The EU Commission aims to halve the use and risk of pesticides in the EU by 2030. However, the method proposed for measuring progress threatens to render the plan meaningless. The Harmonised Risk Indicator 1 could make the result a fictitious reduction in pesticide use that exists only on paper. The field application of particularly dangerous pesticides may actually increase, replacing harmless pesticides with more toxic ones.
This animation highlights the serious flaws in the HRI1 measurement method proposed by the Commission. This method assigns, for example, an eight-fold higher risk to sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), classified as a "low-risk pesticide," compared to the very toxic difenoconazole, labelled as a "Candidate for Substitution" - and even a 50-fold higher risk compared to the bee-killing neurotoxin deltamethrin.
It also gives an extra factor - in retrospect - to ban pesticides. The result: if a very toxic pesticide is banned and replaced by an equally harmful pesticide this counts as a strong pesticide reduction.
The magic misleading cheating method is developed with the help of the pesticide industry and they are very happy with it.
The video also shows simple solutions to repair the indicator. The improvement is necessary to make the Pesticide Reduction Law SUR a success. This could lead to a true reduction of pesticide use, important for health, environment, biodiversity, healthy soil, healthy food and clean water.
This video was produced at the initiative of the European Citizens' Initiative "Save Bees and Farmers".
Негізгі бет Ғылым және технология The deceptive Harmonised Risk Indicator HRI1 (EN)
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