ARIJ published an investigation entitled “Palestine’s Contaminated Vegetables: Present on Our Tables, Absent Regulations” at the end of 2020, prepared by journalist Firas Al-Taweel.
The State Audit & Administrative Control Bureau in Palestine issued a report on the effectiveness of control measures on the use of pesticides in the West Bank. The results of the report were consistent with the results of the investigation which was published two years ago:
– Weak effectiveness of the work of the Pesticides Scientific Committee, failure to update the Permitted Pesticides Guide in line with international studies, and the local circulation of the internationally banned pesticides.
– Weak effectiveness of regulatory procedures in controlling the market for traded pesticides, and the circumvention of some importers to introduce banned pesticides, in addition to the weak guidance and awareness process, which led to harm consumers’ health and impact the soil and groundwater.
– Poor coordination between the Ministry of Agriculture and the Environment Quality Authority has led the Ministry of Agriculture to play a role contrary to its competence in destroying the infringing seized items in a way that harms human beings and the environment.
– Weak effectiveness of the Environmental Health Department in the Ministry of Health in collecting and testing samples in the Ministry’s central laboratories.