Voted yesterday, the bill on the future of agriculture further regulates the spreading of pesticides near sensitive places. It will be subject to the implementation of appropriate protection measures.
Pesticides in the sights of MPs. The National Assembly in fact voted on the night of Wednesday to Thursday July 10 measures providing for sanctions in the case of spraying pesticides near particularly sensitive areas. A major advance according to the socialist majority, a measure below the stake according to some associations fighting against pesticides.
Hedges or adapted schedules
In detail, the National Assembly voted on Wednesday evening at second reading for the draft law on agriculture, food and forestry. This text contains an amendment that makes the spreading of pesticides conditional […] near sensitive places (schools, hospitals, retirement homes, etc.) to the implementation of special protection measures “such as hedges or adapted schedules. “
In addition, when a project leader wishes to build an establishment welcoming vulnerable people (hospitals, leisure centers, etc.) near areas where plant protection products can be used, he must provide for the implementation of protective measures. physical, such as hedges, and incorporate them at the time of construction.
Sanctions if the measures are not respected
On the side of the Minister of Agriculture, Stéphane Le Foll, it is now estimated that “the debate on the 200 meters is settled, especially as this has never been marked in the law, and that a balance has been found to protect the most vulnerable. “
In practice, when such measures cannot be implemented, “the administrative authority will determine a suitable minimum distance below which it is forbidden to use these products near these places. ”
And to ensure that this measure will be respected, the government has also passed the principle of a sanction in the event of disregard of these measures.
The associations wanted to go even further
For Générations Futures, an association for the fight against pesticides, we are first of all delighted that “for the first time a text provides that a distance without ground spraying could be set up near sensitive places, a sign that citizen pressure and the 128,310 signatures of the petition of the association were partially heard. These activists regret, however, that the proposal of the Minister of Ecology, Ségolène Royal, asking for a pesticide-free zone of 200m near schools was not retained in its entirety.
“While the Senate had clearly opened the possibility of banning the use of pesticides near inhabited areas and that Ms. Royal asked for the same bans on pesticides within 200m of schools, the amendment of the text in the Committee on Economic Affairs the National Assembly is leading to a situation which in fact will authorize the use of pesticides near schools and sensitive places in most cases ”, regrets François Veillerette, spokesperson for Générations Futures.
Pesticides are seriously harmful to health
As a reminder, in a recent study, an average of 21 pesticide residues were found in the hair of schoolchildren aged 3 to 10 years living or going to school in agricultural areas. A worrying finding when you know the health hazards of these products. In a report on the subject published last year, Inserm has indeed confirmed the danger of pesticides on health for farmers and residents. Exposure to these substances is notably associated with the development of cancers and neurodegenerative diseases.
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