Colombia to Start Aerial Spraying of Coca Crops Despite Health Worries
The judge paused the seven-day pilot while agencies provide technical data and the court reviews whether the restart meets Constitutional Court conditions.
- On Friday, The Juzgado Tercero Promiscuo suspended the National Drug Council's aerial spraying of glufosinate in Putumayo, grounding the pilot program pending further technical information from government agencies.
- Colombia halted aerial glyphosate missions in 2015 after the World Health Organization labeled it probably carcinogenic; the Constitutional Court then set strict conditions for any resumption in 2017.
- Resolution 007 authorized a seven-day pilot project using glufosinate, which excluded protected environmental areas and Indigenous or Afro-Colombian territories unless prior consultation with affected communities occurred.
- Operations remain halted while agencies provide requested technical data, as Judgment T-236 makes presidential drug policy answerable to communities affected by aerial missions rather than to government agencies alone.
- Whoever wants to spray must prove conclusive evidence of no harm first, establishing a legal framework where the Constitutional Court acts as primary check on the government's Security Plan Abelardo.
24 Articles
24 Articles
A Colombian judge ordered Friday the suspension of operations to spray coca fields with a potentially dangerous herbicide, the ammonia glufosinate, requested by President Abelardo de la Espriella, according to a decision consulted by AFP. The right-wing leader, who took office at the beginning of August promising that he would crush the armed groups involved in trafficking ...
Colombia to start aerial spraying of coca crops despite health worries
BOGOTÁ, Colombia — Colombia will begin testing aerial spraying to eradicate coca crops, the raw material used to make cocaine, for the first time since the government halted one of the country’s most contentious antidrug policies more than a decade ago.
On Friday, September 11, 2026, a Colombian judge ordered the suspension of the tests for spraying coca fields with a potentially dangerous herbicide, glufosinate-ammonium, planned by President Abelardo de la Espriella, according to a decision obtained by the AFP.
Judge suspends glufosinate-ammonium trials, citing potential health and ecosystem risks
The controversial pilot plan opened the door to reactivating a method that had been suspended since 2017 for deep health and environmental reasons.
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