Not "moralizing ecology". In a forum granted Monday to Ouest-France , the new Prime Minister had insisted on the need to support the actors on the ground in the ecological transition. A measure, announced this Wednesday, goes in this direction since the State has just released an envelope of 30 million euros to help farmers to equip themselves with materials intended to reduce the use of pesticides, reports the organization Wednesday FranceAgriMer.
This program "aims to help investments to reduce or replace the use of phytosanitary products in order to preserve the environment," said FranceAgriMer in a press release. "The State will thus support the purchase of the most efficient sprayers and certain alternative equipment to the use of phytosanitary products", it is specified.
Strengthen the protection of local residents
The list of eligible investments was published on July 9 in the official bulletin of the Ministry of Agriculture. These materials must in particular make it possible to limit “drift”, that is to say the deposit of products outside the treatment zones, under the effect of the wind in particular.
When this aid was announced in May 2020, the Ministry of Agriculture underlined that it was "consistent with the new system implemented on January 1, 2020 to strengthen the protection of residents during the 'use of phytosanitary products': areas where no pesticides have been treated (ZNT).
The State has set minimum distances for the use of pesticides near homes: five meters for so-called low crops such as vegetables and cereals, ten meters for tall crops, fruit trees or vines, 20 meters for "the most hazardous ”, which represent around 0.3% of the active substances used.
Possible exemptions
Derogations are however possible in the event of the use of "approved equipment reducing spray drift," according to the ministry. The minimum distances can also be shortened within the framework of local charters known as “good neighborly”, between farmers and residents.
Environmental NGOs believe that these measures are not enough protective for farmers, residents, water resources and biodiversity.
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- Fertilizer
- Biodiversity
- Agriculture
- Planet
- ecology
- Farmers
- Pesticides