Bakkavör washing unknown quantities of thirty-six toxic pesticides, which present real danger to aquatic life, into headwaters of SAC chalkstream
Following on from our recent release about dangerous quantities of toxic neonicotinoid Acetamiprid being washed off salad leaves into the headwaters of a protected chalkstream, a further freedom of Information (FOI) request proves this is just the tip of the iceberg.
Information obtained by Salmon & Trout Conservation (S&TC), confirms thirty-six other chemicals, (Appendix 1) from Bakkavör’s Alresford salad washing activities, which could be causing environmental damage. The list of chemicals, which Bakkavör declare are permitted for use on the produce they wash at the site, highlights thirty-six chemicals of great concern where the Environment Agency believe they “present a real or present danger to the environment”. Current laboratory tests for these chemicals cannot detect the presence in the discharge low enough to ensure they are not causing environmental damage.
The problem is national in scale. Alongside neighbouring Vitacress on the Bourne Rivulet, a tributary of the River Test, there are several hundred similar factories across England which could also be discharging lethal quantities of pesticides.
The Environment Agency has produced, using the best available science on the ecological impact, a minimum reporting value (MRV) for each chemical, at which they believe they can be confident no damage to the surrounding environment, to its fish, bugs, kingfishers, otters and water voles, will occur. However, unfortunately for thirty-six of the pesticides listed current laboratories Limit of Quantification (LOQ), the lowest analyte concentration that can be quantitatively detected with a stated accuracy and precision, is in the worst case 3500 times higher than these “safe” concentrations.
S&TC believes the only safe and responsible solution is for Bakkavör to stop washing salads and discharging its lethal cocktail immediately while a means to measure and remove harmful pesticides is introduced. And the EA needs to demand Bakkavör meets the environmentally safe levels come what may.
Nick Measham, S&TC CEO states,
”Pesticides are, of course, by their very nature designed to kill unwanted animals, unlike industrial chemicals or pharmaceuticals whose toxic impact is an unfortunate side-effect. Is it really acceptable that any pesticides are allowed to be discharged into our natural environment whatever the concentrations? Surely as a responsible business Bakkavör must stop discharging all knowingly toxic pesticides into this river which in so importance to the local community and has international ecological importance, before it’s too late”.
The River Alre, which receives Bakkavör’s toxic discharge, is a tributary to the River Itchen, a Special Area of Conservation- the highest environmental protection a site can get, and a world important chalkstream, as 85% of global chalkstreams are in England. Yet, because of historical discharge permits, once small, but now industrial level salad washing activity is able to pollute this invaluable natural resource.
Janina Gray, Head of Science and Policy at S&TC added,
“Chemical pollution is arguably the biggest single threat to our wildlife and us. In truth, we know very little about most of the chemicals we are pumping into the environment, so governments have put it in the too difficult to deal with box for too long. With wild fish populations like salmon endangered, bugs both in the water and on land showing catastrophic populations collapses and 85% of our rivers considered unhealthy, we cannot ignore this problem any longer. Pesticides are the obvious place to start, and in particular point discharges like Bakkavör. I for one will not be buying any washed bagged salad until I know it isn’t silently killing our rivers with its washed-off pesticides”.
S&TC is calling on Bakkavör to stop their discharge immediately until they can be certain they are not discharging pesticides at toxic levels in the surrounding environment.
NOTES FOR EDITORS
(1) Salmon and Trout Conservation
Salmon & Trout Conservation (S&TC) was established as the Salmon & Trout Association (S&TA) in 1903 to address the damage done to our rivers by the polluting effects of the Industrial Revolution. Since then, S&TC has worked to protect fisheries, fish stocks and the wider aquatic environment for the public benefit. S&TC has charitable status in England, Wales and Scotland and its charitable objectives empower it to address all issues affecting fish and the aquatic environment, supported by robust evidence from its scientific network, and to take the widest possible remit in protecting salmonid fish stocks and the aquatic environment upon which they depend.
www.salmon-trout.org
2) Case History
Fears about pesticides and other chemicals in the discharges from this salad washing plant have been long standing and culminated in June 2018 when S&TC issued the EA with a formal notification of environmental damage pursuant to the Environmental Liability Directive. This followed the results of S&TC’s invertebrate sampling at a site immediately downstream of Bakkavör’s outflows which indicated that chemicals were impacting the invertebrate communities.
The resulting EA investigation confirmed S&TC’s findings; that there were pesticides present, which were on the salad leaves imported by Bakkavör and which were being subsequently washed off and into the Upper Itchen. It appears that Bakkavör had not self-notified the EA of the presence of these chemicals. Once made aware of the pesticide threat the EA began a monitoring and sampling regime. This testing revealed the presence of dozens of chemicals, pesticides and herbicides being washed off the fresh produce at Bakkavör
Appendix 1:
Pesticide Minimum Reporting Value (MRV) and Limit of Quantification (LOQ), where pesticides highlighted in red indicate Environment Agency concerns current monitoring cannot prove they are not impacting the environment.
