HSE says ‘Yes’ to Stewardship

Published 7 April 2015

From the B.P.C.A web site:

HSE

BPCA Chief Executive Simon Forrester reports on the fight to keep SGARs available to professional users.

Last month a 104-page submission went to HSE from the four sectors (Professional/Local Authority, Gamekeeper, Agriculture, Suppliers). This document has been considered and commented on by a range of government agencies. HSE’s position is that we will move forward with the Stewardship Regime according to the proposals submitted. Details of implementation will be discussed and agreed later.

What certainly must happen is that HSE will authorise rodenticide baits, including SGARs, for use in the UK market. This is driven by EU regulatory deadlines. The important issue is who will be able to use them and where can they be applied?

From all we have learned so far, it is certain that HSE will only permit use where, and in whose hands, they are confident the risks will be properly mitigated. The professional pest control/local authority and gamekeeper sectors have satisfied HSE requirements for training qualification for proof of competence. In our sector, this is the RSPH/BPCA Level 2 in Pest Management plus proof of Continuing Professional Development – which is exactly what every BPCA member technician will have achieved by the end of this year.

The next step is for HSE to put the proposals out for consultation. We will be telling you how your voice can be heard during the consultation process in the near future.

Alan Buckle, Chairman of CRRU, has co-ordinated the development of stewardship proposals from all user sectors. He said, “a great deal of work by many people and agencies, including BPCA, has gone in to getting us to this point. In Churchill’s words, we are very much ‘at the end of the beginning’. HSE requires us to implement a range of monitoring processes, including looking for residues in wildlife, to show that stewardship is having the desired effect. If it does not we will soon to be back to more regulation and further restrictions.”

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