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Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 99
- Paragraph text
- Measuring the success of agroecology in comparison with industrial agricultural systems requires further research. Studies using short time frames and focusing on individual crop yields underestimate the potential long-term productivity of agroecological systems. Comparative studies are increasingly showing that diversified systems are advantageous and even more profitable when looking at total outputs, rather than specific crop yields. Aiming to build balanced and sustainable agroecosystems, agroecology is more likely to produce constant yields in the longer term owing to their greater ability to withstand climate variations and naturally resist pests.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 8
- Paragraph text
- Hazardous pesticides impose substantial costs on Governments and have catastrophic impacts on the environment, human health and society as a whole, implicating a number of human rights and putting certain groups at elevated risk of rights abuses.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Access to information in international organizations 2017, para. 14
- Paragraph text
- In parallel with the work of the Human Rights Committee and its special procedures mechanisms, the Human Rights Council and the General Assembly also articulated the importance of freedom of information. As recently as 2016, the Council called upon all States to ensure disclosure of information held by public authorities and “to adopt transparent, clear and expedient laws and policies that provide for the effective disclosure of information held by public authorities and a general right to request and receive information, for which public access should be granted, except within narrow, proportionate, necessary and clearly defined limitations”. Access to information has become a standard element of other human rights treaties (A/70/361, para. 6), and has been widely adopted in international agreements pertaining to development, the environment, food and agriculture and corruption, among other substantive areas. The Aarhus Convention provides an example of international agreement that access to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters, an area of major public interest, “contribute[s] to the protection of the right of every person of present and future generations to live in an environment adequate to his or her health and well-being”. Similarly, in recognition of the essential role played by the right to freedom of information, Sustainable Development Goal 16 links access to information to good governance, human rights and accountability and calls on all Member States to adopt and implement public access to information laws and policies (resolution 70/1, paras. 16.6-16.10).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 90
- Paragraph text
- Today, hazardous pesticides are in excessive use, inflicting damage on human health and ecosystems around the world, and their use is poised to increase in the coming years. Safer practices exist and can be developed further to minimize the impacts of such excessive, in some cases unnecessary, use of pesticides that violate a number of human rights. A rise in organic agricultural practices in many places illustrates that farming with less or without any pesticides is feasible. Studies have indicated that agroecology is capable of delivering sufficient yields to feed the entire world population and ensure that they are adequately nourished.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Extra-custodial use of force and the prohibition of torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment 2017, para. 60
- Paragraph text
- The duty to conduct legal reviews applies to weapons in the broadest sense, as well as the manner in which they are intended or reasonably expected to be used. A meaningful weapons review involves experts from various disciplines, given that it requires an examination of all relevant information regarding the weapon, such as its technical description, its performance and reliability, its environmental and medical impact and, most importantly for the present context, the nature and severity of the physical, mental and emotional injury, pain or suffering likely to be inflicted.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Health
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 1
- Paragraph text
- The present report of the Special Rapporteur on the right to food was written in collaboration with the Special Rapporteur on the implications for human rights of the environmentally sound management and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes. Pesticides, which have been aggressively promoted, are a global human rights concern, and their use can have very detrimental consequences on the enjoyment of the right to food. Defined as any substance or mixture of substances of chemical and biological ingredients intended to repel, destroy or control any pest or regulate plant growth, pesticides are responsible for an estimated 200,000 acute poisoning deaths each year, 99 per cent of which occur in developing countries, where health, safety and environmental regulations are weaker and less strictly applied. While records on global pesticide use are incomplete, it is generally agreed that application rates have increased dramatically over the past few decades.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 9
- Paragraph text
- Few people are untouched by pesticide exposure. They may be exposed through food, water, air, or direct contact with pesticides or residues. However, given that most diseases are multi-causal, and bearing in mind that individuals tend to be exposed to a complex mixture of chemicals in their daily lives, establishing a direct causal link between exposure to pesticides and their effects can be a challenge for accountability and for victims seeking access to an effective remedy. Even so, persistent use of pesticides, in particular agrochemicals used in industrial farming, have been connected to a range of adverse health impacts, both at high and low exposure levels.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Service regulation and human rights to water and sanitation 2017, para. 43
- Paragraph text
