(Beyond Pesticides, November 26, 2008) On November 10, two Alaskan environmental groups sued the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) for failing to conduct a proper assessment of the environmental consequences of using herbicides to kill non-native species in Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge and the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge. The groups, Alaska Survival and Alaska Community Action on Toxics, allege that FWS sprayed hundreds of gallons of herbicide in the Kodiak National Wildlife Refuge and the Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge over the past several years. In the complaint to the U.S. District Court of Alaska, the groups say FWS violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by failing to conduct adequate investigations on the environmental impacts of pesticide use and by failing to inform the public of the practice. The lawsuit states, “(Fish and Wildlife) failed to consider the potential harm to aquatic organisms, fish, birds, insects and other non-target species, as well as the potential for adverse effects to humans visiting the area,” and that the “defendants failed to consider the effect of herbicide use on the commercial salmon fishing industry and on subsistence users.” Under NEPA, all federal agencies are required to conduct an Environmental […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 25, 2008) A new report on U.S. chemical security, which includes two pesticide and 30 bleach manufacturing plants on its list of 101 most dangerous chemical facilities, was released November 19, 2008 by the Washington-based think tank Center for American Progress (CAP). The report, Chemical Security 101: What You Don’t Have Can’t Leak, or Be Blown Up by Terrorists, calls on chemical plants to substitute for their most hazardous chemicals and processes to protect the lives and health of 80 million people living near the 101 worst facilities. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and numerous security experts have repeatedly warned that terrorists could use industrial chemicals as improvised weapons of mass destruction. However, according to CAP, current chemical security efforts are inadequate to protect workplaces and communities. “Indeed, temporary standards enacted two years ago (and set to expire in 2009) focus almost entirely on physical security measures, such as adding gates and guards,” say report authors Paul Orum and Reece Rushing. “These measures, however worthy, cannot assure protection against a concerted attack, insider sabotage, or catastrophic release. Nor do they protect communities along chemical delivery routes. More than 90 percent of the 101 most dangerous facilities […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 24, 2008) Acknowledging the critical need for in-depth review of products utilizing nanotechnology pesticides, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) opened a 60-day public comment period in response to a petition filed by the International Center for Technology Assessment (ICTA) which demands the agency stop the sale of numerous consumer products with nano-silver. In the Federal Registry notice released Wednesday, EPA determined that ICTA’s petition “raises serious issues that potentially affect private and public sector stakeholders” and is instituting a 60-day period for public comment. EPA will review the petition and any comments received “before deciding how best to respond to the petition.” ICTA filed a legal petition in May 2008 challenging EPA’s failure to regulate nanomaterials in pesticides. The 100-page petition addresses the serious human health concerns raised by these unique substances, as well as their potential to be highly destructive to natural environments, and calls on the EPA to fully analyze the health and environmental impacts of nanotechnology, regulate nano products as new pesticides, and require labeling of all products. “It’s unfortunate that it has taken seven months, but the agency has taken the first step towards potential regulation of these products and protection of the […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 21, 2008) On November 18, the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) released a biological opinion that sets forth a plan for protecting Pacific salmon and steelhead from three toxic organophosphate pesticides. The decision comes after almost a decade of legal wrangling between salmon advocates and the federal government. In the biological opinion, federal wildlife scientists comprehensively reviewed the science regarding the impacts of pesticides on salmon and ultimately concluded that current uses of the insecticides chlorpyrifos, diazinon, and malathion jeopardize the existence of these imperiled fish. The biological opinion prescribes measures necessary to keep these pesticides out of water and to protect salmon populations in Washington, Oregon, California, and Idaho. The new mitigation measures must be implemented within one year. They include: * Prohibiting aerial applications of the three pesticides within 1,000 feet of salmon waters * Prohibiting ground applications of the three pesticides within 500 feet of salmon waters * Requiring a 20 foot non-crop vegetative buffer around salmon waters and ditches that drain into salmon habitat * Prohibiting applications of the three pesticides when wind speeds are greater than or equal to 10 mph “Keeping these pesticides out of the water is a major step […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 19, 2008) In what is described as a great victory for environmental campaigner Georgina Downs, a British high court ruled last week that there was “solid evidence” that rural residents had suffered harm from crop spraying with toxic chemicals. The