News Glyphosate
More and more municipalities are banning glyphosate
In 2017, the European Commission extended the use of glyphosate for a further 5 years and instructed France, Hungary, Sweden and the Netherlands to conduct further research into glyphosate. The results should form the basis for a new decision in 2022. However, for many provinces and municipalities this is taking too long, they are increasingly taking matters into their own hands.
The municipality Gilze and Rijen (North Brabant) was one of the first municipalities in the Netherlands to include a ban on glyphosate in the lease contracts. However, this requirement was overturned in February by the Southern Ground Chamber, stating that this restricts the tenant too much in his freedom of exploitation. Another municipality in North Brabant appealed against a similar decision, and successfully. In March of this year, the Central Ground Chamber decided that such a ban is allowed in short-term lease contracts.
The revised decision of the Land Chamber now means that more and more municipalities and provinces decide to ban the use of glyphosate in short-term lease contracts. Although the European Commission will already make a new decision on the use of glyphosate in 2022, many municipalities in the Netherlands indicate that they think this is taking too long, mainly out of fear of possible negative health effects.
Research into glyphosate ban
Uit research A number of newspapers from the east of the country revealed this week that more and more municipalities in the Netherlands are investigating or even already applying a ban on the use of glyphosate (including Almelo) (Doetinchem and Olst-Wijhe). This specifically concerns the plots that the municipality leases to farmers. According to these municipalities, the ban is in line with the recent advice of the Health Council to limit the use of substances such as glyphosate as much as possible.
It is not only the advice of the Health Council that appears to be a reason for municipalities to impose a ban. In Enschede, the ban on the use of glyphosate is largely the result of social outrage about brown-yellow colored pastures in the region. According to the municipality of Enschede, farmers who lease land from the municipality in this region should look for alternative crop protection.
However, this would be just the tip of the iceberg. A ban on the use of glyphosate is not only increasing in popularity among municipalities, but more and more provinces also want to ban its use. Following the example of North Brabant, recently Noord-Holland and Zuid-Holland with a ban on glyphosate in various short leases. The exception to this is that an alternative must be available for land management. And previously, Staatsbosbeheer already imposed a glyphosate ban on 40.000 hectares of leased land.
Emotion predominates
Pieter Evenhuis, department director at LTO Noord thinks the situation is worrying. "At the moment, emotion predominates in the discussion about glyphosate. In Europe, glyphosate is still allowed because there is no scientific evidence that it is carcinogenic." In addition, Evenhuis argues that the authorization of such substances must be based on the assessment of independent institutes and science and not on the assessment from politics, which is mainly based on social unrest due to, for example, brownish-yellow soils.
According to Evenhuis, it is also frightening that municipalities and provinces are now going their own way. "Agriculture Minister Carola Schouten has previously indicated that she does not want to anticipate national legislation (and that is why there is no national ban yet), but now every municipality can go its own way. That is frightening, because municipalities may not dare to stay behind in the future. " According to him, municipalities do not realize that glyphosate use here in the Netherlands is completely different from, for example, South America. "The amounts we use are only a tenth of what they spray there. We only occasionally use it here for problem weeds."
Incidentally, not every province is united in its decision to ban the use of glyphosate. In the province of Overijssel, the motion did not receive a majority in the Provincial Council last month, and the council has not yet considered tightening the glyphosate rules in Friesland either.
Kimberly Baker
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