Application for the Reassessment of a Hazardous Substance under ...

14. Regulatory control of these products focuses on avoiding or minimising the possibleadverse effects that may result from their use. Because of the wide range of productsand substances that are classified as agricultural compounds, the adverse effectscould be any or all of the following:harm to persons using or exposed to the compoundsharm to the health and welfare of animals treated or exposedharm to the environment in its broadest senseunacceptable primary produce for both the local and export marketunacceptable residues in foods or pharmaceutical productsintroduction of pests or unwanted organisms, or interference in pest controlprogrammes.15. The New Zealand Government has created a regulatory framework designed tomanage the risks of these adverse effects. The framework includes statutory andnon-statutory mechanisms to control substances, products, and their use.16. The basic Government policy is to impose regulatory control that is ‗necessary andsufficient‘ to manage the risks down to acceptable levels, while avoiding unnecessarycosts of compliance to New Zealand as a whole. The policy has a broad focusincluding:domestic food safetytrade in primary produce and processed foods, food-related products andpharmaceuticals to meet importing country safety requirementsanimal welfareprotection from the introduction of pests and unwanted organismsprotection of the environmentgeneral public health and safetyhealth and safety in the workplace.Operation of the ACVM Act17. The ACVM Act regulates substances used in the management of plants and animals,including agricultural chemicals, fertilisers, stock food, pet food and veterinarymedicines and the term ‗agricultural compound‘ includes all these aspects within itsdefinition. The specific risks managed under the ACVM Act are:risks to public health;risks to trade in primary produce;risks to animal welfare; andrisks to agricultural security.18. The ACVM Group has established thresholds and criteria for these risk areas. Thisforms the basis for determining the level of regulatory oversight of agriculturalcompounds and the information requirements required to support an application forregistration.19. The Act seeks to achieve its purpose by providing that no agricultural compoundmay be used in New Zealand unless that use is authorised by or under this Act. Themechanisms for authorisation are:Dichlorvos reassessment – application Page 425 of 436