According to a leaked document, the European Commission is considering ditching bee-safety standards that led to a ban of three neonicotinoid pesticides. Neonicotinoids are the most widely used class of insecticides in the world, but research has linked their use to declining pollinator populations.
[Editor’s note: See the GLP’s With the ‘bee crisis’ fading and European farmers fearing an insect invasion, EU’s neonicotinoid ban fiasco stumbles into the New Year for more information about neonicotinoids and bee health.]
….In April [2018], Member States voted for an almost total ban of neonicotinoid pesticide use in Europe. However, a recently leaked document indicates the Commission may assess acute toxicity i.e effects resulting from a single contact to honeybees only, and ignore chronic toxicity that could develop from continuous or repeated exposure to the pesticides.
Read full, original article: Controversial pesticides, single-use cutlery ban, GMOs and ‘dual quality’: A round-up of EU news & views
