French deadline for end of atrazine use
French deadline for end of atrazine use
FRANCE has ordered the removal of the weed killer atrazine from the market by the end of September 2002, together with certain other herbicides from the triazine family.
Announcing the move, farm minister, Jean Glavany, said there were three main motives for the decision.
First, was the "generalised presence" of atrazine and its derivatives in French water supplies. About 40% of surface water and 25% of ground water had to be treated as a direct consequence.
Second, research by the French food safety agency (AFSSA) recommended that children should not drink water containing more than 0.6mg/litre of atrazine. But in many regions this level was exceeded.
Last, Mr Glavany pointed to the declining effectiveness of atrazine as a weed killer, noting that a number of weeds were becoming resistant. This encouraged farmers to increase the dosage. *