Traces of pesticides banned for 44 years have been found in zucchini. An action plan to guarantee food security has been put in place by the prefect.
Checks carried out last summer by state services revealed the presence of chlordane and dieldrin residues in a batch of zucchini produced in the Jalles market garden area, on the outskirts of Bordeaux. These two pesticides were widely used in agriculture in the 1950s and 1960s before being phased out. The use of dieldrin in agriculture was banned in 1972, then both were banned in 1992 due to their persistence in soils.
Until last week, this information had gone unnoticed. But members of the Association for the Maintenance of Peasant Agriculture (AMAP) alerted Gérard Chausset, president of the group of elected ecologists of Bordeaux Métropole. The latter then sent a letter to the prefect of the Gironde on March 17 in which he demanded that “studies be carried out to both detect the sources of this pollution, preserve the natural environment (this product is thus highly toxic for the environment). aquatic) and protect the population. “
The elected ecologist specifies, however, that “the rates detected do not constitute an immediate danger for consumers”. However, the presence of these pesticides, which have been banned for several decades, is once again provoking the debate around these products and their health and environmental impact. “This information should appeal to you particularly at a time when the issue of pesticides is very significant and sensitive in our department, following the revelations on pesticides used in viticulture in particular”, emphasizes Gérard Chausset in his letter to the prefect.
An emergency plan
Especially since this old pollution seems to concern “the thirty or so operations in the area at variable rates”, indicated the prefect of Gironde, Pierre Dartout, in his reply mail. Only plots with a rate greater than 0.1 mg of dieldrin per kg of soil represent a potential risk of non-compliant vegetable production, specifies the prefecture before adding that “the analyzes carried out on the water were found to be negative. There is therefore no environmental impact ”.
The prefecture, however, opted for caution. In his letter, the Prefect details an action plan put in place to ensure the marketing of fruits and vegetables that are safe for consumers. For this, the cultivation of plants must be done according to the levels of pesticides in the soil.
Thus, in the most contaminated plots, it is necessary to avoid cucurbits such as cucumbers or zucchini. Surveillance measures must also be implemented in order to “confirm the safety of the root vegetables produced in the zone” as well as a systematic control of the most accumulating plants, in particular cucurbits, if the crop cannot be moved. “The lots can only be marketed after favorable results. This situation concerns 12 farms ”, warns the prefect.
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