Archive for the 'Herbicides' Category
24
Apr
(Beyond Pesticides, April 24, 2024) On April 16, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) posted an âupdateâ to the Draft Herbicide Strategy Framework (Draft Herbicide Strategy Framework to Reduce Exposure of Federally Listed Endangered and Threatened Species and Designated Critical Habitats from the Use of Conventional Agricultural Herbicides) that was released last summer, weakening aspects of the agencyâs efforts to âprotectâ endangered species from herbicide use. The update outlines three types of modifications to the Draft Strategy, including âsimplifyingâ its approach, increasing growersâ âflexibilityâ when applying mitigation measures, and reducing the mitigation measures required in certain situations. By reducing the stringency of the Strategy, advocates are again questioning EPAâs commitment to fulfilling legal requirements under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) or protecting endangered species and their habitats in the midst of an unprecedented rate of global extinction. ESA is celebrated as one of the most far-reaching conservation laws globally, credited with preventing the extinction of 99 percent of those species the government targets for protection, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). ESA establishes a framework to categorize species as âendangeredâ or âthreatened,â granting them specific protections. Under ESA, EPA is required to consult with relevant agencies […]
Posted in Agriculture, Alternatives/Organics, Announcements, Disease/Health Effects, Drift, Endangered Species Act (ESA), Environmental Justice, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Farmworkers, Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), Habitat Protection, Herbicides, Increased Vulnerability to Diseases from Chemical Exposure, National Organic Standards Board/National Organic Program, Organic Foods Production Act OFPA, organophosphate, Parks for a Sustainable Future, Pesticide Efficacy, Pesticide Mixtures, Pesticide Regulation, Pollinators, U.S. Geological Survey, US Department of Agriculture (USDA), Wildlife/Endangered Sp. | No Comments »
18
Apr
(Beyond Pesticides, April 18, 2024) University of Michigan researchers have found a statistically significant relationship between heightened risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and household exposure to lawn care products and pesticides. The study results were published earlier this month in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Frontotemporal Degeneration. The interdisciplinary research team concludes that modifying residential exposure to toxic substances, including pesticides, can play an important role in ALS susceptibility and prognosis. The results build on a substantial body of scientific literature identifying pesticide exposure in various ALS cohort studies. Advocates say that these adverse effects, along with other numerous health and environmental effects, inform their call for the phaseout of toxic pesticide use and the adoption of alternative practices and eco-compatible products. All participants in this study are patients at the University of Michigan Pranger ALS Clinic with Gold Coast ALS diagnosis, which according to a Muscle & Nerve study refers to the identification of two factors: âprogressive motor impairment documented by history or repeated clinical assessmentâ and âthe presence of upper and lower motor neuron dysfunction in a least one body region.â All 367 ALS and 255 control patients were tasked with completing a survey in which they self-reported […]
Posted in 2,4-D, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), Biomonitoring, Carbaryl, Chlorpyrifos, Disease/Health Effects, Glyphosate, Herbicides, Lawns/Landscapes, Michigan, Pesticide Drift, Pesticide Residues, Poisoning, Uncategorized | No Comments »
17
Apr
(Beyond Pesticides, April 17, 2024) With headlines drawing public attention to the contamination of drinking water after years of federal government neglect, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on April 10 new standards to reduce public exposure to PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly referred to as âforever chemicalsâ because of their persistence. EPA has finalized a National Primary Drinking Water Regulation (NPDWR) for six PFAS, including PFOA and PFOS, which EPA has recognized have no safe level of exposure, regulating new chemicals for the first time since the 1996 amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). PFAS persistence and bioaccumulation in humans, wildlife, and the environment is due to the strength of a resulting fluorineâcarbon atom bond. PFAS contamination of drinking water, surface and groundwater, waterways, soils, and the food supplyâamong other resourcesâis ubiquitous worldwide. PFAS is used in everyday products, including cookware, clothes, carpets, as an anti-sticking and anti-stain agent, in plastics, machinery, and as a pesticide. The action was welcomed by environmentalists and public health advocates as an important step but left many concerned that any level of exposure to these chemicals is unacceptable and critical of EPAâs ongoing failure to act despite years […]
