Obsolete pesticides

International organizations estimate that 500.000 to 1.000.000 tonnes of obsolete pesticides contaminate the environment throughout the world. At least 300.000 tonnes can be found in the countries that belonged to the former Soviet Union. The often sub-standard storage of persistent chemicals is a serious threat to nature, environment and human health.

The storages are scattered throughout the whole territory of the Soviet Union; each collective farm usually had its own storage for pesticides. These storages were abandoned or broken down after the collapse of the Sovjet Union. The broken down storages still contain large quantities of obsolete and forbidden obsolete pesticides such as DDT.

The pesticides are a danger to human health, to those persons living near to storages but also around the world. The pesticides leak into the soil and pollute agricultural lands and ground water. One example of global pollution of chemicals is presented in the documentary film “Silent Snow”, which explains the pollution of Innuit people in Greenland through eating seals.

What do we do about the problem of OP?

Milieukontakt International has been involved in elimination of acute risks of obsolete pesticides since 2005. That year we started working in a consortium to repack obsolete pesticides, together with enigineering company Tauw bv , the International HCH and Pesticides Association and the Dutch NGO Natuur en Milieu . Since then we have found new partners – Green Cross Switzerland , FAO , UNEP , WHO - with which we developed new projects in the Causcasus and central Asia.

The current problems on obsolete pesticides were created because of a lack of awareness, interest and money from local authorities and citizens. Storages were left without protection. Building materials are often stolen from the sites and used by local citizens for their own roads or constructions. Pesticides are still used by local people. And cattle graze on the pastures close to the storages.

If people do not know and understand the risks of the pesticides or don’t have any possibility to deal with the problem they will keep on behaving as mentioned in the given examples. If we as western NGOs or consultancies travel to the villages in white overalls and start repacking and cleaning up the sites the short term problems will be solved. But the costs per tonne pesticides in such a project are high and the involvement of local citizens is low or absent. The local citizens will not be aware of the problem and they run the risk of repeating the same mistakes after the western experts have left. You also miss a lot of local expertise from plant protection agencies, farmers, environmental inspections, authorities and NGOs. Information that can be vital for a complete survey of all locations of old storages of obsolete pesticides. These people can also take care of the many organisational matters that are involved, such as arranging for packaging materials to be delivered at the right time at the right place, arranging a safe and guarded storage, making legal arrangements, assuring cooperation of local citizens and informing villagers and local authorities.

These are exactly the reasons why Milieukontakt and its partners developed a methodology with high involvement and participation of local people.

This methodology has three main components: The first is repacking of obsolete pesticides on the level of a province or district, the second is involvement of local stakeholders in this process and the third is awareness raising and support of legislation on pesticides on a national level.

With this methodology we now succeeded to repack 108 tonnes of obsolete pesticides in the province of Hincesti in Moldova together with local partners. In the actual process in each component one expert from Western Europe was involved. One trainer for the repackaging, one for the stakeholder involvement and one for the national level. Our Moldovan partners worked on the organisation of the whole project, publication of information through the municipalities, leaflets, media and internet. On the national level civil society organisations are working on alternatives for use of pesticides in agriculture either through integrated pest management or organic agriculture. In January 2007 we started an experiment with phytoremediation of a contaminated site in Hincesti, Moldova. This experiment will learn us more about the possibilities of low cost solutions for this problem.

In 2008 within our project we repacked 200 tonnes of obsolete pesticides in Georgia (Kakheti region) and 100 tonnes in Kyrgyzstan (Osh region). In 2009 we did an inventory in two rayons of the Kiev oblast’ in Ukraine. It is expected we will repackage approximately 100 tonnes later this year.

Currently we are also developing and implementing other projects with our partners.