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Originally posted on The Plantwise Blog:
Written by Melanie Bateman, Integrated Crop Management Adviser, CABI Switzerland
As has been mentioned before in this blog, there are a staggering number of chemicals in the world – estimates go as high as 2 million different preparations for sale. This is a lot for regulators in any given country to assess and monitor for safety concerns, especially given the nature of many of the problems associated with pesticides. While symptoms of acute pesticide poisoning become apparent relatively rapidly after exposure, chronic effects such as cancer can be caused by repeated, low level exposure over extended periods of time. For these chronic problems, it is much more difficult to uncover the connections between the chemical and the disease.
International agreements such as the Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions provide formal channels for information sharing on these issues between countries.
At a recent workshop on pest management and pesticide risk reduction…
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