- Regulations should give a practical meaning to “availability” and ensure, at least, access to a minimum essential amount of water that is sufficient, reliable and safe for personal and domestic uses to prevent disease. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) guidance, an intermediate level of access, to 50 litres per person per day, represents a low level of health concern (provided that absence of contamination is rigorously assessed), while an optimal level of access, to 100 litres per person per day, represents a very low level of health concern. A regulatory interpretation of “availability” should also consider situations where additional supply of water is required due to health issues, climate conditions (i.e. drought), emergency/disaster situations, work conditions, or any other special circumstances; and situations of disruption to water supply.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Service regulation and human rights to water and sanitation 2017, para. 48
- Paragraph text
- Even when in place, regulations are not always used to their full potential and best advantage to maximize public health benefits. For example, regulations do not always clearly indicate which stakeholders are accountable and liable for identifying, responding to and mitigating risks to drinking-water quality. Regulations should also contemplate situations where water supply is unsafe, by providing coping measures (e.g. alerts) and precautionary actions. In this context, access to information on water quality is essential and should be safeguarded by regulation, using clear, easy-to-understand language, and be readily accessible to all the population.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 28
- Paragraph text
- Traces may remain on fruits and vegetables that are extensively treated with pesticides before they reach the consumer. The highest levels of pesticides are often found in legumes, leafy greens and fruits such as apples, strawberries and grapes. While washing and cooking produce reduces residue levels, food preparation can sometimes increase these levels. Also, many pesticides used today are systemic — taken up through the roots and distributed throughout the plant — and therefore washing will have no effect.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 2
- Paragraph text
- Despite the harms associated with excessive and unsafe pesticide practices, it is commonly argued that intensive industrial agriculture, which is heavily reliant on pesticide inputs, is necessary to increase yields to feed a growing world population, particularly in the light of negative climate change impacts and global scarcity of farmlands. Indeed, over the past 50 years, the global population has more than doubled, while available arable land has only increased by about 10 per cent. Evolving technology in pesticide manufacture, among other agricultural innovations, has certainly helped to keep agricultural production apace of unprecedented jumps in food demand. However, this has come at the expense of human health and the environment. Equally, increased food production has not succeeded in eliminating hunger worldwide. Reliance on hazardous pesticides is a short-term solution that undermines the rights to adequate food and health for present and future generations.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 7
- Paragraph text
- Without or with minimal use of toxic chemicals, it is possible to produce healthier, nutrient-rich food, with higher yields in the longer term, without polluting and exhausting environmental resources. The solution requires a holistic approach to the right to adequate food that includes phasing out dangerous pesticides and enforcing an effective regulatory framework grounded on a human rights approach, coupled with a transition towards sustainable agricultural practices that take into account the challenges of resource scarcity and climate change.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 72
- Paragraph text
- Most countries maintain a threshold maximum residue level, indicating the highest level of pesticide considered to be safe for consumption. Monitoring those levels can help protect consumers and incentivize farmers to minimize the use of pesticides. However, capacity for inspection is often lacking, or adequate systems are not in place to measure or enforce maximum residue levels. Moreover, as maximum residue levels are not uniform, food products banned in one country may still be permitted entry in countries that allow higher levels. Similarly, while foods produced locally containing high pesticide residue levels may not be permitted for export owing to stricter regulations abroad, they may still be sold domestically.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 83
- Paragraph text
- The tragedy led to the worldwide development of major reforms, including the above-mentioned Responsible Care initiative. Such initiatives, however, have not succeeded in halting continued disasters related to the manufacture of pesticides worldwide.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Humanitarian
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 71
- Paragraph text
- Many developing countries have shifted their agricultural policies from traditional food production for local consumption to export-oriented cash crops. Under strong pressure to maximize yields, farmers have become increasingly reliant on chemical pesticides. Yet the steep rise in the use of pesticides has not always been accompanied by necessary safeguards to control their application. Approximately 25 per cent of developing countries lack effective laws on distribution and use, while about 80 per cent lack sufficient resources to enforce existing pesticide-related laws.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
State obligations under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in the context of business activities 2017, para. 32
- Paragraph text
- Whereas States parties would not normally be held directly internationally responsible for a violation of economic, social and cultural rights caused by a private entity’s conduct (except in the three scenarios recalled in para. 11 of the present general comment), a State party would be in breach of its obligations under the Covenant where the violation reveals a failure by the State to take reasonable measures that could have prevented the occurrence of the event. The responsibility of the State can be engaged in such circumstances even if other causes have also contributed to the occurrence of the violation, and even if the State had not foreseen that a violation would occur, provided such a violation was reasonably foreseeable. For instance, considering the well-documented risks associated with the extractive industry, particular due diligence is required with respect to mining-related projects and oil development projects.
