(Beyond Pesticides, March 14, 2008) An innovative pilot program integrating organic apple and organic pork production proves successful by decreasing pest problems and increasing farm profitability, according to the initial results of a one-year USDA Integrated Organic Program funded study.Jim Koan, owner of Al-Mar Orchards in Flushing, Michigan, had been fighting the plum curculio (PC) beetle, a major pest of pome and stone fruits. Mr. Koan decided to team up with David Epstein, Tree Fruit IPM Integrator with the Michigan State University IPM Program, to study a way to control the beetles without using hazardous pesticides. They are finding that hogs are the answer Mr. Koan was looking for. The pilot program results showed that in three days, twenty-seven, two-month old Berkshire hogs ate more than 98 percent of the dropped apples in one-acre plots, many of which were infested with PC larvae. Mr. Epstein found that the PC do not survive in the hog digestive system. Thus, subsequent summer feedings by the PC on apples decreased five-fold where hogs grazed. Without the hogs eating the PC infested apples, the larvae in the apples would have moved into the soil and later during the summer, re-emerged to feed on the […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 13, 2008) Exposure to certain chemicals, including pesticides and nerve agents, explains the high rates of illness in Persian Gulf War Veterans, according to a new study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Veterans from the 1990-91 conflict have a higher rate of chronic, multi-symptom health problems than either non-deployed personnel or those deployed elsewhere. Symptoms routinely reported by these veterans include fatigue, muscle or joint pain, memory problems, trouble sleeping, rash and breathing problems. Due to the findings, the study author, Beatrice Golomb, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of medicine at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, warns of the potential risk to civilians exposed to pesticides.“Health issues among Gulf War veterans have been a concern for nearly two decades. Now, enough studies have been conducted, and results shared, to be able to say with considerable confidence that there is a link between chemical exposure and chronic, multi-symptom health problems,” said Dr. Golomb. “Furthermore, the same chemicals affecting Gulf War veterans may be involved in similar cases of unexplained, multi-symptom health problems in the general population.”The study synthesized evidence regarding a class of chemicals known as acetylcholinesterase inhibitors (AchEs), including […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 12, 2008) BioDiversity Research Institute, a nonprofit ecological research group, released a new report that was presented March 12, 2008 to Maine’s Joint Standing Committee on Natural Resources. Entitled “Contaminant Screening in Maine Birds,” it documents over 100 harmful contaminants that were found in Maine bird eggs. Scientists collected 60 eggs, representing 23 species of birds, all of which test positive for chemical contaminants, some at levels believed to be harmful to the birds. Flame retardants (PBDEs), industrial stain and water repellants (PFCs), transformer coolants (PCBs), pesticides (OCs), and mercury are found in all 23 species of birds tested. The bird species studied live in a variety of habitats: on Maine’s ocean, salt marshes, rivers, lakes and uplands. “This is the most extensive study of its kind to date and the first time industrial stain and water repellants were discovered in Maine birds,” says report author, senior research biologist Wing Goodale with the Institute. The Common loon, Atlantic puffin, piping plover, belted kingfisher, great black-backed gull, peregrine falcon and bald eagle have the highest contaminant levels. The flame retardant deca-BDE, banned last year in Maine, is found in eight species. Overall, eagles carry the greatest contaminant load, […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 11, 2008) A Decade of Children’s Health Research: Highlights from EPA’s Science to Achieve Results Program, a ten-year Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) study released March 10, 2008, summarizes important research findings found from $127 million invested in research grants on children’s environmental health in response to an executive order issued in 1997. Executive Order 13045, Protection of Children From Environmental Health Risks and Safety Risks, requires federal agencies to place a high priority on assessing risks to children. EPA, through its Science to Achieve Results (STAR) program, issued more than 60 research grants in response to this order, which in turn, produced more than 1000 scientific journal articles. “Understanding potential environmental health risks to children is important to EPA,” said George Gray, assistant administrator of EPA’s Office of Research and Development. “This research will help us assess and address environmental factors that may affect some of the most vulnerable members of our society.” The report summarizes research from the STAR children’s health program over the past 10 years, highlighting scientific findings in epidemiology, exposure science, genetics, community-based participatory research, interventions, statistics and methods. Some of the major findings of this research include: People metabolize pesticides differently based […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 10, 2008) Head lice affect an estimated 12 million people in the U.S. each year, and are rapidly becoming resistant to over-the-counter and prescription medications. Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Amherst have found that ivermectin, a compound produced by soil-dwelling bacteria, was 100 percent effective in killing head lice resistant to many standard treatments. Results were published in the January 2008 edition of the Journal of Medical Entomology. Although ivermectin is not well-absorbed through the skin, some public health advocates are concerned about its use on humans for lice and scabies. The National Pediculosis Association (NPA), a non profit agency, directs parents, health care professionals and child care providers to safer head lice control options via a standardized prevention approach focusing on routine screening, early detection and thorough combing and manual removal of lice and nits. NPA promotes this as a rational strategy over chasing lice with pesticides that offer more risk than benefit and have a well-documented history of lice resistance and failure.Most products used to treat head lice contain the insecticide pyrethrum, or its synthetic cousin permethrin, as the active ingredient. Over the past two decades, resistance to these chemicals has become a serious […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 7, 2008) A number of counties in California’s Bay Area have voiced strong opposition to state plans to aerially spray a pheromone mixture over areas where the light brown apple moth (LBAM) has been found. While the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) plans to begin spraying this summer, state legislators and county officials alike are taking steps to postpone or halt it completely. By late February, Senator Carole Midgen had introduced a resolution to set a moratorium on aerial spraying in San Francisco and Marin counties. Assemblyman John Laird and others introduced a four-bill legislative package designed to ensure CDFA is “adequately prepared” for pest problems and public health is protected. Since then, a number of city councils have approved a variety of resolutions to oppose aerial spraying. Santa Cruz County has filed a lawsuit to stop the spraying, the court hearing for which has been postponed until April 24 in order to complete paperwork. “The county just received the administrative record from the state,” said county spokeswoman Dinah Phillips. “We’ll be going through that with a fine-tooth comb. We’re trying to get everything ready before the spraying begins.” The San Francisco Board of Supervisors […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 6, 2008) The public is invited to a screening of the remarkable Rachel Carson film, A Sense of Wonder, opening at the D.C. Environmental film festival, March 12th at 7 pm at E Street Cinema in Washington, D.C. The film was shot last fall at Miss Carson’s cottage in Maine and is adapted from the one-person play of the same name. Bill Moyers of PBS said of the play, “I was deeply moved by Kauilani Lee’s incarnation of Rachel Carson in A Sense of Wonder. You cannot watch. . .without reflecting on universal themes – life death, the power of place, courage in growing old and speaking truth. You cannot walk away unmoved.” The film should have a great life spreading Miss Carson’s vital and timely words. The actress Kaiulani Lee with director Christopher Monger and co-producer Karen Montgomery bring Ms. Lee’s play based on the life and writings of environmentalist Rachel Carson to the silver screen. Ms. Lee will perform the play at the upcoming 26th National Pesticide Forum, Reclaiming Our Healthy Future, March 14, 7:30pm at the Clark Kerr Conference Center at the University of California, Berkeley. For directions, details on the film or general […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 5, 2008) The state of Minnesota will this week make a decision on a bill that would create a public database of all pesticides applied in the state. The bill would also require farmers and commercial applicators to notify neighbors before using restricted pesticides that are volatile. Democratic Rep. Ken Tschumper of La Crescent, author of the bill, Pesticide Right to Know, believes that the public has a right to know what chemicals are being used in their neighborhoods. The bill will require pesticide applicators to give 48 hours advance notification to an area where pesticides will be sprayed, both in urban and rural areas, and what kind of pesticide would be used. The legislation also calls for the Minnesota Department of Agriculture to create an Internet database indicating the time and location of pesticide application. Under the measure, pesticide applicators would have to report to the Agriculture Department every 30 