EU rules for moles

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, March 2007:
BRUSSELS–The European Commission in February 2007 upheld a
ruling by the European Union Health & Safety Executive that
strychnine may no longer be used to kill moles. The verdict means
all burrowing mammals should now be safer from poisoning, either as
targeted or accidental victims.
“Last September a new EU law regulated a wide range of
poisons, including strychnine, to ensure they were safe and had no
harmful effect on the environment,” explained Charles Clover of the
Daily Telegraph. “Manufacturers failed to offer evidence that proved
strychnine does not harm the environment, so the British government
appealed to the EU on behalf of the 3,000 licensed users of the
poison who kill moles on grassland or golf courses. ”
The appeal was denied.

Anticipating that more moles may now be trapped, Member of
the European Parliament Chris Davies, a Liberal Democrat, called
upon the U.K. Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
to introduce a requirement that mole traps be checked every 24 hours.
“Banning this chemical is good news for the environment,”
Davies said, “but urgent action must be taken to ensure it doesn’t
lead to even more cruel deaths for moles. It is time,” Davies
added, “to realize we cannot simply exterminate a creature because
it pushes up a few daisies.”