- Body
- Committee on Social, Economic and Cultural Rights
- Document type
- General Comment / Recommendation
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 77
- Paragraph text
- Personal protective equipment may be unsuitable for local working conditions, for example extreme heat and humidity, steep terrain and thick vegetation. Other factors may include pressure to work as fast as possible, lack of training on the health risks of exposure or trainings conducted in non-native languages, coupled with high turnover of workers.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 33
- Paragraph text
- Pesticides contaminate and degrade soil to varying degrees. In China, recent studies released by the Government show moderate to severe contamination from pesticides and other pollutants on 26 million hectares of farmland, to the extent that farming cannot continue on approximately 20 per cent of arable land.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 4
- Paragraph text
- While scientific research confirms the adverse effects of pesticides, proving a definitive link between exposure and human diseases or conditions, or harm to the ecosystem presents a considerable challenge. This challenge has been exacerbated by a systematic denial, fuelled by the pesticide and agroindustry, of the magnitude of the damage inflicted by these chemicals, and aggressive, unethical marketing tactics remain unchallenged.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 11
- Paragraph text
- Unfortunately, there are no reliable, global statistics on the number of people who suffer from pesticide exposure. Recently, the non-profit organization Pesticide Action Network estimated that the number of people affected annually by short- and long-term pesticide exposure ranged between 1 million and 41 million.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
The Special Rapporteur's vision of the mandate 2017, para. 37
- Paragraph text
- In his fourth report to the Human Rights Council (A/HRC/29/25), on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association in the context of natural resource exploitation, the previous mandate holder examined the role that those rights played in opening up space for genuine and effective participation across the spectrum of natural resource exploitation activities. He also examined how those rights helped to foster increased transparency and accountability, facilitate constructive dialogue and, ultimately, form the basis for people’s ability to secure other substantive rights. In the report, he noted that the significance of civil society as a stakeholder in the context of natural resource exploitation was underestimated, misperceived and often denied by both States and businesses and that that was symptomatic of a growing disregard for a plurality of views, particularly those which championed non-economic values over economic ones. He argued that such disregard for civil society input was counterproductive and divisive and likely to contribute to an erosion of confidence in the world’s prevailing economic system. He concluded that it was in the interest of both States and corporations to recognize actions by civil society groups, both in support of and against the entire decision-making chain in natural resource governance, as a legitimate exercise by those individuals and groups of their rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Service regulation and human rights to water and sanitation 2017, para. 59
- Paragraph text
- When setting standards, regulation should aim to achieve the economic, environmental and social sustainability of service provision. Regulation should mirror the State’s obligation to guarantee the rights to water and sanitation sustainably and without discrimination, for both present and future generations. This means that today’s services should not limit or negatively affect future generations’ access to services. To that end, when developing a regulatory framework, States should ensure an integrated regulatory approach for the services, including both the regulation of the sector as a whole and the regulation of each service provider individually. Regulation also has a role to play in contributing to providing preparedness and resilience measures for emergency situations.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Humanitarian
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Service regulation and human rights to water and sanitation 2017, para. 60
- Paragraph text
- Promoting the affordability of services, together with a level of cost recovery that meets the requirements for financial sustainability, is a major challenge for regulatory frameworks. Regulatory actors must strike the fine balance between enabling service providers to adequately perform operational and maintenance activities, considering infrastructural, environmental and resource costs, and ensuring affordability. Economic perspectives and human rights perspectives are possible to reconcile, requiring from regulatory actors innovative approaches and a redesign of economic instruments in some situations.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the human rights to safe drinking water and sanitation
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Economic Rights
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 92
- Paragraph text
- Agroecology, considered by many as the foundation of sustainable agriculture, replaces chemicals with biology. It is the integrative study of the ecology of the entire food system, encompassing ecological, economic and social dimensions. It promotes agricultural practices that are adapted to local environments and stimulate beneficial biological interactions between different plants and species to build long-term fertility and soil health.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Effects of pesticides on the right to food 2017, para. 41