days. “The bill is not that onerous. Pesticide applicators have to keep track of every application of pesticide they do,” Rep. Tschumper said. “All we’re simply saying is that data, that information, needs to be made public.” Using volatile chemicals such as atrazine, which is widely […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 4, 2008) Concern about environmental health and justice has exploded in our communities and around the world as a political and moral issue. One of the central threats, toxic pesticides, is directly linked to adverse health effects, particularly in children, and poisoning of the environment. We have learned enough in the last several decades since the publication of Silent Spring to make dramatic shifts away from toxic chemical dependency — as science increasingly links exposure to disease; insect, plant and bacteria resistance to chemicals multiplies; the energy and carbon footprint associated with pesticide use is documented; and the viability of sound and safe practices is realized. While the shift away from pesticide dependency has begun to take hold in communities around the world, conventional chemical intensive practices in agriculture and residential and institutional management continue to pose unjustifiable and unwarranted hazards. Regulatory standards and underlying laws accept unnecessary risks for workers that handle and work around pesticides and children who eat treated food, breathe contaminated air, or touch toxic surfaces. Studies link pesticides to cancer and immune, reproductive and nervous system damage. Subtle low level exposure effects that cause learning disabilities or impede brain function defy classical […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 3, 2008) In a five-year study of the Chesapeake Bay, the nation’s largest estuary, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) found that, “Synthetic organic pesticides and their degradation products have been widely detected at low levels in the watershed, including emerging contaminants such as pharmaceuticals and hormones.“ The report finds that concentrations of DDT, while still present, have declined since the 1970s when it was phased out. The findings are contained in a report entitled Synthesis of U.S. Geological Survey Science for the Chesapeake Bay Ecosystem and Implications for Environmental Management. The study is a part of the Chesapeake Bay Program (CBP), which is a multi-agency partnership working to restore the Bay ecosystem. According to the report introduction, “In 2005, which represented the mid-point of the Chesapeake 2000 agreement, there was growing concern at all levels of government and by the public that ecological conditions in the Bay and its watershed had not significantly improved. The slow rate of improvement, coupled with the projected human-population increase in the Bay watershed, implied that many desired ecological conditions will not be achieved by 2010. The Government Accountability Office (2005) recommended that the CBP complete efforts for an integrated assessment approach […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 29, 2008) The National Park Service (NPS) recently released a report documenting airborne pesticides.  The report of the  Western Airborne Contaminants Assessment Project (WACAP), with data collected from 2002 to 2007, found high concentrations of “numerous” airborne contaminants, including current and former use pesticides. Contamination is widespread throughout twenty parks throughout the western United States and Alaska, exceeding consumption levels for humans and wildlife in some areas. According to the report, the contaminants of second and third “highest concern” are “Dieldrin – an acutely toxic insecticide banned from use in the U.S. since 1987 that decreases the effectiveness of the immune system” and “DDT – an insecticide banned in the U.S. since 1972 that reduces reproductive success.” NPS also reported that Dieldrin and DDT levels exceeded the threshold for recreational fishermen in several parks, and Dieldrin levels exceeded that for subsistence fishermen in all but Olympic National Park. Fish-eating birds are also at risk in some parks. While NPS could not establish a correlation between contaminant levels and fish reproductive effects due to small sample size, two parks produced individual “intersex” fish. However, NPS stated, “This condition is commonly associated with exposure to certain contaminants (e.g., dieldrin […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 28, 2008) Earthworms studied in agricultural fields have been found to contain chemicals from household products (including the widely marketed triclosan, a hazardous antimicrobial) and manure, indicating that such substances are entering the food chain. U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Scientists and their colleague from Colorado State University at Pueblo published their findings in Environmental Science and Technology. The study results demonstrate that organic chemicals introduced to the environment via land application of biosolids, the solid byproduct of wastewater treatment, and manure as fertilizers