Posted in Agriculture, Alternatives/Organics, Announcements, Arkansas, Biosolids, Birth defects, Brain Effects, California, Cancer, Cardiovascular Disease, Chemicals, Connecticut, contamination, Developmental Disorders, Disease/Health Effects, Drinking Water, Endocrine Disruption, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Farmworkers, Fertilizer, Groundwater, Hawaii, Herbicides, Illinois, Infertility, Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), Inhance Technologies, Lawns/Landscapes, Liver Damage, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Metabolic Disorders, metabolic syndrome, metabolic syndrome, Michigan, Minnesota, Motor Development Effects, Motor neuron disease, National Organic Standards Board/National Organic Program, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, NOSB National Organic Standards Board, Obesity, Ohio, Oregon, Parks for a Sustainable Future, Pennsylvania, Pesticide Mixtures, Pesticide Regulation, PFAS, Plastic, Reproductive Health, Rhode Island, Sewage Sludge, soil health, Synthetic Fertilizer, Take Action, Thyroid Disease, U.S. Geological Survey, Uncategorized, Vermont, Washington, Water, Water Regulation, Wisconsin | No Comments »
11
Apr
(Beyond Pesticides, April 11, 2024) Scientists are moving forward in testing an agroecological method of âpush-pullâ pest management (reducing the attractiveness of the target organism and luring pest insects towards a trap) to fight the Asian citrus psyllid (ACP) in Florida orange groves, as it spreads a plant disease known as the pathogenic bacteria huanglongbing (HLB), also known as citrus greening, which is deadly to citrus trees. The disease is spread by the pathogenic bacteria Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLas). Â The chemical-intensive, or conventional, citrus industry is under intense pressure to find alternatives, as synthetic antibiotic use for this purpose has been successfully challenged in court. ACP is the carrier, or vector, for HLB, spreading it through the citrus groves and killing the trees. The chemical-intensive industry has focused on using antibiotics, which the environmental and public health community has rejected because of serious medical concerns associated with life-threatening bacterial resistance to antibiotics used to protect humans. A federal district court decision in December 2023 found illegal the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencyâs (EPA) decision to register the antibiotic streptomycin in Florida citrus without adequate review of its impact on endangered species. The streptomycin lawsuit, filed in 2021 by a coalition of […]
Posted in Agriculture, Aldicarb, Alternatives/Organics, Antibiotic, Antibiotic Resistance, Aphids, Biological Control, California, Chlorpyrifos, citrus greening--Huanglongbing (HLB), Ecosystem Services, Endocrine Disruption, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Florida, Herbicides, Imidacloprid, Integrated and Organic Pest Management, IQ Loss, Learning Disabilities, Liver Damage, National Organic Standards Board/National Organic Program, neonicotinoids, NOSB National Organic Standards Board, Organic Foods Production Act OFPA, Pests, Reproductive Health, streptomycin, Thyroid Disease, Uncategorized, Uncle Matt's Organic, US Department of Agriculture (USDA) | No Comments »
27
Mar
(Beyond Pesticides, March 27, 2024) A preliminary experiment conducted by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) reveals concerning levels of toxic per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) on the skin of soccer players and coaches after playing on artificial turf fields. The Washington Post reported on March 12 on the PEER test results, which found PFAS levels increased on the skin in three out of four participants following soccer matches on artificial turf. In contrast, no similar increase was observed after games on natural grass fields. The presence of PFAS is alarming due to their association with several serious health issues, including cancer, birth defects, and developmental and immune deficiencies, among others. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) writes that PFAS exposure risks are particularly concerning for young children, who are more susceptible due to their developing bodies and at risk for higher levels of exposure than adults. Known as “forever chemicals” for their persistence in the environment, PFAS continue to accumulate in the human body, posing long-term health risks. Kyla Bennett, PhD, science policy director at PEER and a former scientist and lawyer with EPA, emphasized the need for further research. “Although this study is preliminary, it highlights the potential […]
