December update: The European Commission aims to propose a law next year to stop the export of chemicals already banned in the EU. A group of us met Commissioner Sinkevičius on December 1, and he told us himself. So now what? Now we push harder than ever before!
Tonnes of banned chemicals are made in Europe every day and shipped all over the world. It’s a massive gap in the law that makes billions for companies like Bayer-Monsanto and BASF.
The European Commission committed in October 2020 to “lead by example, and, in line with international commitments, ensure that hazardous chemicals banned in the European Union are not produced for export.”
But two years on, the European Commission still hasn’t proposed a fix. It’s time for an urgent reminder:
Ask EU Commissioner for Environment to get a move on and stop Europe’s deadly exports.
France has outlawed the export and transport of banned pesticides, so we know it can be done.
Furthermore, a legal opinion by the Center for International Environmental Law says that EU exports of banned pesticides to Africa and Central America violate international treaties and human rights law.
In 2018 alone, more than 81,000 tonnes of pesticides containing 41 different hazardous chemicals banned for agricultural use in the EU, were exported by European corporations.
The EU has to do better.
Sign and share the petition to the European Commission, and we’ll deliver it to the EU Commissioner for Environment.
High-income countries have been shipping their hazardous chemicals, pesticides and e-waste to low- and middle-income countries for decades, poisoning people and nature in the process. It's not only Europe, but the EU certainly hasn't been "leading by example"!
SumOfUs members have come together to support farmers and families poisoned by pesticides corporations. We’ve spoken directly to Bayer’s shareholders and directors at their AGM, and helped beekeepers fighting the pesticide industry in the courts.
Right now, if we raise our voices and spread the word, we can get the European Commission moving on that law they promised two years ago!
In partnership with:
More information
PublicEye. 10 September 2020.
Unearthed. 15 October 2020.
CIEL. 26 September 2022.