are transferred to earthworms. Earthworms continuously ingest soils for nourishment and can accumulate the chemicals present in the soil.The scientists collected soil and earthworms from three agricultural fields””a soybean field fertilized with biosolids, a corn field fertilized with swine manure, and a soybean field that had received no applications of either biosolids or manure for at least 7 years. The chemicals investigated are considered indicators of human and animal waste sources and include a range of active ingredients in common household products such as detergents, antibacterial soaps, fragrances, and pharmaceuticals. All of these chemicals tend to be concentrated in the municipal waste distribution and disposal process and are referred to as anthropogenic waste indicators […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 27, 2008) EPA is seeking public comments on a proposed list of 104 possible drinking water contaminants that may need to be regulated in the future to ensure the continued protection of drinking water. Under the Safe Drinking Water Act, EPA includes on the draft Contaminant Candidate List (CCL) currently unregulated contaminants that are known or anticipated to occur in public water systems and which may require regulation. This draft CCL, which is the third such listing, lists 93 chemical contaminants or groups and 11 microbes, and describes the process and basis for selecting these contaminants.“EPA is casting a broader scientific net for potential regulation of chemicals and microbes in drinking water,” said Assistant Administrator for Water Benjamin H. Grumbles. “EPA’s proposed list of priority contaminants will advance sound science and public health by targeting research on certain chemicals and microbes and informing regulators on how best to reduce risk.” The CCL process was established by the 1996 amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act as a mechanism to determine if new regulations are needed to protect drinking water. Under this process EPA conducted extensive research into the occurrence and health effects of the listed contaminants before […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 26, 2008) The United Farm Workers of America, Beyond Pesticides and others, represented by lawyers from Earthjustice, argued in federal court that the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) decision to allow the use of azinphos-methyl until 2012 was unconscionable. The plaintiffs say EPA did not consider harm to farmworkers and their families, or to rivers, lakes and salmon, and the agency should be forced to reconsider. “There are workers getting sick,” Patti Goldman, a lawyer for Earthjustice, told U.S. District Judge Ricardo S. Martinez. “This isn’t just hypothetical. There are workers being taken out of the field.”The AP reports that Cynthia Morris, a Justice Department lawyer who argued on the agency’s behalf, told the judge that the short-term benefits of allowing growers to keep using AZM for the next several years outweigh the potential harm. She argued that the agency’s decision was reasonable, and failed to meet the “arbitrary and capricious” standard for the judge to undo it.In November 2006, EPA decided that AZM poses unreasonable adverse effects and must be banned but allowed its continued use on fruit crops for six more years — until 2012 — and on nut crops for three more years — until […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 25, 2008) After two years of residents calling on local authorities for greater protection from drifting airborne pesticides, the Tulare County Agricultural Commissioner has adopted new pesticide buffer zone rules, or “permit conditions,” that prohibits aerial applications of restricted use pesticides within one-quarter mile of schools in session or due to be in session within 24 hours, occupied farm labor camps and residential areas. The Allensworth School Board, the Cutler-Orosi School Board and over 1,750 organizations and individuals endorsed the call for buffer zones in Tulare County. Community members launched efforts to establish buffer zones because of the serious health risks posed by pesticide exposure, ranging from short-term effects such as dizziness, vomiting and rashes to long-term effects including asthma, cancer, birth defects, damage to the developing child and neurological harm. Community efforts included conducting surveys documenting the general public’s exposure to pesticides, sampling for pesticides in the air and in residents’ bodies, and presenting local authorities with a petition endorsing the establishment of buffer zones around sensitive sites such as schools. According to the Mercury News, “An Associated Press investigation found that 590 people in California were sickened by pesticides at schools from 1996 to 2005, […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 22, 2008) The California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) has released its latest schedule for assault on the light brown apple moth (LBAM), adding specifics to its previous outline of the 2008 plan. As has been previously reported, public outcry against