The Government's response to the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution (RCEP) was published on 20 July 2006 and is available as a pdf download.
The Good Neighbour Initiative
As part of the Government’s response to the Royal Commission’s study on pesticides, Ministers asked the National Farmers Union (NFU) to collaborate with industry partners and interested stakeholders to draw up a ‘good neighbour’ guide to advise and assist farmers and crop sprayers using pesticides in populated areas.
As a result the NFU has published the following Best Practice Leaflet and Spray Operator Guide in conjunction with the AEA, CLA, AIC, CPA and NAAC and with advice from the UK Pesticides Campaign. These documents are intended to help spray operators to carry out their work responsibly and to take account of the concerns of residents living adjacent to their land. They may also be a helpful aid to rural residents who may wish to approach their neighbouring farmer with their concerns about pesticide use.
The Good Neighbour Initiative - Best practice when spraying near to residential areas (pdf - 1.45MB, 3 pages)
Good Neighbour Initiative - Spray Operator Guide (pdf - 206kb, 2 pages)
ADAS carried out two reports for PSD; the first one was a pilot study on advance notification of spray activities and the second was to identify the potential costs of strengthening the regulations of pesticides.
Reports Commissioned by PSD
Notification of Neighbours of Pesticide Application on Farms: A Field Evaluation of Methods and Survey of Farmers and Neighbours Attitudes (pdf - 705kb, 121 pages)
Costs Analysis of Possible Changes in Pesticide Practices (pdf - 573kb, 79 pages)
