Westerveld bans lily cultivation near homes over pesticides’ link with ALS, Parkinson’s

The Drenthe municipality of Westerveld wants to drastically restrict lily cultivation. A majority in the municipal council voted in favor of banning lily cultivation within a 50-meter radius of residential areas, schools, and healthcare institutions, NOS reports.

The decision follows years of debate about the health consequences of lily cultivation for locals. Lily cultivation uses four times as many pesticides as other crops, like potatoes and tulips. Pesticides are increasingly linked to Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, and ALS. Although there is no conclusive evidence for this link, people living near agricultural land are more likely to develop these diseases.

With approximately 400 hectares of lily fields, Westerveld is one of the municipalities where this issue is a hot topic. After years of looking to the national government for regulations, Westerveld has now given up. “It would be a shame if we all started making our own rules, but we felt we could no longer wait for national policy,” Westerveld alderman Frank Foreman (VVD) said.

The municipal council wanted to keep the possibility open of making individual agreements with lily cultivators, but the municipality opted for a 50-meter buffer zone. “We want something binding,” alderman Foreman told NOS. “We previously had a covenant, a set of agreements with growers, but that was more non-binding. Now we’re focusing on a measure.”

The Council of State recommended a 50-meter pesticide-free zone around lily fields as early as 2014. And in April last year, the Council of State ruled that lily growers must get a permit to use pesticides due to uncertainty about the damage to Natura 2000 nature reserves. Despite this, the national government has not introduced stricter regulations for pesticide use.

This topic is also a heated discussion in other municipalities with lots of flower cultivators. The Overijssel municipality of Hof van Twente decided last week that it would allow no new lily fields for the next 18 months. In this period, the municipality wants to decide on the future of lily cultivation, municipal councilor Marianne Hutten told NOS. “It’s a pause button. After this, we need to discuss what the rules will look like.”

The growing unrest about pesticides is also fueling uncertainty among lily growers. According to KAVB, the trade association for flower bulb horticulture, the restrictive measures implemented by municipalities are hitting growers hard, while they comply with the law and only use approved products.

“This has a profound impact on them. They often feel that steps they’ve already taken are being ignored,” Charlotte Meiland of the KAVB said. She also criticized the patchwork of regulations emerging in various municipalities, instead of uniform national regulations. “That makes it very difficult for growers to invest.”