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EU proposal amounts to a plant protection ban
A European proposal for the sustainable use of plant protection products in its current form de facto means that a general ban on the use of these products will apply in almost the whole of the Netherlands.
According to the proposal, a total ban on the use of plant protection products should apply in sensitive areas. During a European consultation of a working group on this proposal earlier this month, 'it emerged that the current definition means that in a number of countries, including the Netherlands, almost the entire land area can be regarded as a sensitive area. For example, because nitrate-sensitive areas also fall under the definition', writes agriculture minister Piet Adema to the House of Representatives.
Sensitive areas in this definition are areas that are 'frequently used by the public and vulnerable persons (public spaces, built-up areas, schoolyards, sports parks, etc.) and areas designated for the protection of water and nature'. Exceptions to the ban on use are only possible for combating quarantine organisms and invasive exotics.
The European Commission has invited Member States to submit written proposals. The Netherlands has explained that the definition of sensitive areas and a ban on use in those areas is not in line with Dutch policy with a distinction between professional use in and outside agriculture, according to Adema. With regard to a proposed buffer zone between agricultural parcels and sensitive areas, the Netherlands has referred to agreements in the context of the new CAP/NSP and the (derogation decision) Nitrates Directive on buffer strips, to which the Netherlands wishes to join.
Linda van Eekeres
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