24 Amendments of Norbert LINS related to 2017/2128(INI)
Amendment 7 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas the evaluation of the implementation of the Regulation revealed that the health and environmental protection objectives are not being achievedshowed its objectives to be relevant while identifying areas for improvement;
Amendment 9 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A a (new)
Recital A a (new)
Aa. whereas the evaluation of the implementation of the Regulation should be considered in conjunction with the EU’s overarching pesticide policy including regulations: Sustainable Use Directive 2009/128/EC, Biocides Regulation EU 528/2012 Maximum Residue Level EC 396/2005, and General Food Law 178/2002;
Amendment 14 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital B
Recital B
B. whereas the implementation of the Regulation is notshould be in line with related EU policies, including in the field of pesticides;
Amendment 18 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas the available evidence shows that the practical implementation of the three main instruments of the Regulation – approvals, authorisations and enforcement of regulatory decisions – is unsatisfactoryleaves room for improvement and does not ensure the complete fulfilment of the purposeobjectives of the Regulation;
Amendment 25 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital D
Recital D
D. whereas there are concerns associated with the evaluation approach, as established by law, in particular as regards who should produce the evidence forscientific studies and evidence for the active substance evaluations and the use of the hazard- based approach during these evaluations;
Amendment 29 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas there are concerns associated with the practical implementation of the establishedtwo-tier evaluation approach; whereas in particular there are major concerns associated with the incomplete harmonisation of data requirements and methodologies used in some scientific fieldduring evaluations of the products that may hinder the evaluation process and thus may lead to direct negative effects on public health and the environmentelays in the approval process;
Amendment 30 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F
Recital F
F. whereas the performance of national competent authorities was found to be a major factor influencing the evaluation of active substances; whereas there are substantial differences among Member States as regards available expertise and staff; whereas the Regulation and relevant supporting legal requirements are not uniformly implemented across Member States with relevant health and environment implications;
Amendment 34 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G
Recital G
G. whereas transparency inat all stages of the approval procedure is insufficient and leads to negative effects on health and the environment and provokes public mistrustcould be improved; increased transparency may help to encourage public confidence in the system regulating pesticide substancelant protection products; whereas the transparency of the authorisation related to the activities of competent authorities is also unsatisfactorcan be further developed; whereas the European Commission has proposed changes to the General Food Law with an aim to address concerns relating to the data and evidence supplied during the evaluation process and to increase transparency;
Amendment 52 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I a (new)
Recital I a (new)
Ia. whereas the non-application of plant protection products in crop production can also lead to health consequences for example build-up of mycotoxins; whereas plant protection products play a role in food safety;
Amendment 55 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I b (new)
Recital I b (new)
Ib. Whereas a wide variety of safe and effective tools are needed to protect plant health;
Amendment 56 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I c (new)
Recital I c (new)
Ic. Whereas there has been no new active substances put forward for approval since May 31st 2016; whereas innovation and development of new products, particularly low-risk products, is important;
Amendment 61 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Considers that the EU is the appropriate level at which regulatory action in the field of pesticides should continue to take place; notes that the EU plant protection products approval process is one of the most stringent in the world;
Amendment 61 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Stresses the importance of a science-based approach in authorising any active substance, in line with the EU’s risk analysis principles and the precautionary principle as established in the General Food Law (Regulation (EC) No 178/2002); calls therefore for an adequate and sufficient funding as well as for the appropriate amount of staff of the relevant agencies such as for example EFSA, ECHA, etc. in order to ensure an independent, transparent and timely authorization process;
Amendment 77 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Is concerned by the fact that the Regulation has not been effectively implemented and that as a result its objectives are not being achieved in practicehas led to significant delays in the approval process;
Amendment 88 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Notes that the objectives and instruments of the Regulation and its implementation are not inshould be line with EU policies in the fields of agriculture, food security, climate change, sustainable use of pesticides and maximum residue levels of pesticides in food and feed;
Amendment 97 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Is concerned by the steadily increasing use and identified cases of misuse of emergency authorisations granted under Article 53; notes that some member states use Article 53 significantly more than others; notes the Commission’s decision to mandate EFSA to investigate Member States' use of emergency authorisations in 2017 in light of the 2013 restrictions on the three neonicotinoids;
Amendment 112 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Is concerned that the incomplete harmonisation of data and testing requirements in some scientific fields may lead to direct negative effects on health, the environment and agricultural productionthe evaluation of products has not yet been fully implemented;
Amendment 114 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Regrets the limited public availability of information on the evaluation and authorisation procedure, as well as the limited access to information; regrets that the level of transparency of the rapporteur Member States is low (acting in the framework of the approval procedure), suggests that accessibility and user friendliness of information at the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) stage is problematiccould be improved, and that transparency at the risk management stage seems to be lacking and is also considered problematic by stakeholders; welcomes efforts by ECHA to increase transparency and user friendliness through its website and considers this could be a model employed in the future to improve transparency;
Amendment 121 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7a. Highlights the importance of continuous training for users to ensure the proper and appropriate use of plant protection products; considers it fitting to distinguish between professional and amateur users; notes that plant protection products are used in private gardens, railways and public parks;
Amendment 125 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Emphasises that the Regulation should better reflect the need to promote agricultural practices based on integrated pest management as appropriate, including by stimulating the development of low- risk, high-efficacy, substances;
Amendment 141 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Is concerned that the harmonisation of guidelines in fields like ecotoxicology or environmental fate and behaviour isare not yet complensolidated;
Amendment 145 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 a (new)
Paragraph 12 a (new)
12a. 13. Welcomes the concept of the zonal system and its aim to facilitate the efficient authorisation of plant protection products; considers the mutual recognition procedure as vital for sharing the work load and to encourage compliance with deadlines;
Amendment 147 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 b (new)
Paragraph 12 b (new)
12b. Regrets the lack of trust between Member States in the zonal system leading to significant delays in the approval process; calls on the Commission to improve the functioning of the zonal system.
Amendment 159 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 14
Paragraph 14
14. CThe purpose of this Regulation is to ensure a high level of protection of both human and animal health and the environment and at the same time to safeguard the competitiveness of Community agriculture; calls on the Commission and the Member States to acknowledge that plant health and environmental protection objectives should take priority over the objective of improving plant protection; plays an important role in meeting our health and environmental protection objectives;