landmark ruling ordered the Government to reconsider how to protect the health of countryside communities. This victory comes after a long-running legal battle over the use of pesticides in rural communities. Ms. Downs, who lives on the edge of farmland, launched her campaign in 2001 and documented that she was first exposed to pesticide spraying in the early 1980s at the age of 11 and has since suffered from ill health, flu-like symptoms, sore throat, blistering and other problems. She created a DVD portraying collected evidence from other rural residents reporting health problems including cancer, Parkinson’s disease and asthma believed to be linked to crop spraying. Ms. Downs said the government had failed to address the concerns of people living in the countryside. She added that these people “are repeatedly exposed to mixtures of pesticides and other chemicals throughout every year, and in many cases, like mine, for decades.” She also noted that people were not given […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 18, 2008) At least one in four of the 697,000 U.S. veterans of the 1991 Gulf War suffer from Gulf War illness, a condition caused by exposure to toxic chemicals, including pesticides and a drug administered to protect troops against nerve gas, and no effective treatments have yet been found, a federal panel of scientific experts and veterans concludes in a landmark report released November 17, 2008. The Congressionally-mandated Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Veterans’ Illnesses presented the report to Secretary of Veterans Affairs James Peake at Veterans Administration (VA) headquarters in Washington, DC. Scientific staff support to the Committee is provided by the Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH). “The extensive body of scientific research now available consistently indicates that Gulf War illness is real, that it is the result of neurotoxic exposures during Gulf War deployment, and that few veterans have recovered or substantially improved with time,” the report says. The 450-page report brings together for the first time the full range of scientific research and government investigations on Gulf War illness and officially resolves many questions about the condition. The report found that Gulf War illness fundamentally differs from stress-related syndromes described […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 17, 2008) A toxic soup of the most commonly used pesticides frequently detected in nature can adversely affect the environment and decimate amphibian populations even if the concentration of the individual chemicals are within limits considered safe, according to University of Pittsburgh research published in the online edition of Oecologia. The results of this study build on a nine-year effort to understand potential links between the global decline in amphibians, routine pesticide use, and the possible threat to humans in the future. Amphibians are considered an environmental indicator species because of their unique sensitivity to pollutants. Their demise from pesticide exposure could foreshadow the fate of less sensitive animals, according to study author Dr. Rick Relyea, Ph.D., an associate professor of biological sciences in the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Arts and Sciences. Leopard frogs, in particular, are vulnerable to contamination; once plentiful across North America, their population has declined in recent years as pollution and deforestation has increased. Dr. Relyea exposed gray tree frog and leopard frog tadpoles to small amounts of the ten pesticides that are widely used throughout the world. Dr. Relyea selected five insecticides: carbaryl, chlorpyrifos, diazinon, endosulfan, and malathion; and five herbicides: […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 14, 2008) A preliminary review of pesticide poisoning complaint records kept at the Oregon State Department of Agriculture and Department of Human Services reveals that children participating in school activities have been exposed to pesticides dozens of times in the past ten years. The review of the State’s pesticide complaint records was conducted by Oregon Toxics Alliance, a statewide organization working to protect human and environmental health. The report uses data from the Oregon Department of Agriculture, the Oregon Department of Human Services and the Oregon Department of Forestry to develop a better understanding of how and why Oregon school children are being exposed to pesticides during their school activities. The report was presented to Governor Kulongoski’s Natural Resource Advisor Michael Carrier and State School Superintendent Susan Castillo on November 10, as well as other officials and state agencies. The data collected for the report reveals an on-going pattern of pesticide exposure to school children in classrooms, on playgrounds, on ball fields and at school bus stops. 56 separate cases of Oregon school children experiencing pesticide exposure were reported in Oregon since 1990 – 43 of them filed in the past ten years. In 14 cases, the […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 13, 2008) The Canadian Cancer Society is holding a conference to look at the possibility of advocating for stricter farm pesticide laws. The Cancer Society has been a vocal advocate for the cosmetic pesticide restrictions that have passed in the provinces of Ontario and Quebec as well as many municipalities, but it has not yet taken a stance on the much larger use of agricultural pesticides. Health Canada, the Canadian entity responsible for pesticide regulation insists, as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency does in the U.S., that registered pesticides do not pose a substantive health risk when used as directed, but mounting