Written answers

Tuesday, 17 November 2020

Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine

Covid-19 Pandemic

Photo of Michael McNamaraMichael McNamara (Clare, Independent)
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879. To ask the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if fogging is being used as a solution to Covid-19 in schools notwithstanding the WHO advice against this; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [36230/20]

Photo of Charlie McConalogueCharlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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My Department's position in relation to the use of fogging or misting products for the control of Covid-19 is in line with guidance from the World Health Organisation (WHO) on the cleaning and disinfection of environmental surfaces in the context of Covid-19. Our position also reflects the views of the Antimicrobial Resistance and Infection Control group in the HSE Health Protection Surveillance Centre which does not recommend the use of fogging/misting devices to prevent transmission of Covid-19 in any setting.

Since the onset of the Covid-19 crisis, my Department has received a large volume of applications for registration of new biocidal disinfectant products. To date it has not approved any product for use for the control of Covid-19 via fogging or misting devices. There are a small number of products currently registered which have recommendations for use through fogging machines or vaporisation devices for general disinfection purposes.  However, these products are not approved for control of Covid-19.

Requirements for the approval of fogging or misting products for use as biocidal disinfectant products have been disseminated to applicants who have recently applied for such product registrations. My Department has also published these requirements on the Pesticide Control and Registration Division website.

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