Countries struck a major deal to eliminate the toxic organophosphate chlorpyrifos under the Stockholm Convention, with exemptions for India and some other countries. Exemptions for chlorpyrifos were raised to 22 from the original 7 without consulting the experts committee, Persistent Organic Pollutants Review Committee (POPRC).
It was also moved to Annex A, the official appendix of the Stockholm Convention that lists dangerous chemicals that must be completely banned or eliminated worldwide.
Chemicals or pesticides included in Annex A without exemptions are prohibited from global production, use, import, and export.
Chlorpyrifos is an organophosphate pesticide known for its damaging effects on the human nervous system. It is highly toxic, and there is strong evidence in humans that prenatal exposure causes adverse effects on neurodevelopment and that there is no safe dose of exposure.
The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants is a multilateral environmental agreement to protect human health and the environment from chemicals.
According to the 2024 Pesticide Action Network (PAN) Consolidated List of Bans, the chemical is already banned in at least 44 countries across the globe.
Dr. Emily Marquez, senior scientist, PAN North America, pointed out, “Parties wishing to dodge the POPRC’s process submitted their requests during the COP, and these were accepted without any evaluation.”
Dileep Kumar, CEO, PAN India, commented, “The approach by a few parties requesting more exemptions despite having effective and viable alternatives, bypassing the scientific assessment and process followed by the POPRC, is disappointing. We urge parties that have requested exemptions to start implementing non-chemical alternatives and agroecology-based farming practices to eliminate the use of chlorpyrifos as soon as possible. Otherwise, this will reduce the burden of this chemical on farmers, consumers, children, and the environment.”
India’s Justification
Chlorpyrifos has not posed any significant environmental risks in India. The country’s tropical climate, with temperatures ranging from 10°C to over 50°C, accelerates the rapid degradation of chlorpyrifos in various environmental media (water, soil, air, sediment), reducing its persistence and environmental impact, making it unlikely to undergo bioaccumulation. The recommended application of chlorpyrifos is mostly with a high-volume sprayer at 500 ml dilution per ha, which is unlikely to persist in the environment and cause risk to human beings, animals, and the environment.
There is no data from India that confirms the long-range transportation of chlorpyrifos from India to the Arctic or subarctic regions because of tropical & subtropical climatic conditions in the country, Asia, & Africa.
