(Beyond Pesticides, September 9, 2011) Despite rising concerns over the side effects of herbicide tolerant, genetically engineered (GE) crops, Dow AgroSciences has recently asked for approval of a new GE soybean variety that will be the first ever to be simultaneously resistant to three different pesticides. The soybean variety, which the company is calling “Enlist,” is designed to compete with Monsanto’s line of “Roundup Ready” crops, which are engineered to be resistant to the company’s glyphosate formulation. The Enlist soybean will be resistant to glyphosate as well as glufosinate and 2,4-D. Antonio Galindez, CEO of Dow AgroSciences, told Reuters that the Enlist system is the company’s “most important project ever.” This is likely due to the company’s ambitious target of taking over Monsanto’s dominance of the GE market in American agriculture. Herbicide tolerant (HT) Roundup Ready crop varieties have become nearly ubiquitous in the corn, cotton, and soybean seed markets. Dow will market the product as a replacement for Roundup Ready soybeans. If farmers are finding that weeds in their fields are not responding to applications of Roundup, Dow will argue, then planting Enlist soybeans will allow them to spray a combination of chemicals in order to eradicate the resistant […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 8, 2011) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final cancellation order on August 8, 2011 for Rozol Prairie Dog Bait following a court order issued on July 27, 2011, which finds that EPA failed to consult with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). As required by the court order, the blood-thinning pesticide Rozol (chlorophacinone) is no longer allowed for use in four states, including Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota and South Dakota, as of August 8, 2011 pending the completion of the endangered species consultation with the two agencies. Rozol is an anti-coagulant rodenticide in the chemical class of indandiones. It works by blocking vitamin K-dependent synthesis of the blood clotting substance prothrombin. Animals that ingest anti-coagulant rodenticides suffer from the following list of immediate toxic effects: nosebleeds, bleeding gums, blood in urine and feces; bruises due to ruptured blood vessels; and skin damage. Rozol may still be used in Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Texas and Wyoming. However, Lipatech, the manufacturer of Rozol may not sell or distribute existing stocks in its possession and control unless they have been relabeled to eliminate the portion of the label authorizing use in the four canceled states. […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 7, 2011) California’s approval of the dangerous and controversial agricultural chemical, methyl iodide, suffered serious questions with the release of new documents showing the fumigant’s registration process was flawed. The documents, which were made public as part of a lawsuit challenging the state’s approval of the chemical, show the state’s Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) cut and pasted calculations from different risk assessments in order to come up with a less stringent set of restrictions on the chemical’s use. Earlier this year, several environmental groups sued the State of California for approving the agricultural use of methyl iodide. Methyl iodide is known to cause miscarriages, thyroid dysfunction, and cancer, and is applied to crops like strawberries and peppers. It was approved by California state pesticide regulators in December as an alternative to methyl bromide, an ozone-depleting chemical being phased out under international treaty. Environmental advocacy groups and other opponents of methyl iodide use in the state have released documents detailing dissension in the ranks of DPR over the risk assessment of methyl iodide and its subsequent approval. Earthjustice, a nonprofit environmental law group, sued DPR in an attempt to reverse the state’s approval of the chemical. The […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 6, 2011) Scientists in France have discovered that honey bees are at a higher risk of dying from infection by Nosema ceranae (N. ceranae) when they are exposed to low doses of insecticides. The results, presented in the journal PLoS ONE, support the theory that combining more N. ceranae with high pesticide content in beehives could contribute to colony depopulation. The French study, “Exposure to Sublethal Doses of Fipronil and Thiacloprid Highly Increases Mortality of Honeybees Previously Infected by Nosema ceranae,” brought together researchers from the Laboratoire Microorganismes: Génome et Environnment and the Laboratoire de Toxicologie Environnment who utilized their respective skills in parasitology and toxicology to assess the effect of pathogen/toxin interactions on bee health. In the laboratory, the researchers chronically exposed newly emerged honey bees, some healthy and others infected with Nosema ceranae, to low doses of insecticides: fipronil and thiacloprid. They found that the infected bees died when they were chronically exposed to insecticides, even at sublethal doses, unlike the healthy bees. This combined effect on honeybee mortality was observed with daily exposure to extremely low doses (over 100 times less than the LD50 or dose needed to kill 50% of the sample population, […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 2, 2011) The widely used herbicide glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, has been detected in significant levels in rain and rivers in agricultural areas across the Mississippi River watershed, according to two new studies released this month by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The studies’ results raise serious concerns about public exposure and potential environmental damages. Detailed results are available in “Occurrence and fate of the herbicide glyphosate and its degradate aminomethylphosphonic acid in the atmosphere,” published in Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry and in “Fate and transport of glyphosate and aminomethylphosphonic acid in surface waters of agricultural basins,” published online in Pest Management Science. Glyphosate is used in almost all agricultural and urban areas of the United States. The greatest glyphosate use is in the Mississippi River basin, where most applications are for weed control on genetically-modified corn, soybeans and cotton. Overall, agricultural use of glyphosate has increased from less than 11,000 tons in 1992 to more than 88,000 tons in 2007. The two studies conducted by USGS examine glyphosate content in air and water samples in the states of Iowa and Mississippi across two growing seasons. The results show that glyphosate is detected 60-100% of […]

