UK Sick of Pesticides campaign
The Sick of Pesticides campaign has been launched as part of a Europe-wide initiative to raise awareness of the links between pesticides and cancer. The aim is to put pressure on governments to encourage them to set up an ambitious National Action Plan for Pesticide Reduction and to help people and public bodies to rapidly reduce their dependence on pesticides.
Set up by the Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL), an international non-governmental organisation based in Brussels, the aim is to encourage wider public involvement on pesticide policy. In November 2008, HEAL and the Mouvement pour les Droits et le Respect des Générations Futures launched the first activities in France. Activities in the UK Sick of Pesticides campaign began in early 2009.
In January 2009, new European rules sought to remove the risks associated with pesticide exposure for the environment and especially in relation to human health. Public awareness raising about these new rules is particularly important for the UK where the government is publicly hostile to planned legislation.
