"O papel da avaliação de riscos no gerenciamento de produtos agrotóxicos: diretrizes para a formulação de políticas públicas" / Risk Assessment for the Management of Pesticides: Subsidies for Formulating Public Policies.
AUTOR(ES)
Sérgia de Souza Oliveira
DATA DE PUBLICAÇÃO
2005
RESUMO
Objective: The purpose of this work was to provide subsidies for formulating public policies based on risk assessment for pesticide management, focusing on the current national technical procedures for the registration of pesticide products and on the requirements regarding risk assessment of two international agreements on chemical substances. Results: Chemical substances management is not centralized, with no defined action guidelines, and is conducted in view of the substances risks individually considered At least fourteen federal institutions work on pesticide management. The unilateral performance of most institutions leads to a fragmented legislation, poorly implemented due to lack of coordination. The State is responsible for implementing the legislation, either supervising the defined emission patterns or restricting and prohibiting them. Despite the existence of legal framework, it does not ensure that society is being benefited, once the lack of official data and the reduced amount of scientific inquiry on the subject make the analysis difficult. The main governmental organs involved in pesticide management are the Health, Environment and Agriculture Ministries, which are also responsible for issuing registration certificates. Other ministries have parallel management activities, as it is the case of the Transport and Work Ministries. The parameters for registration are essentially the evaluation of environmental hazard and toxicological potential, as well as the risk assessment activity. In spite of being quoted in the main management document, the assessment activities are not implemented or discussed on solid basis. The studies guiding the decisions on the registration are not published. In order to implement the conventions, the country has to change its reference for decision taking. Conclusions: (1) The Brazilian federal institutions act independently and elaborate legal procedures on subjects under their responsibility, with the State being responsible for the definition of safety parameters. (2) The excessive fragmentation of the legislation on chemical substances obstructs the definition about whether implementing the management policies benefits society or not. (3) The legislation in which pesticide control is based on is technically updated. However, the management performed is far behind the scope of the legislation. (4) The scientific concept of risk is ignored in most legal documents concerning the management of chemical substances in Brazil. (5) The existing legal framework enables the implementation of health and environmental risk assessment related to pesticide management. (6) If the country is to use risk as a reference for pesticide management, its institutional infrastructure should assume a more comprehensive and integrated perspective, promoting the generation of multi referential data and figures. (7) The current decision taking procedures in Brazil do not meet the demands concerning the assessment of risks established by PIC and POPs Conventions.
ASSUNTO(S)
risk management saúde ambiental agrotóxicos gerenciamento de riscos public policies avaliação de riscos pesticides substâncias químicas risk assessment políticas públicas environmental health chemical substances
