Rodenticides: Safety

Question

Improper use of Second Generation Anticoagulant Rodenticides (SGARs) can pose threats to birds of prey. This can either be through deliberate illegal poisoning or through failure to comply with legal conditions of use. Such conditions include the requirement to remove dead rats and to take steps to prevent poisoning of non-target species, either of which could be ingested by birds of prey.

Where a predatory bird may have been unlawfully killed, this is for the police to investigate, and a forensic study of the bird can be carried out. To address concerns about the illegal killing of birds of prey, senior Government and enforcement officers have identified raptor persecution as a national wildlife crime priority. Defra sits on the police-led Raptor Persecution Priority Delivery Group, which takes forward activities to raise awareness and facilitate intelligence and incident reporting, leading to increased prevention and enforcement activity.

Defra has this year more than doubled its funding of the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU) from £165,000 per year to over £1.2 million over the next three years to target wildlife crime priorities including raptor persecution. The NWCU helps prevent and detect wildlife crime by obtaining and disseminating intelligence, undertaking analysis which highlights local or national threats and directly assisting law enforcers in their investigations.

SGARs were developed to address public health and other concerns arising from increasing resistance among rats and mice to the longstanding use of existing rodenticides. During the authorisation process, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) conducts rigorous evaluation for safety and efficacy using scientific data, with restrictions placed on authorisations as appropriate. In order to avoid secondary poisoning risks to non-target species, current product authorisations restrict the use of SGARs in open areas to farmers, gamekeepers and other trained professionals where other integrated pest management approaches fail to control rodent populations. Some SGARs can only be used in sewers and in and around buildings.

A stewardship regime is in place in the UK for professional use of SGARs. A cornerstone of the stewardship scheme is the Campaign for Responsible Rodenticide Use (CRRU) Code of Best Practice , which sets out guidance on the safe use of rodenticides. It is a legal requirement to comply with this code. The scheme also supports the monitoring of exposure of barn owls and red kites to SGARs (as a sentinel species) led by the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.

The stewardship scheme is overseen by a Government Oversight Group (GOG) led by HSE with representatives of other Government stakeholders, who meet annually to assess its impact. This year the GOG is conducting a review of the stewardship scheme after five years of operation and will publish its findings in due course. The GOG will consider whether the controls currently provided by the stewardship scheme are sufficiently robust. Based on the outcome of the review, if necessary, HSE will take steps to amend existing product authorisations accordingly.