Health and Environment Alliance | News & Media: Pesticides

Green 10 letter to the President of the European Parliament calling to address the climate, biodiversity and pollution emergency

26th July 2024

The Green 10 coalition, which HEAL is a part of, encourages the President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola upon her re-election to put the climate, biodiversity and pollution emergency at the forefront of her tenure.

Green 10 letter to the President of the European Commission on upholding and scaling up Green Deal commitments

26th July 2024

The Green 10 coalition, which HEAL is a part of, encourages the EU Commission President to prioritize and scale up the Green Deal commitments towards zero pollution, thriving nature and health.

Letter: Protecting people’s health against climate, environmental threats and reducing health economic cost

16th July 2024

HEAL has sent a letter to Members of the European Parliament urging them to commit to protecting health against climate, environmental threats in the next five years, in their positions on legislative proposals as well as in all budgetary and financial decisions.

FREIA research project reveals recommendations for strategies to protect women’s health against endocrine disrupting chemicals

10th July 2024

Following five years of research, the EU-funded research project FREIA has published recommendations for health promotion strategies and EU-wide policy action to reduce exposure.

Ten pathways for better health 2024-2029

7th July 2024

With the new EU strategic agenda, and policy cycle to 2029, European Union decision-makers can choose the path to better health, by recognising the urgency to act and adopting environmental and climate policies that accelerate the necessary transformation in this decade.

Letter: Keep health in the scope of the EP’s ENVI Committee

1st July 2024

In a letter, HEAL urges Members of the European Parliament to keep the current scope of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) to protect health against the triple crises of climate change, pollution and biodiversity loss.

EU strategic agenda: Tackling pollution for healthy people, and a strong and secure Europe

25th June 2024

In a letter, HEAL urges EU Heads of State to include measures to tackle pollution for people’s health in their blueprint for the next five years of EU policymaking.

Open letter to European Parliament group leaders by the Green 10

18th June 2024

The Green 10, the coalition of ten of the largest environmental organisations and networks active on the European level including HEAL, has sent a letter to European Parliament group leaders, making an urgent appeal to continue to prioritise a green and just transition towards climate neutrality, zero pollution and thriving nature, as political groups in the Parliament are holding talks over future priorities and consider their approval of a European Commission President.

Call for renewed, strengthened commitment to protect people’s health from climate change, pollution, biodiversity loss

10th June 2024

Following the elections to the European Parliament which closed last night, health groups underline the need for a renewed, strengthened commitment by EU decision-makers to protect people’s health across the bloc:

To achieve a strong Europe, we need leaders unafraid to prioritise health

7th May 2024

Blogpost by Genon K. Jensen, HEAL founder and Executive Director on the need to prioritise health in the 2024 EU elections: it is time policymakers take strong and consistent action to address climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution for their constituents' benefit.

Worrying news for health: MEPs reject watered down and hollowed out pesticides law

23rd November 2023

Members of the European Parliament voted against the draft text for a Sustainable Use of Pesticides Regulation (SUR), following a substantial hollowing out of the draft law. This is worrying news for health.

Chlorpyrifos-methyl: unpacking the history behind the EU ban and court case

20th November 2023

On 4 October 2023, the European Court of Justice ruled that the 2019 EU-wide ban of the health-harming pesticide chlorpyrifos-methyl remains in force. This blog revisits the long road that led to the decision to ban the substance from the European market in 2019, delves into the related health stakes, and explores the legal challenge that followed the ban.

Celebrating 20 years of HEAL

26th October 2023

Twenty years ago, I realised that environmental pollution is linked to ill health and serious acute and chronic diseases, like cancer, asthma and respiratory diseases. This is when I launched into my environmental health journey and founded HEAL. It became clear to me that our ways of living and the environmental pollution resulting from that impacted our health. I wanted to know more about the impacts and the extent, how much of it was preventable, and what role and power policy-making could have in it....

Press note: Good and bad news for health as the ENVI Committee votes on pesticides

24th October 2023

The European Parliament's Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI), voted on the draft proposal for a Sustainable use of Pesticides Regulation (SUR) and the non-binding objection to the renewal of the widely used pesticide glyphosate. While the objection for non-renewal of glyphosate failed, the SUR was adopted, but in order to truly protect health more ambition is needed.

Joint statement: For an ambitious pesticides regulation that protects people, biodiversity and ecosystems

23rd October 2023

More than 75 health and environment groups call upon all EU member states and members of the EU Parliament to support a strong Sustainable Use of Pesticides Regulation (SUR) without further delays.

Letter: Health groups urge MEPs to adopt a health-protective EU pesticides reduction law

18th October 2023

The Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL) and its members have written to MEPs in the EP ENVI committee, calling on them to support pesticide reduction in the EU, ahead of a vote on the draft Sustainable Use of Pesticides Regulation (SUR) on 24 October 2023.

Press note: Health groups react to European Commission’s failed attempt to reauthorise glyphosate for 10 years

13th October 2023

Today, the European Commission failed to get enough support for its proposal to reauthorise the use of glyphosate, the world’s most widely used pesticide which is associated with risks of cancer and other health disorders, for another ten years.

Letter: Health groups across Europe call on governments to ban glyphosate to safeguard public health

9th October 2023

HEAL and eight of its members and health partners have written to European agriculture, environment, and health ministers to urge their governments to support a complete phase-out of glyphosate.

373 civil society groups urge leaders to take ambitious action to phase out world’s most dangerous pesticides

25th September 2023

373 civil society and Indigenous Peoples organizations from 74 countries urged leaders at a historic global conference to act with urgency to phase out Highly Hazardous Pesticides (HHPs), a particular group of pesticides that cause the most severe harm to human health and the environment and are considered too dangerous for use.

Letter: Health groups urge EU member states to support the non-renewal of glyphosate’s market license

12th September 2023

HEAL, ISDE Italy and the Belgian Independent Health Insurance Funds call on European governments to rely on independent scientific evidence and support a full ban of glyphosate’s market license, ahead of a meeting between member states’ representatives in the Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed (SCoPAFF) taking place on 15 September.

News & Media: Pesticides