Farmers attacked on danger chemicals – archive, 19 September 1979
Written by Richard Norton-Taylor
19 September 1979: A Royal Commission report warns of the ‘unnecessarily extravagant use of pesticides’
Farmers and Whitehall officials are too complacent over the effects of pesticides, according to a report published yesterday by the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution.
The unnecessarily extravagant use of pesticides, is deliberately encouraged, says the report. Many farmers considered themselves to occupy a privileged position, assuming that what was good for agriculture was automatically good for the environment.
Related: Talk turns to the effects of spraying - Country diary, 28 October 1968
Related: Pesticides explained: the toxic chemicals in up to 70% of produce
Related: From the archive: saving Britain’s countryside in 1984
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