(Beyond Pesticides, September 1, 2011) In an exclusive Beyond Pesticides’ interview in Mirebalais, Haiti (in the central plateau region of the country) on August 26, 2011 with the head of Haiti’s Mouvman Peyizan Papay [MPP] (Peasant Movement of Papay), a 200,000 member strong organization of small farmers, Chavannes Jean-Baptiste calls for support of food sovereignty in his earthquake-torn country and an end to efforts by Monsanto and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to advance chemical-intensive agriculture in Haiti. Mr. Chavannes and his organization led a protest of 10,000 peasant farmers in 2010 during which they burned Monsanto seed that was donated and being distributed by USAID’s Watershed Initiative for National Natural Environmental Resources (WINNER) Program. At the time the seeds were being distributed in 2010, Mr. Jean-Baptiste said Monsanto’s donation is an effort to shift farmer dependence to more expensive hybrid varieties from traditional seeds and will harm the island-nation’s agriculture. He called the donation a new earthquake. Haitian farmers and small growers traditionally save seed from season to season or buy the seed they desire from traditional seed markets, and, as he points out, have been doing this for 200 years. Monsanto says that it donated “more […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 31, 2011) Widely grown corn plants that Monsanto Co. genetically modified to thwart a voracious bug are falling prey to that very pest in Iowa cornfields, the first time a major Midwest scourge has developed resistance to a genetically modified crop. The discovery raises concerns that the biotech crops are spawning “superbugs” and calls into question EPA’s allowance of so-called plant incorporated protectants (PIPs). Fields planted in Monsanto’s Bt corn in some areas of the Midwest are showing damage from the corn rootworm””the very species targeted by Monsanto’s engineered trait. Iowa State University entomologist Aaron Gassmann, PhD has discovered that western corn rootworms in four Iowa fields have evolved and can resist the pesticide built into Monsanto’s genetically altered corn seeds. The scientist said the cases were isolated, but he did not know how widespread the problem could become. Farmers in Illinois are also seeing severe rootworm damage in fields planted in Monsanto’s Bt corn. In 2010, Monsanto acknowledged that in industrial-agriculture regions of India, where Monsanto’s Bt cotton is a dominant crop, the cotton-attacking bollworm had developed resistance. “These are isolated cases, and it isn’t clear how widespread the problem will become,” said Dr. Gassmann in […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 30, 2011) A new study finds that older men living in California’s Central Valley are more likely to develop prostate cancer if they were exposed to certain agricultural pesticides than those who were not exposed. The study examines exposure via drift rather than occupational exposure, although similar results have been noted in farmworker populations. Exposure to methyl bromide or various organochlorine pesticides increased the risk of cancer by about one and a half times. The study, “Prostate cancer and ambient pesticide exposure in agriculturally intensive areas in California,” was published in the June 2011 issue of the American Journal of Epidemiology. The researchers from the University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine recruited 173 men between the ages of 60 to 74 from 670 identified by the California Cancer Registry as being diagnosed with prostate cancer between August 2005 and July 2006 in California’s Central Valley. The authors used calendars and questionnaires to determine where they lived and worked between 1974 and 1999, and compared this to historical data of the corresponding area’s agricultural pesticide use from state pesticide use reports and land use records. In comparison with unexposed persons, increased risks of prostate cancer were […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 29, 2011) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced last Thursday that it has entered into an agreement with the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (CDPR) to resolve a civil rights complaint from 1999 which alleged that the department’s renewal of the toxic fumigant methyl bromide in 1999 discriminated against Latino school children whose schools are located near agriculture fields. Per the agreement, CDPR has agreed to expand on-going monitoring of methyl bromide air concentrations by adding a monitor at or near one of the Watsonville, CA area schools named in the original complaint. The purpose of the additional monitor is to confirm that there will be no recurrence of earlier conditions. CDPR will share the monitoring results with EPA and the public and will also increase its community outreach and education efforts to schools that are in high methyl bromide usage areas.EPA says that this is a part of a “backlog” of more than 30 unresolved complaints. The complaint was filed in 1999 under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 , which prohibits intentional discrimination and discriminatory effects on the basis of race, color, and national origin by recipients of federal financial assistance. […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 26, 