CropLife India Paper Spearheads Discussion on the Roadmap for Sustainable Management of Empty Pesticide Containers in India

CropLife India, an association of 16 R&D driven crop science companies, and the leading voice of the plant science industry in India, organized a Virtual International Symposium on Empty Pesticide Containers (EPC) Management in India - Roadmap for Sustainable Management of Empty Pesticide Containers; which was attended by delegates from across the world including Asia, Europe, and Africa.

A Discussion Paper - Roadmap for Sustainable Management of Empty Pesticide Containers was released during the symposium by Dr. S. K. Malhotra, Chairman Registration Committee, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Government of India; Dr. K. K. Sharma, Former Network Coordinator, All India Network Project on Pesticide Residues, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, and other dignitaries.

Dr. S. K. Malhotra, Chairman Registration Committee, Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare, Government of India said, “There is an upsurge of demand for safe food crops. The industry has been forthcoming in registering newer and greener chemistries. To be sustainable, the concern of disposal of empty pesticide containers needs to be addressed collectively by all stakeholders hence lowering the burden on the environment”.

Dr. K. K. Sharma, Former Network Coordinator, All India Network Project on Pesticide Residues, Indian Agricultural Research Institute said, “As per the study conducted by the All-India Network Project on Pesticide Residues, Indian Agricultural Research Institute; used pesticide containers should be rinsed three times thus making them safe to dispose and recycle in the country. The study results can be considered to support re-classification of triple rinsed empty pesticide containers in India as non-hazardous”.

Dr. Deepti Kapil, Scientist, HWMD, Centre Pollution Control Board said, “As per the CPCB guidelines, the generator of hazardous waste, as well as the user, has a collective responsibility to manage and recycle the waste. The Government on its part has set up 200 waste management facilities with a capacity of 10 lakh tones but presently only 60,000 tonnes of materials are being disposed of at these centers. The major problem is regular collection and channelizing, which needs to be worked out at each district level in the country. As we move towards circular economy the focus should shift from end-of-treatment to end-of-use”.

CropLife India has always been a constructive partner and a thought leader - initiating concrete dialogues and action plans involving all stakeholders - on emerging critical topics. Drone application for agriculture and agrochemical spraying was one such topic, where CropLife India played the role of initiator and thought leader which eventually led to the Ministry of Agriculture and the Ministry of Civil Aviation opening up the ‘Kisan drones’ sector, for quick adoption of this new technology for Indian farmers.

Sen added, “Sustainable Management of Empty Pesticide Containers involves a chain of activities consisting of collection, transportation, sorting, processing, recycling or disposal, among others. Our objective is to bring all concerned stakeholders on one platform, initiate dialogue and multi-stakeholder engagement towards sustainable management of EPCs”.

Other eminent speakers who shared views and suggestions during the symposium included Dr. Andrew Ward, Stewardship Director, CropLife International; Simon-Thorsten Wiebusch, Executive Director, Bayer CropScience; Pierre de Lépinau, Director General, Adivalor (France); Yaping Liu, Executive Director, CropLife China; Friedrich Lüdeke Consultant and Trainer, GLOBAL G.A.P.; V. Ravichandran, Director, Global Farmer Network; Dr. Mathew Abraham, APAC Zonal Regulatory Program Leader, Corteva Agriscience India; Steven Byrde, Waste Management Consultant, CropLife International; Rahul V. Podaar, Managing Director, The Shakti Plastic Industries and Raju Kapoor, Director, Corporate Affairs, FMC India.