Atrazine: Banned in Europe, Common in Canada

The document examines the risks associated with atrazine, a herbicide common in Canadian corn fields but banned in the European Union since 2003. It highlights the chemical's high leaching potential and frequent contamination of surface and groundwater, particularly in corn-growing regions of Québec. The briefing details atrazine's role as an endocrine disruptor, linking it to reproductive toxicity in animals—such as the feminization of frogs—and various reproductive health issues in humans, though it notes a lack of consensus on its carcinogenicity. It further discusses the synergistic toxicity of atrazine when mixed with other pesticides and critiques the Canadian Pest Management Regulatory Agency's (PMRA) limited scope in its risk reviews. Finally, it suggests that corn yields can be maintained through integrated pest management and mechanical weeding, supporting the call for a national ban.

• Atrazine is widely used in over 80 countries, but its use is declining globally, except in Asia. The European Union banned it in 2003 because of its "potential to contaminate groundwater."
• In Québec, atrazine sales fell by 72% between 1992 and 2014, yet it remains the top-ranked active ingredient for environmental risk (11.9%) and second for health risks (11.7%). In British Columbia, use dropped by 99% from 2003 to 2010 due to PMRA registration label changes.
• Atrazine is highly mobile in the environment due to its moderate water solubility and resistance to breakdown by light and water. In Québec, it or its metabolite DEA were detected in 70% to 97% of water samples collected from 2011 to 2014, with some concentrations reaching 13 μg/l, exceeding the 1.8 μg/l threshold for aquatic life protection.

APA

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment (n.d.). Atrazine: Banned in Europe, Common in Canada. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Atrazine-Bckgd-ENG-2016.pdf

Chicago

Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment. Atrazine: Banned in Europe, Common in Canada. n.d. https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Atrazine-Bckgd-ENG-2016.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment |title=Atrazine: Banned in Europe, Common in Canada |url=https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Atrazine-Bckgd-ENG-2016.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{canadianassociationofphysiciansfortheenvironmentndatrazine, author = {{Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}}, title = {{Atrazine: Banned in Europe, Common in Canada}}, institution = {Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment}, url = {https://cape.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Atrazine-Bckgd-ENG-2016.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }