Mercedes Justice granted a precautionary measure requested by a neighbor regarding pesticide fumigation in Chivilcoy.
According to the complaint, it was carried out by the group Los Grobo, on public roads and property located in the urban area of that Buenos Aires locality.
One of the main issues in the city is that the use of pesticides is not regulated by any legislation.
Amparo against pesticide fumigation: what happened
According to the complaint filed by the neighbor, the incident occurred on December 17 at noon. They claim that the company, which belongs to the family of the renowned soybean entrepreneur Gustavo Grobocopatel, instructed company employees to fumigate with pesticides, manually.
Furthermore, they were not using any protective gear, right in the middle of the urban center. One of the company’s establishments is located in that area.
The health risks of pesticides.
The complainant, Jacqueline Ramos, was supported by the legal representation of Naturaleza de Derechos and filed an environmental protection action. This also required an immediate precautionary measure ordering the Los Grobo group to refrain from further fumigations on their property and on public roads.
Justice’s response
Mercedes Justice upheld the protection order. The ruling was issued by Judge Laserna, in charge of the Administrative Court of the city.
It is worth noting that in the specific case of Chivilcoy, the use of pesticides by land or manual means is not regulated by municipal ordinance. At the provincial level, Regulatory Decree 499/91 states that aerial pesticide fumigation cannot be carried out in populated areas and within a 2-kilometer radius.
“The application of the precautionary principle establishes that when there is a danger of serious or irreversible harm, the absence of information or scientific certainty should not be used as a reason to postpone the adoption of effective measures, based on costs, to prevent environmental degradation,” the judge stated.
It should be considered that even if the application is not done on land and on a large scale, it represents a risk of environmental contamination damage. Everything that is sprayed can seep into groundwater, a source of drinking water for the population.
The ruling also referred to the “protection of constitutional rights” at stake. “This leads to a broad examination of the prerequisites required for issuing precautionary measures, as it is necessary to ensure a quick and effective provisional protection,” he expressed.
“Aimed at meeting urgent needs and avoiding harmful consequences due to the passage of time consumed by the main process.”
Pesticide alert: Los Grobo group must suspend applications in Chivilcoy.
The full ruling
I hereby suspend -as a precautionary measure- the fumigation with any type of pesticides at the company GRUPO LOS GROBO located on Av. Mitre and El Grito Alcorta Street in the City of Chivilcoy, Province of Buenos Aires until the defendant submits all documentation related to the pesticide applications carried out on December 17, 2024 -in electronic format-, especially, they must submit to these proceedings: the municipal and/or provincial permit or license for the use and application of pesticides in urban areas; copies of the agronomic prescriptions used in the application; work records detailing the fumigation activities performed, including dates, times, types of products used, and volumes applied; safety and pesticide handling protocols that the company follows during its operations; environmental impact reports or studies conducted by the company before and after the pesticide application in the area.”
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