Home and Garden Pesticide Disposal

‘One tablespoonful of spilled pesticide concentrate could pollute the water supply of 200,000 people for a day’. (UK Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries and Food)

The Pesticide Action Network (PAN UK) in the UK is calling for:

• National legislation requiring separation of hazardous waste from other household waste
• Convenient and well-advertised facilities for disposal of home and garden pesticides
• Information about alternatives to chemical pest control to be made available to the general public

grownupgreen asked PAN UK to explain their concerns and offer some advice about how we should dispose of everyday pesticides used in the home and garden.

gug: Many households in the UK will have pesticides in their kitchens, garages and sheds. It is likely that most people would choose not to have pests in their homes and gardens so what is the problem?
PAN UK: Yes. A vast array of home and garden pesticides are on the market in the UK offering quick relief from a range of potential pests. The efficacy of these chemicals depends on the fact they are toxic. They have nevertheless become widely used by the general public.

In 2001 householders purchased 4,893 tonnes of pesticide active ingredient, an increase of 14% compared with sales in 2000, and 76% compared with sales in 1998. The arsenal of chemicals available to the amateur user is smaller than that available to professional users. However, unlike farmers and local authority users, home and garden users have no access to training with only label advice as a guide.

PAN UK is concerned about the lack of suitable facilities for disposal of home and garden pesticides. Householders often use only a portion of the pesticide product they purchase and need an adequate system for disposing of the remainder. We have recently conducted both national and local surveys that reveal the inadequacy of our current system. The results show that while between 5% and 10% take pesticide waste to a specialised facility at their local authority civic amenity site, 20% to 30% dispose of pesticides inappropriately (down the drain or in the bin), and the remainder store these chemicals indefinitely mainly in garden sheds, garages, and kitchen cupboards. This current situation is unacceptable.

gug: Surely water companies and landfill sites deal with the problem.
PAN UK: Every year ground and surface waters contain concentrations of pesticides capable of impacting on wildlife. While water companies spend millions ensuring pesticide residues are removed from our drinking water supply, the residues remain in our rivers, lakes, and groundwater.

Inappropriate disposal of home and garden pesticides down drains and in bins contributes to this problem. Pesticides disposed of down drains will directly enter the water supply. Pesticides disposed of in the bin may end up in landfill sites not licensed to accept hazardous waste. These landfill sites have fewer safeguards to prevent toxic chemicals leaching out and a fraction will inevitably enter and contaminate our ground and surface waters.

It is currently not known to what extent home and garden pesticides contribute to contamination of our environment. However, in densely populated areas, such as the Thames region, it is highly likely that use and inappropriate disposal of home and garden pesticides contribute significantly to water contamination.

gug: Wouldn’t it be better to hold on to unused pesticides for later use – at least it would keep them out of landfill?
PAN UK: A glimpse into the average garden shed can sometimes reveal an impressive chemical armory. In a PAN UK survey most people reported storing pesticides, with 30-40% storing pesticides they no longer use. Aware of the dangers of disposing of pesticides down drains or in bins, and often having no alternative disposal options, many people stockpile old chemicals. Some of these chemicals have long since been banned and can pose a serious threat to children, pets, and wildlife. Over 90% of human poisoning incidents reported to the National Poison Information Services occur at home!

The Pesticide Action Network UK have factsheets on common pests encountered in the home or garden with advice on how to discourage or eliminate them as safely as possible.

Do you have any old or unwanted pesticides? Many local councils have facilities for disposing safely of these hazardous chemicals. PAN UK have a database which you can use to locate disposal facilities in your area

PAN UK is part of a global network. They work closely with partners in developing countries, where, they say, pesticide problems are sometimes far worse. In developing countries. say PAN UK, there are as many as three million poisonings and 20,000 deaths each year from pesticide incidents. To find out more have a look at their website www.pan-uk.org

PAN UK also carry out work on Pesticides in Food. They produce a poster resource to explain (this may take a few seconds to load). To explore this issue go to www.pan-uk/poster.htm

PAN _UK_ & grownupgreen - 13/01/05

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