2011) The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced that it will hold a free public listening session on the department’s activities related to organic food and farming in order to gather input from farmers, consumers, and other interested parties regarding a wide range of subjects. The agency is hoping to gather more feedback and guidance from stakeholders in the world of organic food and agriculture in order to “help USDA programs examine and prioritize their activities and objectives in order to best serve the organic community.” The scope of matters on which USDA is hoping to hear comments is very broad and seemingly includes any of the department’s actions which could potentially impact organic growing practices or organic producers. The announcement for the listening session outlined two general areas on which comments can be submitted. The first concerns any activities of the National Organic Program (NOP) that do not relate to matters likely to come before the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB). Since the NOSB has its own process for soliciting and reviewing public comments at its biannual meetings, NOP is seeking comments on actions that it takes which are independent of the NOSB. These […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 25, 2011) A growth in tick populations and increase in Lyme disease rates over the past few years on an island in Maine have local health officials scrambling to find a solution to keep the problem at bay. So far this year there have been 20 official cases and over 20 suspected cases that have been treated with antibiotics on the island of Islesboro. In the past eight years, the health center has seen at least 69 cases of Lyme disease out of a population of 600, which according to Islesboro’s Tick-Borne Disease Prevention Committee, constitutes an epidemic. The blame for this ”˜epidemic’ has been largely attributed to deer, which serve as the tick’s primary host. There are about 500 deer on the 11-mile-long Island, making it almost as high as the human population. As such, one of the proposed solutions that residents are voting on is to allow gun hunting to reduce the deer herd from 48 to 10 deer per square mile. Unfortunately, though proposals of the prevention committee focus on prevention and include landscape modification in addition to management of deer and other wildlife, they also recommend the use of pesticides including repellants such […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 24, 2011) Scientists say the fungus that causes apple scab appears to be growing more resistant to pesticides routinely used to control the fungus, worsening the threat of outbreaks in commercial orchards. For decades, manufacturers have come up with replacements for chemical mixtures the fungus outwitted. By using a rotating lineup of fungicides from year to year, farmers usually stayed a step ahead of the scab. But the fungus now appears to be overcoming multiple fungicides at once. In a paper published this month in the journal Plant Disease, researchers described samples collected in Indiana and Michigan that are resisting all four of the most commonly used chemical treatments: dodine, kresoxim-methyl, myclobutanil, and thiophanate-methyl. “We’ve dealt with fungicide resistance over the years, but this time we’re losing three or four different classes of completely unrelated fungicides at the same time,” said Henry Ngugi, PhD, a plant pathologist with Penn State University’s Fruit Research and Extension Center. “We have to literally go back to the drawing board.” Another ominous sign: The fungus apparently hasn’t developed any new weaknesses while evolving to resist the pesticides, unlike what usually happens in nature, the study found. Anecdotal reports from orchard owners […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 23, 2011) It’s that time of the year again for kids to return to the classroom. Unfortunately, children may face unexpected dangers from pesticides, including antibacterial chemicals, used in and around schools. Studies show pesticides can impact a child’s neurological, respiratory, immune, and hormone systems, even at low levels. Help create a healthier and safer school environment by checking the following items off your Back to School Checklist. 1. Get Triclosan Out of Schools and Supplies. The antibacterial chemical triclosan is linked to skin irritation, hormone disruption, antibiotic resistance, and more. Avoid products labeled Microban or “with antibacterial protection” as they may contain triclosan (product list). Ask your school to order triclosan-free soap and school supplies. See Back to School flyer. Take Action: Bath & Body Works has marketed an entire line of triclosan-containing body care products to teenagers. Tell Bath & Body Works’ CEO: “Stop using toxic triclosan in your products.” 2. Improve Your School’s IPM Program. Children face unique hazards from pesticide exposure because of their small size and developing organ systems. A strong integrated pest management (IPM) program is one of the best ways to minimize or eliminate children’s exposure to pesticides. See how […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 22, 2011) A US Department of Agriculture (USDA) official speaking at an agricultural conference said that the heavy use of Roundup, an herbicide manufactured by Monsanto and used heavily on “Roundup Ready” genetically engineered (GE) crops, appears to be causing harmful changes in soil and potentially hindering yields of crops that farmers are cultivating. Reuters reported that Robert Kremer, PhD, a microbiologist with the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service, told the audience at the August 12, 2011 conference sponsored by the Organization for Competitive Markets that repeated use of the herbicide glyphosate, the key ingredient in Roundup herbicide, impacts the root structure of plants, and 15 years of research indicates that the chemical could be causing fungal root disease. Dr. Kremer first warned us about his research and questioned the government’s response last