European Commission seeks to reinforce rules on the sustainable use of pesticides

On 22 June 2022, the European Commission adopted a proposal to revise Directive 2009/128/EC on the sustainable use of pesticides. Adopted in 2009, the Sustainable Use of Pesticides Directive sought to reduce the risks to human health and the environment arising from the use of pesticides in agriculture. To achieve these objectives, the Directive promotes the use of integrated pest management – a general approach to agriculture considering all available plant protection methods and techniques – and non-chemical alternatives to pesticides.

However, the implementation of the Directive in the EU Member States has been found to be insufficient to achieve its objectives. To address these shortcomings together with the consideration of the EU’s ambition in this area in line with the European Green Deal, the European Commission proposes to replace the Sustainable Use of Pesticides Directive with an enhanced regulation (which would therefore be directly applied across the European Union).

The new rules would build on the existing system by establishing binding reduction targets for the use of chemical plant protection products. These would be set at the Member State level within an overarching target of a 50% reduction by 2030 at the European level. Public authorities in the Member States would then be responsible to take measures to reduce pesticide use. An equivalent target is set for the reduction of the use of “more hazardous plant protection products” (namely, products containing active substances that have been designated as candidates for substitution under the Union’s plant protection product legislation).

In addition to the overall reduction targets, the use of all types of pesticides would be prohibited in what the regulation calls “sensitive areas” (such as public parks, gardens and paths, protected areas, or human settlements). Persons wishing to use pesticides within or near these areas would need to procure an authorisation, which may only be given where there is a “proven, serious and exceptional” risk of pests spreading and no other technically feasible alternatives are available.

Additionally, the regulation proposal contains several procedural provisions. These relate to the calculation of national targets, the drafting and implementation of national plans, the training and certification of operators involved in pesticide use, and the inspection of equipment for pesticide application.

The proposal adopted by the European Commission will now be scrutinized and debated by the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union, both of which must agree on a version that will then become law.