Toxic pellet ban reinstated
Metaldehyde pellets will be phased out in 2022
AFTER more ins and outs than the hokey cokey, the pesticide metaldehyde is now set to be banned in the UK from 31 March, 2022.
The move was announced by farming minister Victoria Prentis and is designed to protect wildlife and the environment, as the chemical is extremely toxic. It has been linked to the decline in
UK’s wildlife, especially endangered hedgehogs.
The 18-month delay is to give growers and gardeners time to switch to alternative slug control measures. Small quantities of product for gardens should not be disposed of at home and can be disposed of through local authority waste facilities.
In early 2019, former environment secretary Michael Gove announced a metaldehyde ban to come into force in 2020, but this was overturned by a High Court challenge from slug pellet manufacturer Chiltern Farm Chemicals.
Metaldehyde risks are too great
The latest decision is based on advice from the UK Expert Committee on Pesticides (ECP) and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) about the risks metaldehyde poses to birds and mammals.
While slugs can damage crops and gardeners’ plants, pesticides containing ferric phosphate can provide effective control without carrying the same risks to wildlife as metaldehyde slug pellets.
Alternative methods of pest control also include cultural techniques like planting slug-resistant crop varieties, selectively timing irrigation and harvest, and sowing seeds more deeply into the soil.
Victoria Prentis said: “The scientific evidence is clear – the risks metaldehyde poses to the environment and to wildlife are too great.
“The government is committed to building back greener from Coronavirus – and the restrictions on the use of metaldehyde are another step towards building a cleaner and greener country for the next generation.”
Gardeners can combat slugs with the careful use of ferric phosphate pellets as well as nematodes and homemade traps such as beer-filed slug pubs and upturned orange skins, which slugs and snails crawl into overnight so you can collect and dispose of them.