year. “This could be something quite big. We might be setting up a huge problem,” Dr. Kremer told Reuters last year. “Science is not being considered in policy setting and deregulation. This research is important. We need to be vigilant.” Monsanto created “Roundup Ready” crops to withstand its Roundup herbicide (with the active ingredient glyphosate). Growing previous Roundup Ready crops such as soy, cotton, and […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 19, 2011) Children from disadvantaged backgrounds are exposed to higher levels of a slew of environmental chemicals — some currently used and some long banned — than U.S. children from other socioeconomic backgrounds, finds a study of elementary school children from urban Minneapolis, Minn. The 7- to 12-year-olds had elevated concentrations of metals, industrial chemicals and markers for pesticides and tobacco smoke in their blood and urine. The results are published in the Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health. These findings agree with other studies reporting higher concentrations of environmental chemicals in children. What is important about this study is that these children were from low-income households where they face additional hardships from poverty. Children from disadvantaged backgrounds are more vulnerable to health issues, such as asthma and behavioral problems. Exposure to these chemicals may increase this risk even more. Compared to adults, children eat more food, breathe more air, and drink more fluid than adults per unit of body mass. This increases their intake of potentially harmful chemicals and possibly raises the risk of adverse health effects related to these compounds. In addition, children’s bodies are not fully capable of detoxifying many of these chemicals so […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 18, 2011) A new report by the Australian government finds that agricultural pesticides are severely damaging the Great Barrier Reef; despite this fact, sugarcane growers have been allowed a six week extension to continue to use the weed killer diuron, which was intially set to be suspended for use on August 13. The Reef Water Quality Protection Plan First Report Card estimates that 28,000 kilograms (or approximately 61,730 pounds) of pesticides enter the reef, which is the world’s largest structure made up of living organisms and a World Heritage natural wonder. The findings in the report corroborate previous research on the health of the Great Barrier Reef. The sugarcane industry claims that the research is based on old data and that there have been significant changes in practices, including cutting back on the use of pesticides. Though the Australian government acknowledges these changes, those improvements have been undermined by Cyclone Yasi. The heavy flooding from Yasi, which ripped through the region earlier this year, likely flushed pollutants out into the reef. According to the industry, the suspension of the use of diuron would drive up the costs for sugarcane growers because there is no viable alternative to […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 17, 2011) Representatives Edward J. Markey (D-Mass.), top Democrat on the House Natural Resources Committee, and Grace Napolitano (D-Calif.), the Ranking Democrat on the Natural Resources Committee’s Subcommittee on Water and Power, sent a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) urging adoption of new measures to help protect endangered species as the federal government develops rules governing the spraying of pesticides directly into U.S. waters. These new rules would apply to issuance of a Pesticide General Permit (PGP), which would be the first of its kind in the history of the Clean Water Act and would impose limits on the amount of pesticides that enter our streams, rivers, and lakes. The letters were forwarded to EPA and FWS at a time when Congress is doing all it can to strip the Clean Water Act of its power to protect U.S. waterways. The Reducing Regulatory Burdens Act of 2011 or H.R. 872, already passed by the House earlier this year and recently voted out of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, would revoke EPA’s authority to require permits for pesticide discharges into waterways. Click here to send […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 16, 2011) A lawsuit filed in federal court against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) seeks to end cultivation of genetically engineered (GE) crops on twenty-five national wildlife refuges across the U.S. Southeast. The suit is the latest step in a campaign to banish GE crops from all refuges. Filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on August 12, 2011 by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER), the Center for Food Safety (CFS), and Beyond Pesticides, the federal suit charges that FWS unlawfully entered into cooperative farming agreements and approved planting of GE crops in eight states without the environmental review required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and in violation of FWS policy. This is the third in a series of lawsuits filed by CFS and PEER challenging FWS’s practice of permitting GE crops on wildlife refuges. In 2009 and 2010, the groups successfully challenged approval of GE plantings on two wildlife refuges in Delaware — Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge and Bombay Hook National Wildlife Refuge — which forced FWS to end GE planting in the entire 12-state Northeastern region. National wildlife refuges have allowed farming for decades despite […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 15, 2011) Poultry farms that have adopted organic practices and cease using antibiotics have significantly lower levels of drug-resistant enterococci bacteria that can potentially spread to humans, according to a new study published August 10, 2011 in the online edition of Environmental Health Perspectives. The study, led by researchers at the University of Maryland’s School of Public Health, suggests that organic conversion of U.S. poultry farms