the aerial spraying of a pheromone mixture has been widespread, in spite of the state’s insistence on the necessity of such measures. As a result, two state senators are introducing measures to stop, or at least postpone, spraying until safety and efficacy can be assured. The latest schedule from CDFA identifies anticipated components to the eradication effort. For instance, twist-ties (carrying the moths’ pheromone) will be applied to trees beginning February 25, which will be used alone in areas of low infestation, and “to complement mating disruption treatments against heaviest populations.” They will remain in place until an area is free from moths for two life-cycles. “Pheromone male moth attractant treatment,” applied to utility poles and trees, both on public and private property, will occur in areas of mid-level infestation, measuring at least 3,000 male moths per square mile. These applications will begin in April, and in areas of heaviest infestation, will precede aerial spraying. […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 21, 2008) The Simpson Timber Company, in a settlement with two environmental groups, has agreed to remove tons of sediment laden with cancer-causing dioxin from a contaminated ditch that empties into Humboldt Bay, California’s second largest natural bay.The timber company was sued in 2006 by the two Eureka-based environmental groups, Humboldt Baykeeper and Californians for Alternatives to Toxics (CATs). Tests were conducted, and dioxin was found at levels tens of thousands of times higher than Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards, some of the highest levels found in the nation. The test sites were near where Simpson commonly sprayed plywood with the now-widely-banned wood preservative pentachlorophenol in the 1960’s. Further indications that dioxin, which is one of the most potent carcinogens known, had persisted in the environment came last year when the State Water Resources Control Board listed Humboldt Bay as “impaired” after dioxin was found in the tissues of local fish and oysters. Under the settlement, Simpson is required to dig up contaminated sediment in the ditch, which is adjacent to Humboldt Bay’s only public fishing pier, and haul it to a licensed disposal site. The company also must restore the ditch as a functioning wetland and […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 20, 2008) Pesticides that run off agricultural land and mix in rivers and streams combine to have a greater than expected toxic effect on the salmon nervous system, according to researcher Nathaniel Scholz, PhD, a zoologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in Seattle. Dr. Scholz, who presented his findings at the symposium entitled From Kitchen Sinks to Ocean Basins: Emerging Chemical Contaminants and Human Health,  which was organized by NOAA and hosted at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Annual Meeting, had previously looked at the effects of individual pesticides. However, to get a more realistic idea of exposure, combinations of several pesticides were used and juvenile salmon exposed to them two at a time. The results surprised Dr. Scholz and his team. The total impact observed from combined pesticides was greater than the sum of the individual pesticides, demonstrating a synergistic effect. Some pesticides that were not deadly when tested in individual trials killed all salmon exposed to combinations. A mixture of the pesticides diazinon and malathion, exhibited the greatest synergistic effect and killed all the salmon exposed to them, even at the lowest concentrations. “It was eye opening,” Dr. […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 19, 2008) Common household chemicals and widespread pollutants are changing male reproductive health and impacting sexual function, development and cancer rates of today’s generations and possibly their offspring, according to more than 15 years of research by a Colorado State University expert. For example, one study looking at sperm counts globally from 1940, when chemicals first began to be widely produced, to the 1990s, indicates a 1.15 percent per year decline in sperm counts. These declines may be linked to chemical exposure.Rao Veeramachaneni, BVSc, MScVet, PhD, a biomedical sciences professor in the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, has found that chemicals including pesticides, common pollutants in ground water, and chemicals in plastics, make-up and nail polish are on a growing list of culprits causing developmental abnormalities such as impaired sperm quality and impotence. Reproductive health can be compromised if males are exposed at various times in life spanning from in utero up to adulthood.Dr. Veeramachaneni’s findings span the globe and are across species lines, from humans to horses, wildlife to frogs. His research, coupled with the collective findings of other experts in the field, indicates a strong link related to pollutants, and incidence of such […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 15, 2008) Two studies have just been released, one by the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA), a