scientific evidence shows otherwise. Many of the same chemicals that Canadian provinces have banned for cosmetic use, such as the herbicide 2,4-D, are used in much higher volumes in agriculture than on lawns. Since the Cancer Society is a strong voice in favor of the cosmetic pesticide bans because of the dangers of pesticides, it is logical that they would also be concerned about agricultural pesticide use. In other words, “It’s very hard to argue that the cosmetic use of pesticides poses a public-health risk, including cancer risk, and not examine what is going on […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 12, 2008) Despite significant data gaps in the testing of apple moth pesticides, the California Department of Food and Agriculture recently reported that a new analysis conducted by three other state agencies “confirms the products tested are extremely low in toxicity.” An analysis of the state report by researchers at the Center for Environmental Health and Pesticide Action Network find that the report failed to address potential long-term health impacts from the pesticides and even omitted analysis of many of the acute symptoms suffered by people during last year’s spraying. “There is no evidence that the apple moth has damaged crops or native plants in California,” said Caroline Cox, research director at the Center for Environmental Health and Beyond Pesticides board member, “or that eradication of the moth can actually be achieved. It is never appropriate to expose large numbers of people to incompletely tested chemicals, especially in an eradication program based on faulty assumptions.” The toxicology studies on which the new analysis is based are designed to measure acute (short-term) toxicity. The studies ignore questions about significant health hazards, including the potential that the pesticide could cause cancer or birth defects, reduce fertility or harm our […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 11, 2008) Researchers at the Duke University School of Medicine have linked organophosphate pesticides to the epidemics of obesity and type 2 diabetes. The researchers specifically link neonatal low-dose parathion exposure in rats to disruption of glucose and fat homeostasis. The study, “Exposure of Neonatal Rats to Parathion Elicits Sex-Selective Reprogramming of Metabolism and Alters the Response to a High-Fat Diet in Adulthood,” was published in the November 2008 issue of Environmental Health Perspectives. It follows research by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) that links pesticide exposure to type 2 diabetes using epidemiological data from the Agricultural Health Study. Although most studies of organophosphates focus on their neurotoxicity, there is increasing evidence that these agents may also have a lasting impact on metabolic function. According to authors, obesity and consequent type II diabetes are rising at epidemic rates in the U.S. and many other countries around the world. Two of three U.S. adults are now classified as overweight. There are epidemiologic links between pesticide exposure and diabetes, and the same subpopulations that have the highest rates of obesity””inner-city, low-socioeconomic-status, agricultural populations””are also those that have greater exposure to organophosphates and other pesticides. The researchers chose parathion […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 10, 2008) Despite unanimous criticism of its preliminary risk assessment by the environmental community, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), in its completed the Reregistration Eligibility Decision (RED) for the controversial antibacterial triclosan, concludes that all uses, with the exception of the paint use, are eligible for reregistation. Triclosan, which is expected to reach a market value of $930 million by 2009, has exploded on to the marketplace in recent years, growing 5 percent annually, in products from soaps, cosmetic and personal care products, toothbrushes and toothpaste, to plastic toys and textiles. EPA believes that levels of concern for triclosan have not been exceeded even though this pervasive chemical is shown to threaten human health and the environment. The agency has opened a public comment period on the RED which closes on December 29. 2008. Triclosan accumulates in fatty tissue and has been found in breast milk and urine. It has also been linked to hormone disruption and has contaminated most of the nation’s waterways. Its degradates are also known to be persistent, to bioaccumulate and interfere with the hormone system. Triclosan has also been implicated in antibacterial and antibiotic resistance, which has severe consequences in medical […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 7, 2008) The European Parliament’s environment committee has passed new measures aimed at reducing use and toxicity of pesticides used on crops throughout the European Union (EU). If approved by Parliament at the end of the year, the EU will be on its way to reducing pesticide use by 85 percent by 2013. The measure faces significant backlash from the chemical industry and conventional farmers, but committee members (MEPs) remain firm that the restrictions are both important and possible to do. An official report published last month found record levels of pesticide residues on EU food, giving momentum to pesticide restrictions. One adopted regulation will cause a list of approved “active substances” to be drawn up, according to which pesticides will be registered at a national level. It also allows EU states to be stricter than the allowable list. One amendment says, “Member states may establish any pesticide-free zones they deem necessary in order to safeguard drinking water resources. Such pesticide-free zones may cover the entire