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NOS Nieuws•vandaag, 04:43
The water of nature and recreation areas still contains far too much agricultural poison. This is the conclusion of action group Natuur & Milieu in an investigation (pdf) about which Trouw writes. The water quality has not improved in the past ten years, even though the cabinet intended to.
Nature & Environment asked the Leiden Center for Environmental Sciences (CML) to investigate 153 nature and recreation areas. Agricultural poisons were found in 80 percent of the waters and the environmental standard was exceeded in 40 percent.
Sometimes the water even contains a hundred times more poison than the norm. The environmental organization calls that alarming. “The Netherlands is a major consumer of agricultural poisons and you can see the sad consequences of this in the water. Animals and plants get sick and die,” says Berthe Brouwer of Nature & Environment to Trouw. “Normally a water cleans itself, but that is no longer possible if the system is so affected. We are very concerned.”
The amount of agricultural poison found is at odds with the goal that the cabinet set itself in 2013: 90 percent less exceedance of the environmental standards for surface water in 2023.
Toxicity load
According to Natuur & Milieu, more pesticides have been entering groundwater and surface water than permitted for years. According to the organization, the Board for the Authorization of Plant Protection Products and Biocides must conduct research to gain insight into the effects on health, the environment and water quality.
In addition, Natuur & Milieu argues for a ban on so-called non-testable substances, substances whose presence cannot be demonstrated by the water boards with the current equipment. The organization also wants a ‘toxicity tax’, just like in Denmark. That would make the most toxic agents less attractive to farms. The proceeds from that tax should then benefit farmers who use nature-friendly methods, says Natuur & Milieu.
2023-08-25 02:43:44
#alarmingly #high #levels #agricultural #toxins #surface #water
