Five methodological updates of the Danish Pesticide Load Indicator to support EU-wide pesticide risk reduction policies
In this new scientific article, we propose five methodological updates to the Pesticide Load Indicator (PLI) to support pesticide reduction policies in a transparent, scientifically robust manner, harmonised at the European scale.
Presentation
New scientific paper: towards a harmonised pesticide risk assessment tool in Europe
We are pleased to share the publication of our article “Five methodological updates of the Danish Pesticide Load Indicator to support EU-wide pesticide risk reduction policies”, published in Environmental Research Letters.
European pesticide reduction policies require robust and scientifically sound indicators to effectively monitor environmental and health risks. The Pesticide Load Indicator (PLI), developed in the 2000s in Denmark, has proven its worth for over a decade and is now attracting interest from other European countries.
However, we identify five methodological limitations that hinder its application at the European scale, and propose concrete solutions:
- Consistent hazard assessment across different environmental compartments and human health
- Precautionary treatment of missing data to avoid risk underestimation
- Updated selection of hazard metrics based on recent scientific knowledge
- Harmonisation of normalization procedures to ensure comparability between countries
- Statistically grounded weighting protocol for rigorous aggregation
These improvements aim to establish a Harmonised Pesticide Load Indicator (HPLI) suited for European policy applications, particularly fiscal instruments (differentiated pesticide taxation based on toxicity and persistence) and pesticide risk assessments.
A transparent tool in support of more sustainable agricultural policies that protect health and the environment!
The article (in English) is available in open access via the following link: 10.1088/1748-9326/ae269b.
