Severely restrict the use of the pesticide (e.g. only by licensed users)
Description of the measure
If the risk of a pesticide is unacceptable for most uses, but can be accepted for one (or a few) uses, the pesticide can be restricted to that use only.
An example is a pesticide that can only be used with acceptable risk if the operator is very well trained, supervised and uses extensive personal protective equipment. In such a case, the use of the pesticide could be restricted to licensed pest control operators only. Another example is the use of DDT which has been restricted only to malaria mosquito control conducted by public health staff.
Conditions for effective implementation
The government should be capable of effectively enforcing the restricted use of the pesticide.
Estimated risk reduction potential
The risk of the pesticide is limited to the restricted uses. However, since severely restricted pesticides generally pose a high risk to human health or the environment, risks may occur even in the restricted use situation, especially if the precautions are not fully respected.
Risk reduction of all other uses, which are not authorized (anymore), will in principle be 100%. However, the alternative for a high-risk pesticide will often be another pesticide, although with a lower risk. In such a case, the remaining risk of using the lower-risk product should be taken into account. The effective risk reduction potential of this measure will then be less than 100%.
Potential constraints
The pesticide may still end up being more broadly used if enforcement of the restriction is not effective. This could occur, for instance, if pesticide retail shops are not inspected and controlled properly, or through illegal imports and distribution of the product. The risks of non-authorized uses of a severely restricted pesticide may then be very high, in particular for untrained and insufficiently protected users.
Further information
FAO Guidelines on Compliance and Enforcement of a Pesticide Regulatory Programme (2006).