National Plant Protection Action Plan 2019-2023.

The provisions of the article 4 of Directive 2009/128/EC of the European Parliament and the Council establishing a framework for Community action to achieve the sustainable use of pesticides, adopted by the European Union in 2009, requires Member States to adopt National Action Plans (NAPs). The NAP sets up quantitative objectives, measures and timetables to reduce risks and impacts of pesticide use on human health and the environment and to encourage the development and introduction of integrated pest management and of alternative approaches or techniques in order to reduce agricultural risks posed by the use of plant protection products. In addition to the above targets, the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora, as well as the principles laid down in Directive 2000/60/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council, the so-called Water Framework Directive (WFD) also had to be considered when drawing up the National Action Plan. The WFD introduces a new scheme for the control and prevention of chemical pollution of water which must be presented in detail in the river basin management plans. The WFD requires the compilation of a list of priority substances and the definition of their environmental limit values (EQS Directive 2008/105/EC). Priority substances are chemical pollutants, including plant protection products, which may be harmful to human health or the functioning of aquatic ecosystems. As regards groundwater, Directive 2006/118/EC on the protection of groundwater against pollution and deterioration establishes quality standards for plant protection products and derivatives, and if those standards are exceeded, measures have to be taken for the re-establishment of good status. As regards surface waters, the WFD and the EQS provide for regular monitoring of priority substances, assessment of the chemical status of water bodies and for undertaking basic and additional programmes if environmental standards are exceeded.
Target areas of the National Action Plan: Maintenance of plant health safety in Hungary by applying the minimum amount of plant protection products; Mitigation of the risks imposed on human health and the environment originating from the use of plant protection products and from pest management techniques and keeping the risks at low level by providing for appropriate risk mitigating measures particularly in the following fields: - Reduction of the exposure of the users of plant protection products to health risks and poisoning. - Reduction of risks in relation to the consumers of products treated with plant protection products, promotion of the production of safe foods; Reduction of the pollution of soil, surface and subsurface waters and air; Protection of non-target organisms (particularly pollinators and protected animal species) and mitigation of the related risks; Replacement of plant protection products of particular concern, suppression of their use; Promotion of the use of low-risk plant protection products; Promotion of the sustainable and environmentally friendly use of plant protection product; Significant suppression of unnecessary treatments or of treatments made with doses higher than necessary; Termination of the placing on the market and use of illegal plant protection products; Reduction of the damage caused to the environment by the use of plant protection products and by the wastes they generated. Promotion of the competitiveness of sustainable crop production, reduction of the producers’ costs by reducing the number of treatments and providing alternative techniques; Mitigation of the risk factors occurring in aerial spraying in order to perform the activity safely; Promotion of integrated pest management, biological pest control and organic farming; Establishment of biological diversity in the agricultural ecosystems by encouraging agricultural afforestation; Raising the level of plant protection qualifications and technical practices, with special attention to the principle of prevention; running an objective, independent plant protection administration network; Promotion of the development and use of non-chemical alternatives for the prevention of epidemics, outbreaks and invasions in support production safety; Encouraging communication and dissemination of information that is understandable to the general public; Development of a coordinated national programme for plant protection research and innovation; Information on project resources for tenders supporting developments and investments in sustainable pesticide use. The competent authority controls 100 % of the retail operators and over 50 % of the operators packaging plant protection preparations at least once a year. These official procedures aim at controlling the distributors’ activities (do they have an appropriate licence for the site and for operating, is a person who has the necessary qualification and licence present, are plant protection products properly stored and transported) and the compliance of plant protection products marketed (label, packaging, expiry, registration, etc.). Objectives: - Safe operation of operators marketing plant protection products -The end-users should be provided advice when they purchase plant protection products. Necessary measures: - Examination of the possibility of separating trade from administration - Introduction of electronic prescriptions, phasing out of paper-based prescriptions - Restricting by law the marketing of category III plant protection products to small packages only (Taking into account that they may continue to be marketed in larger packages in accordance with the requirements for category II products.) - Secondary and tertiary level trainings should include instructions on appropriate technological solutions for integrated and biological pest control, as well as the protection of pollinators, thus allowing the training participants to learn modern methods of integrated and biological pest control. - In progress. - Supervision of whether users received the necessary advice concerning the use of the preparations and the cleaning and disposal of packaging materials when they purchased the plant protection products. - Control of how packings (wastes) of plant protection products are handled at the collectors. - Control of plant protection product distributors and packers, as well as sampling for quality controls of plant protection products.