Human health: Five new chemicals under surveillance

NaijaAgroNet:

Some five new chemicals are currently under consideration by the Chemical Review Committee (CRC) of the Rotterdam Convention, reports NaijaAgroNet.

CRC arising from its 13^th meeting revealed that three more chemicals were recommended for inclusion in the Rotterdam Convention, whilst two more are recommended for inclusion in the Stockholm Convention, thereby bringing to five some new chemicals under consideration.

The 13^th meeting of the Chemical Review Committee (CRC) of the Rotterdam Convention, which was held back-to-back with POPRC and which concluded, successfully and recommended to the Conference of Parties (COP) the listing of phorate, acetochlor and hexabromocyclododecane in Annex III of the Convention. 

Acetochlor, a selective herbicide, has been used on maize in Sahelian West African countries. It poses a high risk to aquatic organisms as well as long-term risks to herbivorous birds and to humans.

Phorate, a pesticide, has been used for example in Brazil as an insecticide in cotton, potato, coffee, beans and corn and is considered one of the most toxic organophosphate AChE inhibitors.

Ogochukwu Nebenanya/GEE
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WHO, FAO unveil roadmap to deal with highly hazardous pesticides

NaijaAgroNet:

The World Health Organisation (WHO) in collaboration with Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) have unveiled new guidelines aimed at reducing the damage done by pesticides that pose especially high toxic risks to human health and the environment, reports NaijaAgroNet.

Sources from both organization, informed NaijaAgroNet that products with high acute toxicity account for high numbers of immediate poisoning cases, particularly in developing countries, while products with chronic toxicity effects may cause cancer or developmental disorders among growing children. 

NaijaAgroNet reports that in industrialized countries, such so-called "highly hazardous pesticides" may be no longer permitted or subject to strict use limitations, yet they often remain widely available in developing countries. 

“Even hazardous products are still permitted in industrialised countries can cause severe problems in the developing world, where use circumstances can be very different,” FAO source said.

NaijaAgroNet gathered that small-scale farmers in developing countries in particular often do not have, or use, the necessary protective gear and mostly use back-pack sprayers that pose high risk of exposure.

Therefore, both WHO and FAO pointed out that restriction on the use of such highly hazardous products often prove hard to enforce, leading to widespread use by untrained persons, warning that high numbers of poisoning cases, contaminated food and environmental damage could be the result.

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