Background European Union policy aims to minimise the use of pesticides even though the recent trend has not shown any significant decrease in its application. Pesticide use is particularly linked to climate, land use and technological changes in the northern crop production areas. The EU pesticides legislation is currently undergoing reform and has required Member States to to adopt National Action Plans (NAPs) by 2014 on the sustainable use of pesticides. Reversing the increasing pesticide-use trend by this date will be challenging. Significant economic and social benefits are associated with the use of pesticides; the European pesticide industry has a turnover of €6 billion, and the yield losses associated with pesticide-free agricultural production are estimated to be on average 45% (based on a Danish study). Nevertheless, in adopting the 6th Environment Action Programme, the EU recognised that the impact of pesticides on human health and the environment must be reduced. Objectives The main aim of the project is to specify actions that will contribute to the adoption of a NAP for pesticides, thus supporting the implementation of the EU Directive on Sustainable Use of Pesticides, which was finalised in early 2009. In particular, the project aims to ensure that NAPs can take account of the continuously warming climate, and changes in land use and agricultural techniques. The project will specifically concentrate on the construction and testing of an integrated pest management (IPM) model, including new technologies in field monitoring, and discussing different options for ecological risk mitigation of plant protection products, as central elements of the NAPs. The project will focus on cereals as a demonstrative model crop, and a representative insecticide (alpha-cypermethrine), a fungicide (prothioconazole as a triazole compound) and a herbicide (glyphosate). The project will extrapolate the models from the regional area and will upscale it to the Nordic-Baltic growing areas. Work will also be done to build up the wide involvement of stakeholders in the NAP development process, to ensure transparency and wide acceptance of the process. Expected results The definition of an implementation framework for the forthcoming NAP; The demonstration of a partnership-building approach with farmers and professional stakeholders (from the whole food chain), to increase their role in, and responsibility for, the NAP-development and implementation process; and The creation of public reference networks, which will lead to greater transparency; and improved pest scenarios, monitoring systems and control thresholds results as part of an IPM model.