Development of Stewardship

CRRU UK

DEVELOPMENT OF THE UK RODENTICIDE STEWARDSHIP REGIME

In late 2012, HSE invited comments from stakeholders and other interested parties on a document setting out options for environmental risk mitigation measures for rodenticides in the UK. In April 2013, it held a meeting with stakeholders to discuss their responses. The conclusion of this consultation was that future use of rodenticide baits outside buildings required a stewardship regime involving all main rodenticide user groups, including pest control professionals, local authorities, farm and land managers and gamekeepers.
HSE asked the Campaign for Responsible Rodenticide Use (CRRU) UK to co-ordinate the development and delivery of the stewardship regime, in collaboration with organisations from all user groups and other interested agencies. The HSE document issued to describe the regime and the role of CRRU is available here.

THE UK RODENTICIDE STEWARDSHIP REGIME

The regime was launched in July 2015 and encompasses all rodenticide products sold to and used by professionals when applied outside buildings. It does not involve rodenticides restricted to use indoors, nor fumigant gases which are the responsibility of the Register of Accredited Metallic Phosphide Standards (RAMPS) (http://www.ramps-uk.org/). It also does not involve rodenticide products sold to and used by amateurs

HIGH LEVEL PRINCIPLES

A successful stewardship regime must meet ‘high level principles’ set out by HSE (Please click HERE)

  1. Using Integrated Pest Management, including use of rodenticides, involving a hierarchy of risk controls for rodents;
  2. Using rodenticides responsibly, when demonstrated they are needed, because of their potential threat to human, animal health and the environment;
  3. Being applicable to all suppliers, handlers and professional users of rodenticides approved under stewardship to address these risks;
  4. Being robust, effective and workable, while remaining as simple as possible;
  5. Covering the whole life-cycle of the rodenticide products: manufacture, supply chain, end-use, disposal and environmental fate;
  6. Enabling good practice in the control of rodent populations as part of an integrated pest management system, while minimising resistance build-up and secondary poisoning in non-target species;
  7. Delivering key benefits such as:
    • governance of the supply chain, which gives governance over and provides the driver for later stages;
    • a competent workforce capable of delivering stewardship standards and of demonstrating an appropriate understanding and attitude toward case-specific control of rodents and use of rodenticides; and
    • monitoring compliance with the regime and its environmental impacts, and if possible of the level of conflict reduction – i.e. an assessment of whether rodenticides and stewardship together are actually tackling the problems.

IMPLEMENTATION

To deliver the regime CRRU UK has set up a structure of six Work Groups, each comprising representatives from CRRU UK, user organisations and other stakeholders, as well as technical experts.

WHAT IF IT DOESN’T WORK?

HSE has an option to introduce more stringent regulation if deemed necessary because the effects of stewardship on non-target organisms are found to be insufficient. These may involve further restrictions on who can use professional rodenticides and where they can be applied.