SNCF confirms the end in 2022 of the use of glyphosate to weed the tracks

A heavy user of glyphosate, the SNCF confirmed, Tuesday, December 28, its replacement in 2022 by an alternative solution to weed the tracks. “We are working on alternative treatment solutions, as well as how to use them, for the next treatment period” in the spring, told AFP Matthieu Chabanel, deputy director general in charge of projects, maintenance and operation of the public manager of railways.

SNCF Réseau will instead use a product composed of more than 95% pelargonic acid, a biocontrol product, and a synthetic molecule from the sulfonylurea family. The new solution is less efficient, more expensive, more viscous and requires loading larger volumes, according to SNCF Réseau. It will only be used on tracks and tracks, but not on their surroundings, which will have to be mowed, in accordance with the recent Egalim law.

SNCF is the largest user of glyphosate in France. It consumes 35 to 38 tonnes per year, or 0.4% of the total, of this product accused of causing cancer. It had committed to no longer use it from the end of 2021, complying with a promise, since abandoned, from President Emmanuel Macron to ban its use by this deadline. The European Union has so far reauthorized glyphosate until December 2022.

According to SNCF Réseau, weeding is a security imperative. The company explains that the vegetation could retain water and deform the platform, and therefore the rails, of its 30 000 km of lines. The tufts of grass could also interfere with the laser beams checking the track gauge or interfere with the inspection tours of the railway workers.