Jiangsu to reduce utilisation of pesticide and fertiliser

    Summary: In late Oct., the Jiangsu Provincial Government released the Guidance of Persistently Reducing the Utilisation and Raising the Efficiency of Chemical Pesticide and Fertiliser via Extending the Real-name Purchase and Quota-based Utilisation (the Guidance), outlining concrete measures oriented toward the purchase and utilisation of pesticide and fertiliser in Jiangsu.   

    In late Oct., the Jiangsu Provincial Government released the Guidance of Persistently Reducing the Utilisation and Raising the Efficiency of Chemical Pesticide and Fertiliser via Extending the Real-name Purchase and Quota-based Utilisation (the Guidance), outlining concrete measures oriented toward the purchase and utilisation of pesticide and fertiliser in Jiangsu.   

    Taking effect on 26 Nov. with a five-year validity, the Guidance urged that by 2025, the pilot scheme and full coverage of the real-name purchase and quota-based utilisation of pesticide and fertiliser for large-scale business entities should be conducted in the agricultural area in the province; it aims to diminish the utilisation of chemical pesticides and fertiliser by 3%, keep the utilisation rate at 43%, and it specially targets a 4% cut in the utilisation ratet in large-scale business entities, compared to the late 13th Fiver-Year Plan Period (2016-2020).   

    Jiangsu, one of China's major grain-producing provinces, ranked top in China in terms of yield per unit. In recent years, Jiangsu has been leading the action associated with the reduction of pesticide and fertiliser utilisation. As of late 2021, the utilisation of pesticides has been decreasing for 16 consecutive years, slashed by 20% from the peak, and that of fertiliser has been falling for 12 consecutive years, down by 36.4% from the peak, However, the intensive use of chemical fertiliser and pesticides with a low utilisation rate is still a deep-rooted problem—the per unit use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides in crop-sowing areas in Jiangsu has exceeded the national average.    

    In recent years, provincial governments have been pushing reduction of utilisation and efficient use of chemical pesticide and fertiliser for China's green development in agriculture.   

    
•       On 13 April, 2022, the Department of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of Shandong Province released the Opinions of Persistently Reducing the Utilisation and Raising the Efficiency of Chemical Pesticide and Fertiliser. By 2023, it expects that the utilisation of pesticides would decrease by 6% compared with that seen in 2020, with the pesticide packaging waste effectively recycled and handled, with the major pests & diseases occurring stably.     
    
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•       On 29 Dec., 2021, the Hainan Provincial Government issued the General Implementation Plan of Reducing the Utilisation and Raising the Efficiency of Chemical Pesticide and Fertiliser in 2021-2025. By 2025, advancement is expected in decreasing the utilisation of chemical pesticides by 15% compared with that seen in 2020, with the annual drop crossing 3%, constructing 360 monitoring stations for the utilisation of chemical fertiliser and 180 monitoring stations for pests & diseases. Meanwhile, measures should be taken to engineer the precise pesticide spraying covering 200,000 ha, enhancing the control of the application areas of herbicide and plant growth regulator totalling 166,700 ha and elevating the recovery rate of pesticide packaging waste to top 90%.