can result in immediate and significant reductions in antibiotic resistance for some bacteria. The non-therapeutic use of antibiotics in livestock production accounts for nearly 80% of all antibiotics used in the United States. Typically, low levels of antibiotics are administered to animals through feed and water to prevent disease and promote growth. This is generally done to compensate for overcrowded and unsanitary living conditions, as is common in concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), and to fatten livestock to get them to market sooner. Antibiotic use is prohibited in the production of all animal products labeled organic. “We initially thought we would see some differences in on-farm levels of antibiotic-resistant enterococci when poultry farms transitioned to organic practices. But we were surprised to see that the differences were so significant across several […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 12, 2011) Researchers have begun investigating silver nanoparticles, or nanosilver, in order to discover what exactly makes the particles toxic to the environment. Although scientists have long been concerned about the evidence of toxicity of nanosilver to both human health and the natural environment, research so far has been unclear on which properties of the particles actually make them toxic. The dangers may stem from the nanoparticles themselves, but they may also be due to the silver ions that the particles shed. Previous attempts to distinguish nanoparticles from silver ions have proven unfruitful, as they have been unable to fully separate the two. However, a new method developed by researchers in China aims to use an older technique called cloud point extraction and apply it to the nanosilver in order to separate the ions from the particles. This will enable researchers to identify whether consumer products, as well as environmental samples such as wastewater, containing nanosilver actually contain nanoparticles or if they contain silver ions. The method will need to be refined further in order to adequately examine the very small nanosilver concentrations that are most often found in the environment, such as in wastewater or surface […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 11, 2011) A combination of eleven different kinds of commonly used pyrethroids were tested on mice in a new study which found that, at real-world exposure levels, the insecticides can produce heightened toxicity that is equal to the sum of each insecticide’s individual effect. The mixture of similar-acting insecticides works by over-stimulating electronic channels in the mouse’s brain cells and eventually causing death. This study adds to the growing body of research on the toxicity of pesticide combinations in nature and showcases the need for policy change because the current risk assessment approach to regulating pesticides fails to look at chemical mixtures and synergistic effects. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) currently regulates on a chemical-by-chemical basis, but as this study demonstrates, interacting chemicals can have synergistic effects at very low levels, where a “chemical cocktail” of multiple interacting chemicals combine to have greater effects than expected. Pesticides can also have a cumulative “toxic loading” effect both in the immediate and long term. Researchers exposed mice brain cells to eleven different food-use pyrethroid insecticides either singly or in a mixture in the study entitled ”Additivity of pyrethroid actions on sodium influx in cerebrocortical neurons in primary culture.” […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 10, 2011) A citizen advisory council in Boulder County, Colorado is preparing to decide on whether or not to recommend that genetically modified organisms (GMOs) be banned from county lands. The County’s Croplands Policy Advisory Group will meet on Wednesday, August 10 (agenda packet here) to decide if they want farmers who plant their crops on county land to be able to be able to grow crops that have been genetically modified. With organic farmers around the country worried about potential contamination of their crops with GMO pollen following a number of recent regulatory decisions, the citizen council model may represent a good way for communities to come together and find a solution. Currently, many farmers grow on land owned by the county, and some want to plant GMOs to stay competitive with other farmers around the country. However, some citizens of the county are concerned about the widespread use of GMOs and the increased reliance on agricultural chemicals that usually accompanies them. Organic farmers in the area are also very worried. Recent decisions by the U.S. Department of Agriculture have led to the deregulation of several genetically engineered varieties of common crops, including alfalfa and sugar […]

(Beyond Pesticides, August 9, 2011) Genetically engineered sweet corn designed to both fight off insects and tolerate Monsanto’s Roundup Ready herbicide is set to enter the market this fall, marking a first for engineered produce in the U.S. by the company. This is the first consumer product developed by Monstanto that will go straight from the farm to the consumer’s plate, rather than first being processed into animal feed, sugars, oils, fibers and other ingredients found in a wide variety of conventional food. The new seeds, which will be available to farmers this fall, will target the relatively small market of 250,000 acres of sweet corn grown that is grown for human consumption, however, many environmentalists worry that if this proves profitable for Monsanto we may see more varieties of GE fruits and vegetables at the grocery store. “There’s a concern with these GE crops that we eat with minimal processing [like sweet corn]…we’re exposed to a lot more of whatever is in it versus a processed corn product,” said Bill Freese, a science policy analyst at Center for Food Safety in an interview with Fast Company. A study earlier this year found that pregnant women and their fetuses were […]