Pesticides: Associations attack a decree regulating the work of ANSES

Three associations announced on Thursday, September 11, that they were joining an appeal before the Council of State against a decree allowing the Minister of Agriculture to influence the work schedule of the health agency (ANSES) to authorize pesticides. This appeal was filed in July by Agir pour l'environnement. Pollinis, Notre affaire à tous, and Générations futures have indicated that they are joining it.

In a press release, these associations denounce a decree of July 8, which they say is "illegal" and represents "an unprecedented coup against the French health authority responsible for protecting bees and biodiversity as a whole, as well as our health."

The decree in question "specifies the procedures for processing applications for marketing authorisations for plant protection products by Anses (the French Agency for Food Safety and the Environment), in order to strengthen information and harmonisation of the conditions for issuing crop protection products" .

He indicates that the Director General of ANSES "takes into account, in the timetable for examining applications for marketing authorization" , a decree from the Minister of Agriculture establishing "the list of uses" of pesticides.

For the associations, this means that "from now on, the Ministry of Agriculture can directly put pressure on ANSES to satisfy the demands of the agrochemical industry lobbies, in defiance of the imperatives of public health and environmental protection."

For Hermine Baron, the lawyer representing Notre Affaire à Tous and Générations Futures, "this is an attack on the independence of ANSES, which risks opening the way to ever greater interference in evaluation procedures, with disregard for the protection of health and the environment."

On July 21, Agir pour l'environnement criticized "the violation of the precautionary principle, (...) for the benefit of farmers" and "the deprivation of powers of the ministers of the environment and health" who, along with the minister of agriculture, exercise supervision of ANSES. For this association, the government is also "incompetent" to take such a measure by decree "which could only be taken by legislative means."

The possibility for the government to impose "priorities" in the work of ANSES was initially part of the Duplomb bill, before being removed from the text in the face of protests from elected officials, associations and scientists denouncing an attack on the agency's independence.

In another high-profile case involving pesticides, the state was ordered on appeal on September 3 to review its pesticide authorization procedures, which were deemed insufficient to guarantee the maintenance of biodiversity and the protection of health.