ROLE OF THE EXPERT COMMUNITY IN THE EVALUATION OF THE MUTAGENICITY AND CARCINOGENICITY OF PESTICIDES

The regulation of harmful effects of various environmental factors including pesticides on humans is carried out by specially created state organizations on the basis of expert opinions. However, due to various circumstances: methodological, economic, informational, political etc. there are conflicting data on the presence or absence of carcinogenicity and genotoxicity of a number of pesticides, which lead to ambiguous expert opinions and decisions of international and national authorities. In some cases, the composition, scope, consumption rates of pesticides differ in different countries and regions. Therefore, despite the desire for international harmonization of approaches, there can and should be national specificities in the definition of criteria and sets of methods for the assessment of mutagenicity and carcinogenicity of chemicals (including pesticides).