Researchers at Agroscope, ENDURE’s Swiss partner, have completed a study examining the use and risk of plant protection products (PPPs) in the country’s field crops over a period of 10 years. They conclude that decreasing amounts of PPPs are being used in the country but show that quantity alone does not determine the risk to the environment.
They explain that since 2009, 300 farms have recorded the amount of PPPs they use, as well as when and in what crops. From these figures, researchers have extrapolated the Swiss-wide use of plant-protection products per field crop. The SYNOPS model was then used to calculate the risk posed to surface water “both with and without considering the use restrictions for reducing aquatic risks imposed by the product authorisation”.
They report a 31% reduction in the amount of herbicide active substances used between 2012 and 2018 and note that fungicide use fell by nearly 27% between 2009 and 2019. Insecticide use fluctuated over the decade. They write: “In addition to changes in the authorisation of PPPs and the increase in organic and extensified (‘extenso’) farming (which dispense with fungicides and insecticides), the decline in the total area under cereal cultivation was also a reason for the decrease in the amount of active substances used in field crops throughout Switzerland.”
Their conclusions:
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