Posted in California, Disease/Health Effects, Disinfectants & Sanitizers, Drinking Water, Ecosystem Services, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Fertilizer, Groundwater, Herbicides, Integrated and Organic Pest Management, Parks, Parks for a Sustainable Future, Preemption, soil health, Synthetic Turf, Uncategorized | No Comments »
14
Mar
 (Beyond Pesticides, March 14, 2024) A recent review in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM) highlights the urgent need to address the widespread chemical pollution stemming from the petrochemical industry, underscoring the dire implications for public health. Tracey Woodruff, PhD, author and professor at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF), emphatically states in an email comment to Beyond Pesticides, “We need to recognize the very real harm that petrochemicals are having on peopleâs health. Many of these fossil-fuel-based chemicals are endocrine disruptors, meaning they interfere with hormonal systems, and they are part of the disturbing rise in disease.” Beyond Pesticides echoes this concern, noting that endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) include many pesticides and are linked to a plethora of health issues such as infertility, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, obesity, early puberty, as well as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Parkinsonâs, Alzheimerâs, and childhood and adult cancers. (See Beyond Pesticidesâ Disease database here and news coverage here). The review further calls on the clinical community to advocate for policy changes aimed at mitigating the health threats posed by petrochemical-derived EDCs and climate change. Beyond Pesticides urgently calls for the elimination of petrochemical pesticides and fertilizers and advocates for a systemic […]
Posted in Agriculture, Alternatives/Organics, Body Burden, Cancer, Chemicals, Climate, Climate Change, contamination, Dow Chemical, Drinking Water, DuPont, Endocrine Disruption, Farmworkers, Groundwater, Herbicides, Livestock, Lung Cancer, multi-generational effects, National Organic Standards Board/National Organic Program, Oceans, PFAS, phthalates, Plastic, Reproductive Health, soil health, Synthetic Fertilizer, Synthetic Turf, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
05
Mar
(Beyond Pesticides, March 5, 2024) Buried in a court decision in February that determined that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) violated the law in allowing harm associated with the herbicide dicambaâs registration is language that permits the damages to continue through this yearâs growing season. The judgeâs ruling, deferring to EPAâs interpretation of the existing stock provision in the federal pesticide law, continues a pattern of âexisting stockâ allowances that permit hazards to continue well after a finding of harm or noncompliance. This process contrasts with the issuance of a product recall, which is typically done when pharmaceuticals are found to violate safety standards. Despite the finding of dicambaâs harm and EPAâs failure to comply with standards, the continued use of the weed killer through the 2024 growing season is effectively authorized in a decision of the U.S. District Court of Arizona, which vacates the EPAâs 2021 authorization of the use of three over-the-top (OTT) uses of dicamba-based herbicide products. In response, EPA issued an existing stocks order. EPAâs pattern of allowing the use of existing stocks has long been a concern for public health and environmental advocates, who have called for the discontinuance of use upon findings of […]
Posted in Dicamba, Drift, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Genetic Engineering, Herbicides, Litigation, Uncategorized | No Comments »
13
Feb
