Statement to the Rotterdam Convention COP Plenary concerning paraquat

Thank you Chair for giving me the floor. I speak on behalf of Pesticide Action Network International and IPEN.

Paraquat is a lethal pesticide for which there is no treatment. It kills over 70% patients in incidents of acute poisoning.

Rigorous academic research has shown that

• banning paraquat is the most effective means of cutting deaths

and that

• almost 60 countries have banned paraquat without any identifiable impact on agricultural production.

For over three decades now, Private Voluntary Standards have already been successfully supporting millions of farmers to eliminate paraquat. They are already doing it. They are not waiting for listing in Annex III.

But we are NOT discussing a ban on paraquat today!

Listing under Article III would not imply a ban, it would simply offer better information to Parties, supporting them to take better control of this chemical should they choose.

Scientific experts on the Chemical Review Committee of the Convention have been recommending that certain formulations of paraquat be listed under Article III of the Convention since 2011. This science-based process has been blocked for fully 12 years by a tiny minority of Parties. New solutions are urgently needed. This is why we support the proposal put forward by Parties to add an Annex VIII to the Convention.

As articulated by the Colombian representative; we cannot wait any longer for the urgent solutions required…we ask all the Parties to prioritise the interests of their peoples over the interests of the powerful.

See:

We have a Right to Know! The Rotterdam Convention must be modernised to protect human health and the environment