Government Policy Strategies Relating to the Enhanced Implementation of Integrated Pest Management: A Review

Abstract

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) is viewed as an environmentally-friendly, sustainable strategy for protecting crops from insect and other pests. In 1992 the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development declared IPM the preferred pest management strategy, but IPM implementation around the world has often been slow and uneven. The premise of this article is that government intervention is a necessary (but not sufficient) condition for the speedy implementation, and sustained use, of IPM. The article reviews selected national government policy strategies, beyond simple funding of IPM research and development, which have acted to promote IPM implementation. The policy strategies investigated are mainly those in Indonesia, Sweden, the Netherlands and Denmark. While policy measures in each of these countries are seen to have resulted in increased IPM use, they have generally had much broader objectives. In Indonesia, for example, IPM was promoted primarily as part of a government-initiated rice production strategy. In Sweden, the Netherlands and Denmark, the overall policy thrust was on environmental management through pesticide reduction. Other broad policy strategies which conceivably could encompass and assist IPM implementation relate to quality assurance and sustainable agriculture. Some lessons for Australia are drawn from the overseas experience. It is suggested that, while IPM research and development receives significant funding in Australia, the need for wider IPM implementation has not yet made the political agenda and may not do so in its own right. Comprehensive government policy for enhanced IPM implementation may only occur as part of a broader policy thrust.