(Beyond Pesticides, February 13, 2024)Â Last week, the United States District Court for the District of Arizona struck down the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencyâs (EPA) 2021 approval of three dicamba-based herbicides. This is the second lawsuit since 2020 to call out EPAâs violation to both the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) to authorize the use of over-the-top (OTT) dicamba-based herbicide products from Bayer and other petrochemical pesticide companies. This rejection of dicamba-based herbicides fuels advocatesâ push for stronger regulatory actions by EPA for all petrochemical pesticides and their push for the more widespread adoption of organic practices that do not use these chemicals. The case was filed by Center for Food Safety (CFS), Center for Biological Diversity, National Family Farm Coalition, and Pesticide Action Network North America. Beyond Pesticides has covered the dicamba tragedy for years, including the EPAÂ Office of the Inspector Generalâs critical 2021 report, EPA Deviated from its Typical Procedures in Its 2018 Dicamba Pesticide Registration Decision. The report identifies EPAâs abandonment of science and assault on agency integrity. In addition to citing adverse impact on nontarget crops and the environment, the Court zeroes in on EPAâs failure to adequately manage […]
Posted in Arizona, Dicamba, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Genetic Engineering, Herbicides, Office of Inspector General, Pesticide Drift, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
31
Jan
(Beyond Pesticides, January 31, 2024) A report published in December 2023 by the European Environment Agency (EEA) details opportunities and challenges to European organic farming targets for 2030. The European Union (EU) has set ambitious targets in its environmental policyâincluding the Farm to Fork Strategy (F2F) and European Green Deal (EGD)âwith the goal to have at least 25 percent of European farmland run on organic land management practices by 2030. The EUâs approach to organic farming and pesticide regulation on agricultural land in comparison to public and private land offers insightful lessons for advocates in the United States to apply to their campaigns. Some countries are ahead of the 25 percent by 2030 target, such as Austria, Estonia, and Sweden, with 20 percent of agriculture organically managed as of 2021. The German government is preparing to exceed the EU goal when the new coalition government presented a strategy last November outlining a 30 percent goal for 2030. Meanwhile, some countries are vastly underperformingâwith Poland adding virtually zero farmland to organic production between 2012 and 2021. Overall, approximately 9.9 percent of total EU farmland follows organic standards as of 2021. At this rate, the EU will only meet 15 percent rather […]
Posted in Herbicides, International, Lawns/Landscapes, Pesticide Drift, Pesticide Regulation, Uncategorized | No Comments »
19
Jan
(Beyond Pesticides, January 19, 2024) A study published in Environmental Health Perspective is one of the first to indicate a link between exposure to the herbicides 2,4-D and glyphosate and the impairment of behavioral performance (i.e., attention/inhibitory control, memory/learning, language, visuospatial processing, and social perception). These adverse effects associated with the neurotoxic impacts of pesticides on behavior have been previously documented. For example, a study in August 2023 finds oral intake (e.g., eating contaminated foods), inhalation, and dermal exposure to glyphosate lowered cognitive function scores, increased the likelihood of severe depressive symptoms, and impaired auditory (hearing) function. Although previous studies find neurotoxic effects from exposure to these herbicides, very few until now have evaluated how this neurotoxic exposure impacts neurotypical behavior among youth (children and teenagers). The ubiquitous use of glyphosate and 2,4-D use in agricultureâwhich leaves residues of the toxic chemicals in food and in public areas (e.g., parks and walkways) creates a creates a significant risk for exposure. Glyphosate is already implicated in or proven to lead to the development of numerous health anomalies, including cancer, while 2,4-D also has a range of potential hazards, including cancer. Therefore, studies like this help local and government officials make holistic decisions regarding the use […]
Posted in 2,4-D, behavioral and cognitive effects, Brain Effects, Children, DEET, Glyphosate, Herbicides, synergistic effects | No Comments »
03
Jan
