Replacing Chemicals with Biology

224 Pages·2015·5.37 MB·English

Replacing Chemicals
with Biology:
Phasing out highly hazardous
pesticides with agroecology
by Meriel Watts PAN International
with Stephanie Williamson

Replacing Chemicals
with Biology:
Phasing out highly hazardous
pesticides with agroecology
by Meriel Watts PAN International
with Stephanie Williamson
Copyright © Pesticide Action Network Asia and the Pacific, 2015.
All rights reserved.
Pesticide Action Network Asia and the Pacific (PAN AP) holds the right to this publication. The publication may be cited
in part as long as PAN AP is properly acknowledged as the source and PAN AP is furnished with copies of the final work
where the quotation or citation appears.
Comments and inquiries may be forwarded to:
Pesticide Action Network (PAN) Asia and the Pacific
P.O. Box 1170, Penang, 10850 Malaysia
Tel: [phone] Fax: [phone]
Email: [email protected]
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Perpustakaan Negara Malaysia Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
Watts, Meriel, with Williamson, Stephanie
Replacing Chemicals with Biology: Phasing out highly hazardous pesticides with agroecology
ISBN 978-983-9381-70-2

Principle author: Meriel Watts, PhD, PAN Asia and the Pacific
Secondary author: Stephanie Williamson, PhD, PAN UK
Additional material: Marcia Ishii-Eiteman, Resmi Deepak, Peter Crosskey, Ryan E. Galt, Stephen R. Gliessman Erik Steen
Jensen, Juan Guillermo Londoño, Heather R. Putnam Aasha Ramesh, Germán Rivero, Davo Simplice Vodouhê
Editorial Assistance: Kristin Schafer, PAN North America
Design & Layout: Public Media Agency www.publicmediaagency.org
Printer: Jutaprint
Published by PAN Asia and the Pacific on behalf of PAN International
Cover Photo: Woman farmer in SRI rice field Cambodia CEDAC
Replacing Chemicals with Biology:
Phasing out highly hazardous pesticides with agroecology
By Meriel Watts (PAN Asia & the Pacific)
with Stephanie Williamson (PAN UK)
With chapter and case studies contributed by:
v Marcia Ishii-Eiteman, Senior Scientist, PAN North America
v Resmi Deepak, Agricultural Officer, State Department of Agriculture, Kerala, India
v Peter Crosskey, freelance journalist and publisher of the Urban Food Chains subscription
website
v Ryan E. Galt, Associate Professor, Department of Human Ecology, Provost Fellow,
Agricultural Sustainability Institute, University of California, Davis
v Stephen R. Gliessman (Professor Emeritus of Agroecology, University of California, Santa
Cruz, and Board President, Community Agroecology Network)
v Prof. Erik Steen Jensen, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
v Juan Guillermo Londoño, Coffee grower, Colombia
v Heather R. Putnam (Associate Director, Community Agroecology Network)
v Aasha Ramesh, consultant documenting the work of Society for Rural Education and
Development (SRED)
v Germán Rivero, agronomist
v Dr Davo Simplice Vodouhê, Director, Beninese Organisation for the Promotion of Organic
Agriculture (OBEPAB)
Using slashed weeds and other waste foliage to cover soil in organic ginger field
contents
Table of Contents
Purpose iv
Acknowledgements v
Executive Summary 1
SECTION A: Why Replace Chemicals with Biology? 7
1 Introduction 9
1.1 International concern about HHPs 13
1.2 Reasons for the concern about HHPs 15
1.3 Replacing HHPs with ecosystem approaches to pest management 26
2 Ecosystem approaches 28
2.1 International support for ecosystem approaches 28
2.2 What are ecosystem approaches? 35
2.3 Which one? Agroecology? Organic? Permaculture? 45
Sustainable Crop Intensification? Climate-Smart? Traditional? IPM
3 Agroecology makes sense: economically, socially 48
and environmentally
3.1 Yield increases or yield reductions? 49
3.2 Profitability 52
3.3 Pesticide reduction 54
3.4 Resilience in the face of climate change 57
3.5 Food security and food sovereignty 59
3.6 Benefits to women 61
3.7 Other socio-economic and environmental outcomes 64
SECTION B: How to Replace HHPS with Agroecology 69
4 Agroecology: Key principles and practices 71
4.1 Agroecological principles 71
4.2 Agroecological practices 77
i
5 A global case study: System of Rice Intensification (SRI) 83
5.1 Main benefits of SRI 84
5.2 Principles of SRI 87
5.3 SRI practices 87
5.4 SRI in Cambodia 91
6 Agroecology in Asia 94
6.1 India: Community Managed Sustainable Agriculture 94
6.2 India: Cultivating paddy without pesticides (Resmi Deepak) 99
6.3 India: Tamil Nadu Women’s Forum (Aasha Ramesh) 106
6.4 China: The rice-duck and rice-fish-frog systems 107
6.5 Philippines: Farmer-led sustainable organic agriculture 108
7 Agroecology in Africa 113
7.1 Benin: Productive and profitable organic cotton 113
(Stephanie Williamson and Davo Simplice Vodouhê)
7.2 Kenya: Push-pull system of pest management 124
7.3 Sahel region: Biological control in pearl millet 127
7.4 Tanzania: Climate adaption 128
8 Agroecology in Latin America 132
8.1 Central America and Colombia: Growing coffee without HHPs 132
(Stephanie Williamson)
8.2 Colombia: Agroecological coffee production 136
(Stephanie Williamson, Juan Guillermo Londoño and
Germán Rivero, agronomist)
8.3 Nicaragua: Beneficial forest microorganisms in coffee production 142
(Heather R. Putnam and Stephen R. Gliessman)
8.4 Brazil: Large-scale organics combined with agroforestry 144
8.5 Costa Rica: Reduced pesticide use in vegetables (Ryan E. Galt) 145
9 Agroecology in the industrialized world 154
9.1 France: New law to promote agroecology (Peter Crosskey) 154
9.2 France: Agroecology in a joint farming enterprise 162
9.3 Europe: Cereal and legume intercropping 162
(Erik Steen Jensen and Stephanie Williamson)
9.4 USA: M&M Heath Farms, South Idaho 167
9.5 USA: Alvarez Farms, Washington 169
ii
SECTION C: The Way Forward 173
1 0 National policy – next steps 175
10.1 A three-step process 177
10.2 Policies that provide an enabling environment 183
10.3 Removing the policies that hinder 189
1 1 International implications (Marcia Ishii-Eiteman) 193
11.1 Institutionalizing supportive policies: Role of international actors 195
11.2 Research, extension and education 199
11.3 Investing in agroecology: Role of funding agencies 199
and foundations
11.4 International obstacles hindering scaling up and scaling out 200
11.5 Policies to democratize the food system: A requirement for 206
successful transformation to agroecology
Glossary 209
Further Resources 210
iii
Purpose of book
Adverse effects of highly hazardous pesticides (HHPs) on people and the environment have been
a global concern for many years. In 2006, this was clearly expressed by the FAO Council when it
recommended a progressive ban on HHPs. The concern crystallized at UNEP’s Fourth International
Conference on Chemicals Management (ICCM4) in Nairobi in 2012, with the submission of a
conference room paper supported by at least 65 countries and organizations. The proposed
resolution included supporting “a progressive ban on HHPs and their substitution with safer
alternatives”. While the resolution was not immediately adopted, countries participating in
subsequent regional meetings of the Strategic Approach to International Chemicals Management
(SAICM) have reiterated concern about HHPs and called for more information on ecosystem-based
alternatives. At SAICM’s Open-Ended Working Group in December 2014, following a call by the
entire African region for a global alliance to phase-out these chemicals, it was agreed a proposal
would be developed for ICCM4.
The purpose of this publication is to provide information drawn from all regions to assist
countries in replacing HHPs with ecosystem-based approaches to pest1 and crop management
– replacing chemicals with biology. It draws together previously published and new material in a
form that is accessible for policy- and decision-makers at the national and international level, as
well as providing practical guidance at the farm and farm-support level.
It also points out that use, and phasing out, of HHPs must be seen in the context not only
of human health and environmental impacts and costs, but also in the context of food security,
poverty reduction, and climate change.
1 In this book, the term pest is used to describe not just insect pests, but also weeds, crop diseases, and other
invertebrates and vertebrates that can cause problems for farmers.
iv