On June 24, the government of Rodrigo Chaves expanded the limits of pesticides in water for human consumption, through an amendment to Executive Decree 38924-S of the Regulation for Drinking Water Quality. The change was made official through a new decree signed by the Minister of Health, Mary Munive, and represents a worrisome step backwards that contradicts the precautionary principle, the principle of environmental non-regression, and the constitutional rights of all Costa Ricans to access to water and a healthy and ecologically balanced environment.
Before the modification, the regulation established a limit value above which water was fit for human consumption. This is known as the Maximum Allowable Value (MAV). When the level of a pesticide contaminant exceeded this limit, the water had to be immediately withdrawn from the supply for human consumption.
Now, as a consequence of this controversial reform, the Maximum Allowable Value has been transformed into a Warning Value (VA). This implies that, when the level of a pollutant exceeds this new value, the authorities would carry out a “risk analysis” to decide what the limit value will be. This has been called Risk Adjusted Maximum Allowable Value (RAAMV). The serious thing is that, while all this is going on, contaminated water could continue to be distributed and consumed, despite the health and environmental risks involved.
As if this were not enough, the reform includes a new reference table with Maximum Allowable Values for chlorothalonil: a pesticide that has been banned in Costa Rica since 2023 for being carcinogenic. In other words, the reform to the regulation legalizes the presence of a pesticide that, in theory, should not be present in any scenario. The message is contradictory and deeply worrying.
A known problem
The relaxation of this regulation occurs in a Costa Rica that is already, in itself, one of the countries that uses more pesticides in the world. According to Food and Agriculture Data (FAOSTAT), the country uses up to 23.44 kg of agrochemicals per cultivated hectare. For reference, according to data from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the country that uses the least agrochemicals is Sri Lanka with 0.74 kg per cultivated hectare. In other words, Costa Rica uses 3243% more agrochemicals than Sri Lanka.
These data coincide with the abundant cases of agrochemical contamination in different communities of the country and with the constant news of detection of banned pesticides in European ports. For example, in 2023 Germany rejected a shipment of melons contaminated with chlorothalonil coming from Costa Rica. Last year, a large number of dead fish were documented in rivers in Limón, specifically in the communities of Batán de Matina and at the mouth of the Pacuare River, and in March of this year, reports were published on the effects of agrochemicals and their impact on otters and fish in the Peñas Blancas River.
Similarly, since 2022 there has been a major problem related to the distribution of contaminated water in the town of Cipreses de Oreamuno, in Cartago. The distribution of water for human consumption contaminated with chlorothalonil and other pesticides was detected there. This situation remains unresolved.
The list of cases and the amount of news that can be found on this issue are endless. A search in public sources is enough to confirm that these are not isolated cases and that this is not a minor problem for the country. The pattern is clear and alarming.
The government has sinned by omission or, even worse, by incurring in a serious fault by action by modifying and approving a regulation that now makes the presence of agrochemical contamination in water for human consumption more flexible. This is a decision that was made from some governmental desk, without any technical basis.
The authorities are turning a blind eye. Of course, it is neither correct nor ethical to confront a problem by making it invisible. It seems that some government officials did the Pontius Pilate thing, although this time they are washing their hands with pesticide-laden water.