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The import, manufacture, and use of chlorpyrifos are expected to be banned in New Zealand.
New Zealand’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently opened a public consultation on the proposal to ban chlorpyrifos. The EPA also notified WTO of this proposal on November 13, 2024. Comments are welcome before February 12, 2025.
The EPA has initiated reassessment for chlorpyrifos due to new information indicating that its risks outweigh its benefits. International regulators have already taken regulatory actions, with chlorpyrifos banned in Canada and the European Union, and facing significant restrictions in Australia. Its use is also being reviewed in the United States. Furthermore, chlorpyrifos is being reviewed for listing as a persistent organic pollutant (POP) under the Stockholm Convention. Considering these situations, the EPA is planning to ban chlorpyrifos by revoking its approvals under the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996. If revoked, chlorpyrifos can no longer be imported, manufactured, or used in New Zealand.
To enable an accurate reassessment of the risks and benefits of chlorpyrifos, industry stakeholders are encouraged to provide the following:
Risk assessments
Other quantitative data that can be fed into EPA’s risk/benefit models, including:
- The risks of chlorpyrifos
- Mitigations for these risks
- Benefits of chlorpyrifos (where possible, the specific benefit due to chlorpyrifos, including economic benefits)
- Costs if chlorpyrifos can’t be used, including the costs of replacing chlorpyrifos with alternatives
Other information that the reassessment can consider
The EPA will consider the feedback and give the decision-making committee a report which may include an update to the proposal. A public hearing will be held to help the committee assess the provided information and make their decision.