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Environmental associations complain: Glyphosate approval in the EU under fire!
Environmental groups are suing against glyphosate approval in the EU. Critical studies were excluded and health risks were emphasized.
Environmental associations complain: Glyphosate approval in the EU under fire!
A dramatic exchange of blows between environmental groups and the European Commission is unfolding before the European Court of Justice: Several organizations, including Global 2000 and the Pesticide Action Network Europe, have filed a lawsuit against the controversial approval of the weed killer glyphosate. The lawsuit is intended to overturn the EU's decision to approve the use of glyphosate for another ten years at the end of 2023. “In its assessment, the EU Commission unfoundedly excluded critical studies on glyphosate or systematically downplayed their results,” criticized Helmut Burtscher-Schaden, environmental chemist at Global 2000, while environmental scientist Angeliki Lysimachou described the decision as a violation of scientific standards.
The conservation groups' lawsuit emphasizes that the agency ignored "significant uncertainties and gaps in knowledge" regarding the adverse health effects of glyphosate. They pointed out the lack of independence of the European authorities. They have declared glyphosate, an active ingredient that has been criticized for years, to be safe despite health concerns. While the World Health Organization classified the herbicide as “probably carcinogenic” in 2015, the European authorities’ assessments were deemed lacking in transparency and flawed. As a result of these disputes, trust in the EU's approval processes has been severely damaged.
The lawsuit is directed against the Commission's decision, which, according to the associations, does not adhere to international standards and exposes people in Europe to avoidable risk. Greenpeace and other environmental organizations have long protested against the use of glyphosate because the active ingredient can pose a significant threat to the environment. This conflict represents a crucial turning point in the so-called David versus Goliath battle between industry and environmentalists over the fate of one of the world's most commonly used pesticides, Deutschlandfunk reported.