In a landmark decision on 11 July 2007, the European Court of First Instance acted to annul the EU-wide authorisation of the herbicide paraquat, bringing a successful conclusion to a 3 year legal challenge launched by the Kingdom of Sweden.

The Court ruled that a 2003 Directive authorising the use of paraquat within the European Union was based on a flawed assessment of the chemical’s safety to agricultural workers, and omitted substantial evidence relating to environmental hazards.

The judgement, which marks a turning point in the campaign for a global ban on the herbicide, represents an historic victory not only for Sweden, but for Austria, Denmark and Finland who acted in support of the intervention, as well as the many environmental and labour organisations who have worked to highlight the dangers of its use.

Paraquat, a non-selective, broad spectrum herbicide used to kill annual broad-leaved weeds and grasses, is described by the World Health Organisation as being 'the only highly toxic herbicide of the post-war years', due to its being substantially more hazardous to human health than other phytotoxins. Occupational exposure to the chemical is known to cause a spectrum of medical conditions ranging from vomiting, burns, ulcerations, neurological toxicity, coma, multiple organ failure, and death. In addition, there is growing evidence to suggest that long-term exposure to low doses of paraquat is associated with an increased risk of developing Parkinson’s disease.

Yet despite the substantial human health and environmental threat that it poses, paraquat continues to be among the most widely used herbicides worldwide. Recent industry estimates indicate global sales in excess of US$ 400 million per year, with paraquat ranked within the top 10 herbicides applied to fruit, vegetables, vines, potatoes and cotton.

The majority of these sales occur in developing world countries, in particular those in Asia and Central and South America, where health and safety conditions are often poor or non-existent. Indeed, of 123 countries where paraquat was sold and used in 2005, 36 fall within the World Bank’s ‘Low Income’ bracket (e.g. Bangladesh, India, Vietnam) with a further 33 classed as ‘Lower Middle Income’ (e.g. Angola, Dominican Republic, Indonesia).

Given the substantial health risks that paraquat poses, both to agricultural workers and their environment, and particularly in the developing world, PAN Europe calls for pesticides manufacturers, traders and distributors to take paraquat off the market, and urges Governments around the world to follow the EU in revoking authorisation for paraquat.