promoter of genetically-engineering crops,  and the other by the Center for Food Safety (CFS) and Friends of the Earth, each with differing conclusions on the impact of genetically engineered (GE) crops on the health of our food systems. The debate is one that has existed for years, particularly as GE seeds have spread worldwide, now accounting for 280 million acres of cropland in 23 countries. Reports have historically provided significant documentation of herbicide-resistant weeds developing as a result of heavy reliance on the chemicals crops are bred to tolerate. Insect resistance has also been recently discovered. Legislators have recognized the need to protect farmers from GE contamination and resulting lawsuits from seed developer Monsanto. Concerns over a litany of health and environmental risks from GE crops continue. The timing of these two studies highlights the disparity between how the GE industry represents its product and how public interest groups evaluate the effects and risks they see to farmers and consumers alike. The ISAAA study, entitled Global Status of Commercialized Biotech/GM Crops: 2007, celebrates the first twelve […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 14, 2008) Researchers have found what they are calling the first insect resistance in the field to genetically engineered plants that are modified to produce an insecticide called Bacillus thuringiensis, or Bt. The University of Arizona (UA) researchers, who have previously received research support from Monsanto and Cotton, Inc., are supportive of bioengineered crops and dismiss the findings of resistance, given that they are only in cotton and no other crops. The report, “Insect resistance to Bt crops: evidence versus theory,” is due out in the February issue of Nature. Concern about resistance has raised fears in the organic community that Bt, derived from natural soil bacterium, would be rendered ineffective as insect resistance spreads and this natural control collapses over time.In organic systems, composted manures and cover crops replace synthetic fertilizers, innovative weeding strategies are used instead of herbicides, beneficial insects and trap crops control insect pests, and alternatives to toxic defoliants prepare plants for harvest. Bt-resistant populations of the insect bollworm, Helicoverpa zea, were found in more than a dozen crop fields in Mississippi and Arkansas between 2003 and 2006. The bollworm resistance to Bt cotton was discovered when a team of University of Arizona […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 13, 2008) The publication of a federal study undertaken by the Centers for Disease and Control (CDC) has been blocked for more than seven months because it contains “alarming information” of evidence of elevated infant mortality and cancer rates in the region surrounding the Great Lakes.The report entitled, Public Health Implications of Hazardous Substances in the Twenty-Six U.S. Great Lakes Areas of Concern, was commissioned by the International Joint Commission (IJC), an independent organization that advises the U.S. and Canadian governments on the use and quality of boundary waters between the two countries, and compiled by the CDC’s Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR). The report outlines the “areas of concern” in which more than nine million people in major metropolitan areas as Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, and Milwaukee, face higher health risks from exposure to dioxin, PCBs, pesticides, lead, mercury, or six other hazardous pollutants.Contributors to the report include senior experts from the Environmental Protection Agency, CDC, universities, as well as federal and state researchers. These experts have been reviewing data since 2004 and have found low birth weights, elevated rates of infant mortality and premature births, and elevated death rates from breast cancer, colon […]

Reclaiming Our Healthy Future: Political change to protect the next generation, the 26th National Pesticide Forum, will be held March 14-16 at the University of California, Berkeley. This exciting environmental health conference is just about a month away, sign-up now to pay the pre-registration rate.Speakers, panels and workshops Many scientists, authors, community leaders and activists have been added to the Forum line-up, which already includes Arturo Rodriguez, Devra Davis and Tyrone Hayes. View the updated speaker list and schedule of events, which now includes a list of workshop topics. Bus tour of CA agriculture community Join the bus tour on Friday, March 14 to learn about the amazing efforts of activists from the San Joaquin Valley ­ the source of much of the state’s food for California, US and foreign markets. Tour begins at noon (meet at UC Berkeley Clark Kerr Conference Center). RSVP required. Travel and lodging We’ve found that inexpensive airfare is still available, but should be booked soon. Kayak seems to find good rates (round trip from Seattle $170; Chicago $285; New York & Washington, DC $300). Lodging in Berkeley is very tight the weekend of March 14-16. We recommend that you book your hotel now. A […]