Calls for pesticide and chemical amnesty scheme

The creation of a scheme to collect stocks of illegally held pesticides and other hazardous chemicals is being considered by the Government.

The creation of a scheme to collect stocks of illegally held pesticides and other hazardous chemicals is being considered by the Government.

Renewed focus on the issue follows the finding of a dead white-tailed eagle on land between Cavan and Westmeath last November.

Toxicology tests revealed that the young male bird, which had been released into the wild as part of a conservation reintroduction project, had died from ingesting carbofuran, a banned pesticide.

Two departments, Agriculture, Food and Marine, and Environment, Climate and Communications, along with the Environment Protection Agency and other stakeholders, are examining the need for a collection scheme.

Minister of State Pippa Hackett told the Senate that options for removing and identifying stocks of carbofuran and other poisonous or illegally held chemicals are currently being considered.

“It is something we do need to work on and implement. It would serve us all and our wildlife well,” she said.

The Minister was responding to Senator Lynn Boylan, who said carbofuran, a lethal pest control poison, had been outlawed for a decade because of its devastating impact on bird life.

She called for a zero-tolerance approach for anyone deliberately carrying out wildlife crimes and an amnesty for carbofuran and other banned substances.

Senator Boylan said the conservation re-introduction programme (2007-2011) involved the release of 100 young white-tailed eagles in Killarney National Park.

“It is wonderful to see them being reintroduced in this country,” she said, praising the Norwegian Government for donating these birds to Ireland.

Senator Boylan went on: “We must ask ourselves where this carbofuran came from and how people got their hands on it. We suspect that these are poisons people have lying about in their sheds and have not disposed of.

“When I raised this issue previously, the Minister of State at the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Deputy Malcolm Noonan, suggested that we might possibly look at an amnesty for these products.

“Now that we have seen another poisoning incident, I ask the Government to consider issuing a public service announcement offering an amnesty to people who have these poisons in their sheds and may not be aware that they are no longer permitted to be used.

“They should be allowed to present them so that they can be correctly disposed of to ensure they do not end up in the food chain or affect our precious biodiversity, particularly our raptor species,” she said.

Senator Boylan said she had also raised concerns regarding access to legal pesticides and rodenticides.

“Some of these are very poisonous chemicals but they are freely available to citizens in local discount stores and gardening centres.

“I ask that consideration be given to preventing them from being so readily accessible to the general public.

“Whatever about farmers having to use them and being trained in their use, the general public do not need use these poisons and they should be taken off the shelves,” she said.

Minister Hackett said she was aware of the recent incredibly concerning reports in connection with the death from poisoning of a white-tailed eagle.

“I strongly condemn this illegal act, and I urge anyone with any information to contact either the National Parks and Wildlife Service or An Garda Síochána,” she said.

Minister Hackett said the chemical carbofuran was formerly used as an insecticide in European Union member states, including Ireland.

EU approval for its use in plant protection products was withdrawn by a Commission decision in 2007.

“This was due to a number of significant concerns, including its toxicity for birds and mammals which we can clearly see in this case.

“It has been illegal to use or trade products containing carbofuran anywhere in the EU since December 2008.

“Regulatory controls in Ireland have been further strengthened by other legislation, which made deliberate poisoning an offence.” 

Minister Hackett said possession of carbofuran is also illegal. Products containing it have been classified as hazardous waste since the legal use period expired in 2008.

A formal protocol known as RAPTOR, which stands for recording and addressing persecution and threats to raptors, was introduced in 2011.

The protocol includes testing for secondary poisoning in birds of prey, with carbofuran and other substances being routinely monitored. Several reports on incidences of poisoning have been published.

She said the information from the RAPTOR project suggests that a small number of individuals may have illegally procured carbofuran or illegally retained old product stock.

The desirability of identifying and removing such stocks is recognised and options to facilitate achieving this objective are currently being considered.

A pilot project, which ran from 2013 to 2017, provided farmers with an opportunity to safely dispose of hazardous waste.

This was a collaborative project led by the EPA, working with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, the then Department of Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Teagasc and local authorities.

It was also supported by the Irish Farmers Association, Bórd Bia and other stakeholders. A total of 9,000 farmers availed of the service.

Almost 1,000 tonnes of hazardous and potentially hazardous waste were collected across 46 collection centres.

“That is a significant amount, which included 68 tonnes of waste pesticides and small quantities of carbofuran products,” she said.

Senator Boylan said that was almost six years ago, and the issue should be looked at again. Young farmers who have taken over farms might wish to participate in such an amnesty.

Minister Hackett said the pilot campaign proved to be very successful, so running something similar again merits consideration.

“This could provide a mechanism to facilitate the identification and removal of existing stocks of carbofuran and other poisonous or illegally held chemicals,” she said.