the price of pesticides is
expected to reduce pesticide use by 8%; however, that
reduction could vary depending on how much of the tax is
passed on to farmers by pesticide manufacturers, importers
and retailers. Although calculated on the retail price of
pesticides, the taxes will be collected at manufacturing or
import levels, greatly minimizing government costs of
administering the program. The tax will be collected on both
Danish and imported pesticides, and is projected to raise
approximately US$39.5 million in 1996. The funds will be used
primarily for environmental programs and to intensify
research on organic farming. To partially offset the impact
of the taxes on the agricultural sector, some of the funds
will be set aside for financial aid and the Danish Ministry
of Environment has announced its intent to reduce taxes on
farmland.
Normally the European Commission would not approve a domestic
tax on imported products; however, the Commission found that
the proposed Danish tax fell in line with the European
Community's environmental and sustainable development
considerations and its objective to reduce agrochemical use.
The Danish agrochemical industry association has predicted
the tax will cause "chaos" within the farming sector next
year, and that it will affect the competitiveness of Danish
farmers negatively.
In the last months of 1995, the Danish Ministry of
Environment and Energy also added ten more active ingredients
to the list of pesticides that it proposes to ban, including
1,3-dichloropropene, captan, dazomet, dichlorvos, guazatine,
thiram, ziram, vinclozolin, iprodione and diquat. This brings
to 17 the total of active ingredients that the Danish
government proposes to ban, affecting some 100 products. The
Danish proposal to ban these pesticides is based on
identified risks of ground water pollution, persistence in
soil, and/or risks to aquatic organisms, birds and mammals.
The Ministry will issue final decisions sometime this year
regarding the status of these 17 pesticides. Seven additional
active ingredients were banned by the Danish government in
1994.
In Sweden, the adoption of quantified pesticide use reduction
targets is one of a number of approaches being taken in order
to reduce human and environmental exposure under the national
Pesticide Risk Reduction Program. Other measures include
pesticide safety training for applicators and prohibition of
filling spraying equipment near lakes and watercourses.
Reduction of pesticide toxicity by setting more stringent
registration criteria is another important effort related to
risk reduction.
As a result of a related national re-registration program
completed in 1995, over 250 agrochemical products (out of the
600 previously registered) will be banned in Sweden this
year. Retailers will be given one year to sell stock of the
banned products, and farmers will be allowed to phase out use
over two years. During the five year re-registration program,
21 active ingredients were banned, 18 had use restrictions
imposed, and 18 were voluntarily withdrawn. Banned pesticides
include aldicarb, bromocil, carbaryl, dinocap, thiram,
trifluralin and ziram. Bromoxynil, 2,4-D and dicofol are
among those voluntarily withdrawn. Since the 1960s, a total
of 45 active ingredients have been banned in Sweden.
Sweden, the only state in the European Union (EU) to have
completed a re-registration program of older pesticides, did
so before it joined the EU on January 1, 1995. The Swedish
government has stated that it is determined to maintain the
same level of stringent evaluation criteria in the future,
irrespective of what happens at the EU level.
The March 1996 Global Pesticide Campaigner contains a more
complete update on pesticide use reduction schemes in Sweden,
Denmark and the Netherlands. Contact PANNA if you would like
to receive a copy of the article via email.
Source: Agrow, December 15, 1995.
Contact: PANNA
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