Press releases
PAN Europe carried out an impact assessment of the proposed criteria for endocrine disrupting pesticides (EDCs) in a report published just ahead of the meeting of the College of EU Commissioners on the criteria on Wednesday. PAN Europe collected all scientific information on the endocrine properties of pesticides together with the information from industry dossiers.
As a part of EU Green Week, Pesticide Action Network Europe (PAN Europe) conducted a European-wide webinar to exchange practical information on how towns across Europe can become pesticide-free. Hosted by the city of Ghent - which has aimed to reduce pesticide use since the early 90’s and has been pesticide-free since 2009 - this webinar allowed greenspace workers, political leaders, NGOs, and citizens, to exchange information and ask questions about the pesticide-free management of towns across Europe.
Today, Pesticide Action Network Europe together with 38 European health and environmental organisations, are sending an open letter to the decision-makers of the 28 EU Member States to urge them to vote against the reauthorisation of the cancer-causing pesticide ingredient glyphosate, and protect its people from this spreading disease.
The Munich Environmental Institute (Umweltinstitut München) and Pesticide Action Network (PAN) Germany join PAN Europe and 5 EU environmental organisations in their legal proceedings against those responsible for the assessment of glyphosate in Europe[1] (Monsanto, German government institute –BfR - and European Food Safety Authority-EFSA).
The 2009-pesticide Regulation rules that endocrine disrupting pesticides should not be allowed on the market.
Today, several environmental, health and other NGOs will deliver to the EU Health Commissioner and Member State representatives over 180,000 signatures from European citizens to ban glyphosate. The NGOs will be in front of the building where Member States will vote on Monday whether to renew the EU authorization for glyphosate for another 15 years.
Brussels, 2nd of March 2016. Six environmental NGOs (Global 2000, PAN Europe, PAN UK, Generations Futures, Nature et Progrès Belgique and Wemove.EU) from five European countries are filing today a formal complaint against those responsible for the assessment of glyphosate in Europe, for denying the cancer causing effects of glyphosate and getting its European market license renewed.
The practice of EU Commission health service SANTE to approve pesticides while important safety data are missing, the so-called "confirmatory data procedure" (CDP), is a case of maladministration according to the EU Ombudsman in a decision published today (pnt 8 of the decision). Under the previous pesticide Directive (91/414) she considers use of these practices by DG SANTE as unlawful (pnt 27) and under the new Regulation (1107/2009) that allows use of CDP only in exceptional cases she concludes the use was not restricted as it should (pnt 11).
A large reservoir of pesticides with unacceptable health effects is present at EU Commission health service DG SANTE but Mr. Andriukatis' DG makes no move to ban them. Not one of the six most harmful pesticides (see Table below) is put on the agenda of today's meeting[1] of the Standing Committee. For the pesticide Amitrole, capable of causing malformations of the fetus, the dossiers and the EFSA peer-review are ready since July 1, 2014 and no decision is taken.
PETITION DELIVERY
16 Organisations deliver a message: 135,733 Europeans call to ban glyphosate
Wednesday 9 December, at 12:00 the call was delivered at DG SANTE’s premises located in Breydel Street, No 4, 1040 Brussel (Etterbeek), to Mr Flueh, Chair of the Standing Committee for Food Chain and Animal Health - Section: "Phytopharmaceuticals - Legislation, on behalf of Food Safety Commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis.
