► What is chlordecone used for?
Chlordecone is a very toxic pesticide used in banana plantations in Martinique and Guadeloupe between 1972 and 1993. Chlordecone was intended to eradicate an insect, the black weevil, which lodged in the trunks of banana trees and deteriorated the fruits.
The banana remains a major economic resource for the West Indies. In Guadeloupe in 2017, banana cultivation ranked third in terms of production area.
► What are the consequences of chlordecone on health?
Chlordecone has health and environmental consequences. On the one hand, this insecticide can increase the risk of prostate cancer, according to a study by Inserm in 2010. It is also suspected of altering the fertility of men, who have been exposed to chlordecone in banana plantations.
Another Inserm study, from 2012, notes «negative effects on the cognitive and motor development of infants”, such as loss of motor skills and behavioral disturbances in the event of exposure to chlordecone through food.
The insecticide is spreading widely in everyday products: a study by the National Health Security Agency (Anses) estimates that 90% of Guadeloupeans have chlordecone residues in their blood.
On the other hand, the insecticide has contaminated the soils and rivers of the two islands of the French West Indies. A quarter of the useful surface of the soils of Martinique and Guadeloupe would be contaminated. Significant levels of chlordecone have also been found in rivers and on the coast, as well as in livestock.
► Why is the State implicated?
The French State is judged “primary responsible” why “health disaster”by a parliamentary commission of inquiry conducted in November 2019. “The State has subjected the populations and territories of Guadeloupe and Martinique to inconsiderate risks, in view of the scientific knowledge of the time”, put forward the conclusions of the commission, arguing that “maintaining banana production has too often taken precedence over safeguarding public health and the environment”.
► What has been put in place to remedy this?
In France, the use of chlordecone was banned in 1993, fifteen years after the classification as a “possible carcinogen” by the World Health Organization (WHO). Despite these recommendations and a health scandal in the United States in 1975, French producers benefited from several exemptions in order to continue to use chlordecone.
Since December 2021, the State has recognized prostate cancer as an occupational disease under the agricultural scheme, which opens the way to potential compensation for those affected.
Four “chlordecone plans” have been implemented since 2008 by governments. Among these initiatives, one of them provides for carbon filters to block the spread of the insecticide in drinking water networks. The sale of vegetables and fish from certain parts of the islands has also been banned.