§ Mr. HanleyTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what restrictions there are upon farmers adding to their land chemical or other additives that might pollute water supplies.
§ Mr. RyderFarmers are subject, as are all users of pesticide, to the general obligation imposed by condition 2 of the consent controlling the use of pesticides made under the Control of Pesticides Regulations 1986 that they shall "take all reasonable precautions to protect the health of human beings, creatures and plants, to safeguard the environment, and in particular to avoid pollution of water".
Such reasonable precautions would include taking care to dispose of surplus spray and tank washings in a suitable way. Detailed statutory controls include using only pesticides which have been approved under the Regulations, and compliance with any conditions attached to use of the products, given on the product labels. The statutory conditions include maximum dose rates, the maximum number of treatments, and protection of the environment.