Commission Should Back Off On Pond Algae , Says South East MEP

9.00.00am UTC (GMT +0000) Mon 29th Sep 2003

South East MEP Chris Huhne has pressed the EU Commission to clarify whether an EU directive stops the sale of barley straw, a product used for hundreds of years to clear algae from pond water.

Mr Huhne said that Greenways, based in Sutton Scotney, and other companies had been happily producing barley straw matting to clear pond algae for years. 'I can't believe the Commission intended to stop natural products like barley straw, but that is what the UK Health and Safety Executive are now saying' said Mr Huhne.

'It is not a happy situation if garden companies have either to stop production or pay vast amounts to have the product tested for its active ingredients' said Mr Huhne.

His parliamentary question has been tabled as a priority issue which means that the Commission has a month to answer. The question is:

'Was it the Commission's intention in proposing and agreeing the Biocidal Products Directive BPD 98/8/EC to ban the production of natural products that have been used for many years such as barley straw matting for clearing algae from domestic ponds? Does the Commission agree with the interpretation of the UK Health and Safety Executive that barley straw must be covered by the Directive, and that it must therefore undergo a full analysis of its active ingredients before it can be reintroduced to the market?

'Is the Commission aware that blue and green algae, which can be toxic, are also controlled by the use of barley straw by many if not all water utilities? If this product is no longer available, what alternative means would the Commission propose for controlling toxic algae? Is the Commission aware of the side-effects of chemical solutions to the control of algae? Will the Commission propose to make any amendments or exemptions to the directive in light of these problems?'

Mr Huhne said it was not clear whether the original directive passed by both the member governments and the European Parliament in 1998 was the problem, or just that the Health and Safety Executive are being overly bureaucratic and applying the rules in an excessively narrow-minded way.

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