Member State.” The second approved measure, passed on to Parliament by EU agricultural ministers in June, bans “certain highly toxic chemicals,” those being endocrine disrupting, genotoxic, carcinogenic or toxic to reproduction. […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 6, 2008) Agricultural biotech seed and chemical giant Monsanto will acquire Aly Participacoes Ltda., a Brazilian company involved in breeding sugar cane, and has already begun work to develop genetically engineered (GE) Roundup Ready (herbicide resistant) sugarcane. The deal for $290 million comes at the same time grain giant Archer Daniels Midland (ADM) is set to invest $375 million in a joint venture with a Brazilian firm to produce sugarcane-based ethanol. Amidst numerous other concerns with the widespread adoption of GE crops and the proliferation of crops grown for biofuels around the world is the threat of increased pesticide use. Roundup Ready crops, which are genetically engineered to be resistant to Monsanto’s best selling herbicide Roundup (active ingredient glyphosate https://www.beyondpesticides.org/gateway/pesticide/glyphosate.htm) have been a boon to Monsanto’s profits, but not without environmental costs. Currently grown Roundup Ready crops include soy, corn, canola, cotton, and sugar beets. The crops’ resistance to glyphosate enables the use of the herbicide during the growing season without harming the crop itself. Glyphosate is now the number one herbicide in the United States. This has serious implications for public health and the environment, as glyphosate has been linked to cancer, reproductive effects, kidney and […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 5, 2008) The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) acknowledged in a recent Federal Register Notice that antimicrobial pesticides in wide use are not adequately tested for their impacts on human health and the environment. Controversy surrounding the impacts of many antimicrobials in the environment has arisen in recent times to due to the prevalence of these chemicals in surface and drinking waters. Antimicrobials are defined by the EPA as “pesticides that are intended to (1) disinfect, sanitize, reduce, or mitigate growth or development of microbiological organisms, or (2) protect inanimate objects from contamination, fouling, or deterioration caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi, protozoa, algae, or slime.” For this proposal, the EPA is using the term antimicrobials to collectively refer to antimicrobial pesticides, antifoulant coatings and paints, and wood preservatives. The use of the controversial antimicrobial, triclosan, in inanimate objects, such as plastic and textiles, would be covered by these regulations, while those personal care products with the very same ingredient would not, since they fall under Food and Drug Administration authority. In the Federal Register last month, EPA, trying to play catch-up with the science while products continue in larger and larger numbers to incorporate the controversial antimicrobials, issues […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 4, 2008) As voters across the country make their way to the polls today, the pundits and we here at Beyond Pesticides, are thinking about the new President’s possible cabinet picks that will affect pesticide policy. Who will serve as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the agency responsible for regulating pesticides under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), as well as enforcing the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act and other environmental laws? Who will serve as Secretary of Agriculture, heading the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Department which regulates organic food and textile production? Before the presidential votes have been tallied, many experts have already made their predictions. Obama EPA With climate change a top priority, an Obama Administration EPA Administrator would most likely have a background in carbon emissions and global warming. Organic advocates will be pushing to include organic agriculture and carbon sequestration in any new cap and trade emissions program. The online environmental magazine Daily Grist predicts Mary Nichols, a former Natural Resources Defense Council lawyer and senior official in the Clinton EPA who currently chairs the California Air Resources Board; Kathleen McGinty, former Al Gore aide and first […]

(Beyond Pesticides, November 3, 2008) A new study, Pyrethroid pesticides and their metabolites in vacuum cleaner dust collected from homes and day-care centers (doi:10.1016/j.envres.2008.07.022), by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) National Exposure Research Laboratory finds concentrations of 13 synthetic pyrethroids and their degradates in indoor dust collected from homes and childcare centers in North Carolina and Ohio. The study results show the extent to which hazardous pesticides are present in indoor environments and threaten the public’s health, especially the health of children. With 85 vacuum cleaner bags analyzed, permethrin was present in all 85 dust samples, at least one pyrethroid pesticide was found in 69 samples and phenothrin was found in 36 samples. According to the study findings published in the November issue of the journal Environmental Research, the median concentration of permethrin in the samples is 1454ng/g of dust. Excluding permethrin, pyrethroid conectrations are less than or equal to 100ng/g of dust. The majority of the metabolites are present in more than half of the dust samples. This is not the first time researchers have found pesticides in dust in homes. A study published in the International Journal of Hygiene and Environmental Health (208: 193-199) also found that […]