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Endosulfan around the world

Endosulfan is a persistent, toxic pesticide that travels long distances and impacts communities far away from the place of application. Endosulfan is used on various crops worldwide, but its largest uses are on cotton, tea and coffee. It is also used on vegetables, fruits and in forestry. Since the patent on it has run out, it is available cheaply on the market. It is a wide spectrum insecticide, not associated with any particular insect. Hence by using endosulfan, many non-target species, including humans, also get harmed. Endosulfan has caused severe poisonings and even death in many parts of the world. Pesticide Action Network (PAN) regional centers in Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and North America are active in campaigning for a global ban on this toxic insecticide. Endosulfan related deaths and debilitation have included thirty-seven farmers dying in Benin, two boys dead in South Africa, flower workers poisoned in Colombia, and villagers in Philippines and India poisoned by the toxic pesticide.

Endosulfan in Africa

Farmers in Ghana with <br>commonly used pesticides <br> image credit: PAN UKIn Africa endosulfan is used widely, especially in cotton cultivation. PAN Africa, PAN UK and some African NGOs together conducted a study in West Africa over a period of two years. The countries studies were Cameroon, Mali, Senegal, Benin and Burkina Faso. Blood samples were analyzed from farmers and farm workers who work in cotton fields in these countries. All the country samples showed detectable levels of endosulfan. The farmers described many symptoms of acute endosulfan poisoning they had experienced. The study found that “there are striking similarities in the symptoms experienced and in the conditions of use which indicate that pesticide related ill health is widespread, and that endosulfan is one of the pesticides most responsible.” Some of the worst cases of poisoning were found in Benin, which included deaths of farmers or their family members exposed to endosulfan.

 

Endosulfan in Asia

PAN Asia Pacific (PAN AP) has been active in campaigning against endosulfan in Asia, especially in India and the Philippines. India hasA child victim of <br>endosulfan in India <br> image credit:Thanal some very well documented cases of endosulfan poisoning in the state of Kerala. A local NGO Thanal investigated the chronic poisoning of entire villages due to aerial spraying of endosulfan over cashew plantations and villages adjoining them in the Kasargod district of Kerala. People in these villages suffered from an unusually high incidence of cerebral palsy and other central nervous system disorders, congenital neurological disorders, body deformations, cancers, reproductive disorders, miscarriages, and endocrine disruption. Endosulfan residues measured in cow milk and flesh in Kasaragod district were over 100 times the permissible level. The investigation by Thanal established links of these diseases and deformities to the spraying of endosulfan in the area. With the support of PAN AP, Thanal campaigned successfully for a ban on endosulfan in the area. The entire state of Kerala banned endosulfan in 2002.

Sri Lanka banned endosulfan in 1998 (and all W.H.O. Catagory Ia and Ib pesticide in 1995) because they were the cause of frequent poisoning incidents. A recent study of the Sri Lankan experience (Gamini Manuweera, 2008) concluded that the bans resulted in fewer poisionings without compromising agricultural productivity.

Endosulfan in Latin America

Coffee and soy bean cultivation have very significant endosulfan use in Latin America. Colombia’s Departmental Committee of Coffee Growers recorded 155 cases of poisoning due to pesticide exposure in 1994 most of which were due to endosulfan. In 1993, 60 poisonings and one death occurred in Colombia due to endosulfan use on coffee. After years of campaigning against the impacts of endosulfan on farmers and farmworkers, Latin American NGOs, including PAN Latin America- RAPAL, were successful in persuading the Colombian government to ban the pesticide in 2001. RAP-AL is active with local communities and campaigns to highlight cases of endosulfan poisoning and to conduct relevant studies about the environmental and human health problems associated with endosulfan use in soybean cultivation in Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, Uruguay and Argentina.

World-wide regulatory status of endosulfan

Bans: Countries that have banned endosulfan include Bahrain, Belize, Cambodia, Colombia, Cote d’Ivoire, Jordan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Norway, Oman, Philippines, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, St Lucia, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Syria, and United Arab Emirates. In February 2008, Benin announced that endosulfan would be banned once existing stocks are used. Nine West African countries have recently banned the use of endosulfan in cotton—Senegal, Mauritania, Mali, Guinea Bissau, Burkina Faso, Tchad, Cap-Vert, Gambia, and Niger. Endosulfan is effectively banned in all the European Union countries. This brings the total of countries known or believed to have banned endosulfan to 57. It is also banned in the state of Kerala, India, as a result of severe adverse effects arising from aerial spraying of endosulfan on cashew plantations.

Restrictions: Countries that have restricted endosulfan include Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, Finland, Honduras, Iceland, Indonesia, Iran, Japan, Korea, Madagascar, Panama, Russia, Thailand, USA, and UK.

Reassessments: Brazil, Canada and USA are reassessing endosulfan.


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