Ctgb set to tackle exceedance of authorisation standard for plant protection products
The Ctgb is planning to deal with substances in plant protection products that structurally exceed the authorisation standards in surface water. For this purpose, the Board will consider the monitoring data from the Pesticides Atlas - notably the list of substances with the most severe exceedances. If it finds a recurring pattern of exceedances, the Ctgb will reassess the authorisation. The Ctgb will apply Article 44 of the European Plant Protection Products Regulation to intervene in an existing authorisation. Intervention may take various forms, such as prescribing additional drift-reducing measures, restricting the dosage or decreasing the frequency of application, withdrawing certain uses or withdrawing the authorisation entirely.
Plant protection products are generally reassessed once every 10 years. This is when the latest methodologies are used and the estimation of emissions is usually refined. Where structural exceedances of the authorisation standards occur in surface water, it is important that the Ctgb can address this problem in the interim too. That is why the Board has decided in favour of this policy decree.
The Board’s decision was preceded by a public consultation on the measure. Over 100 responses were received from 24 organisations, ranging from businesses to environmental organisations and drinking water companies. The first decisions based on this new policy decree are expected from 2025 onwards. This process will then be repeated annually based on the latest monitoring data from the Pesticides Atlas.