- Paragraph text
- In its general comment, the Committee furthermore asserts that sustainability is intrinsically linked to the notion of adequate food, implying that food must be accessible for both present and future generations. As outlined in the present report, pesticides are responsible for biodiversity loss and water and soil contamination and for negatively affecting the productivity of croplands, thereby threatening future food production.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2017
Paragraph
Right to food and nutrition 2016, para. 22
- Paragraph text
- Food systems include production, processing, transport and consumption of food and are shaped by political, environmental, cultural, and socioeconomic factors. The industrial food system currently dominates the world. It focuses on increasing food production and maximizing efficiency at the lowest possible economic cost and relies on industrialized agriculture, including monocropping and factory farming, industrial food processing and mass distribution and marketing. Reflecting their affordability, availability and aggressive marketing strategies, industrialized food products constitute a very significant portion of the world's food sales.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Right to food and nutrition 2016, para. 23
- Paragraph text
- The impact of industrial food systems on nutrition and public health is alarming. Monocropping depends heavily on chemical inputs such as synthetic fertilizers and pesticides, while animals grown on factory farms are given growth hormones and antibiotics. The food processing industry uses preservatives, artificial colourants, additives and other chemicals in order to enhance the appearance, flavour and shelf life of food products. Ultraprocessed foods may also contain high levels of sodium, sugar, trans-fats and saturated fats, so that they are energy dense yet lacking in nutritional value.
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right to food
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Food & Nutrition
- Health
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Fundamentalism and its impact on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association 2016, para. 31
- Paragraph text
- Free markets have undoubtedly contributed to producing great amounts of monetary wealth and impressive technological advancements. Yet the pursuit of this wealth in some cases has also contributed to environmental destruction, growing income inequality and the erosion of protections for workers. It is important that people on both sides of this argument be given equal freedom and facilitation to air their views in a peaceful manner. As the Special Rapporteur has repeatedly emphasized, States should also not favour businesses over civil society reflexively, but instead should adopt a policy of "sectoral equity" - a fair, transparent and impartial approach in which the regulation of each sector is grounded in international law, standards and norms (see A/70/266).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and association
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Governance & Rule of Law
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Report of the SR on the right to health and Agenda 2030 2016, para. 20
- Paragraph text
- For example, in addressing climate change and environmental pollution (Goal 13 and target 3.9), States and other actors must recognize the particular health impact that these environmental issues have on certain populations, due in part to socioeconomic inequality, cultural norms and intrinsic psychological factors. Climate change increases the incidence of diseases that already disproportionately affect the poor, such as malaria and diarrhoea. Likewise, environmental pollution contributes to the growing burden of non-communicable diseases, disproportionately experienced by the poor. This increases health expenditures and ill mental and physical health among those who can least afford it, reinforcing the vicious cycle of poverty (A/HRC/32/23, para. 24).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Health
- Poverty
- Person(s) affected
- All
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph
Report of the SR on the right to health and Agenda 2030 2016, para. 19
- Paragraph text
- The right to health encompasses the underlying determinants of health, including its social and psychosocial determinants. The Sustainable Development Goals address many of these underlying determinants, from specific right-to-health entitlements found in the targets of Goal 3, such as road safety, harmful alcohol and tobacco use and environmental pollution, as well as other Goals and targets, including on clean water and sanitation (Goal 6), education (Goal 4), food (Goal 2), decent work (Goal 8), reducing inequalities (Goal 10), gender equality (Goal 5), poverty reduction (Goal 1), climate change and access to energy (Goal 13), peace, justice and strong institutions (Goal 16) and violence (targets 5.2, 16.1 and 16.2).
- Body
- Special Rapporteur on the right of everyone to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of physical and mental health
- Document type
- Special Procedures' report
- Topic(s)
- Environment
- Equality & Inclusion
- Gender
- Health
- Water & Sanitation
- Person(s) affected
- All
- N.A.
- Year
- 2016
Paragraph