25
Nov
(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 […]
Posted in Chlorothalonil, Corporations, National Politics | No Comments »
20
Jun
(Beyond Pesticides, June 20, 2008) University of Massachusetts (UMass) researchers have identified certain plants that can absorb excess pesticides from soil and prevent their runoff into adjacent waterways. Golf courses typically use considerable amounts of herbicides and fungicides to maintain perfectly manicured greens, much of which ends up polluting water and harming aquatic organisms. This study found that plants like blue flag iris can act as “living filters” on the edge of greens.“ Studies from golf greens have shown that five percent to ten percent of the total pesticides applied are lost in runoff. In worst case conditions, this figure can be as high as 30 percent,” says John Clark, Ph.D., a professor of veterinary and animal science and a principal investigator on the grant. “We have identified plant species that can reduce the amount of certain pesticides in soil by up to 94 percent in the greenhouse.” Blue flag iris reduced chlorpyrifos by 76 percent and levels of chlorothalonil by 94 percent after three months of growth. The study was funded by the UMass Amherst Environmental Institute, the Massachusetts Pesticide Analysis Laboratory, and the U.S. Golf Association. Interest in “greener” turf management practices have risen lately along with golf’s […]
Posted in Chlorothalonil, Chlorpyrifos, Golf, Lawns/Landscapes, Water | 3 Comments »
18
Jan
(Beyond Pesticides, January 18, 2007) A new study conducted in Costa Rica’s mountain forests indicates that surprisingly high concentrations of pesticides are accumulating far above the low altitudes at which they are used. Previously thought to be safe from pesticides applied to distant agricultural areas, some remote mountain forests of Costa Rica were found to have pesticide levels almost ten times greater than those in low-lying areas closer to farms and plantations. The study, led by University of Toronto, Scarborough professor Frank Wania, Ph.D., measured air and soil pesticide levels at 23 sites across Costa Rica in order to produce a model to predict potential accumulation of chemicals at high altitudes. The insecticide endosulfan and the fungicide chlorothalonil were found in the largest concentrations, with up to 1 part per billion (ppb) of chlorothalonil and 3 ppb endosulfan in soil. The high concentrations can be explained by a process in which polluted air above the farms and plantations is pushed up into the mountains, where it then cools and becomes polluted rainwater or fog. The hydrophilic nature of modern pesticides makes the occurrence of this phenomenon much more likely; as Crispin Halsall, Ph.D., of Lancaster University (U.K.) explains, “Most currently […]
Posted in Chemicals, Chlorothalonil, Endosulfan, International, Water, Wildlife/Endangered Sp. | No Comments »