(Beyond Pesticides, January 3, 2024) A study published in Environmental Health Perspectives finds elevated, chronic exposure to glyphosate throughout oneâs lifetime increases the risk of mosaic loss of chromosome Y (loss of chromosome Y occurs to many men in some cells due to aging [mLOY]) that impacts a noticeable fraction of cells. Although the loss of this sex chromosome does not cause cell death, like the loss of autosomal chromosomes, the risk of mLOY is a biomarker for genotoxicity (the damage of genetic information within a cell causing mutations from chemical exposure, which may lead to cancer) and expansion of cellular response to glyphosate, resulting in the precursor for hematological (blood) cancers. This study is one of the first to identify sex-specific chromosome degradation, with stark evidence demonstrating links to various cancers, including non-Hodgkin lymphoma. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has classified the glyphosate as a probable carcinogen or cancer-causing chemical. However, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencyâs (EPA) allowance of widespread use of glyphosate allows for adverse impacts, especially among vulnerable individuals, like pregnant women, infants, children, and the elderly. Glyphosate exposure levels and resulting residues in urine has been documented with recent data showing that four out of five (81.6%) […]
Posted in Blood Disorders, Cancer, DNA Damage, Epigenetic, Glyphosate, Hematological Malignancies, Herbicides, men's health, Occupational Health, Oxidative Stress, Reproductive Health | No Comments »
21
Dec
(Beyond Pesticides, December 21, 2023) A new study published in Environmental Toxicology and Pharmacology adds to prior research indicating glyphosate promotes the occurrence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) through diet by causing liver inflammation and oxidative stress. More importantly, the predisposition for NAFLD occurred at levels within toxicological limits, which are doses of glyphosate classified as causing no adverse effects or No Observed Adverse Effect Level (NOAEL). NAFLD is a condition that causes swelling of the liver and can eventually lead to cirrhosis, cancer, or liver failure. This study highlights the Westernized diet (WD), comprised of foods enriched in saturated fats, cholesterol, and simple carbohydrates (e.g., fructose, glucose, and sucrose), plays a role in the nearly 40 percent increased risk of NAFLD. Although glyphosate disrupts gut microbes and induces liver inflammation, oxidative stress, and fatty acid levels that promote NAFLD, the combination of WD and glyphosate reduces the threshold risk for NAFLD development. NAFLD is a growing worldwide epidemic, becoming the most prevalent form of liver disease and impacting at least 25 percent of the globe. Therefore, studies like this shed light on how diet and chemical exposure can work synergistically (together) to exacerbate disease risk. The study evaluates whether choric […]
Posted in Chemicals, contamination, Disease/Health Effects, Glyphosate, Herbicides, Liver Damage, Oxidative Stress | No Comments »
19
Dec
(Beyond Pesticides, December 19, 2023) Last week, farmworker organizations and Beyond Pesticides, represented by the Center for Food Safety, filed a petition with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) urging that the weed killer glyphosate be removed from the market. The petition cites 200 studies, which represent a fraction of the independent scientific literature on the hazards of glyphosate and formulation ingredients of glyphosate products. This action follows previous litigation in 2022 in which a federal court of appeals struck down EPAâs human health assessment, finding that the agency wrongfully dismissed glyphosateâs cancer risk. The farmworker groups petitioning include Farmworker Association of Florida, OrganizaciĂłn en California de Lideres Campesinas, Alianza Nacional de Campesinas, and the Rural Coalition.  Meanwhile, verdicts against glyphosateâs manufacturer, Bayer, continue to pile up with a December jury verdict in Pennsylvania awarding $3.5 million and a November jury in Missouri ordering $1.56 billion to be paid to four plaintiffs. All link their cancer to use of the Roundup. Bayer has lost almost all of the cases filed against it for compensation and punitive damages associated with plaintiffsâ charge that its product (previously manufactured by Monsanto) caused them harm. The petition summarizes its purpose and justification as […]
Posted in Alternatives/Organics, Announcements, Antibiotic Resistance, Antimicrobial, Aquatic Organisms, Bayer, Birth defects, Cancer, Chemicals, Disease/Health Effects, Endocrine Disruption, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Farmworkers, Genetic Engineering, Glyphosate, Groundwater, Gut Dysbiosis, Herbicides, Label Claims, Lawns/Landscapes, Litigation, Liver Damage, Microbiata, Microbiome, Monsanto, non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma, Pesticide Efficacy, Pesticide Mixtures, Pesticide Regulation, Pesticide Residues, Pets, polyethoxylated tallowamine, Regenerative, Reproductive Health, soil health, synergistic effects, Uncategorized, Wildlife/Endangered Sp. | No Comments »
09
Nov
(Beyond Pesticides, November 9, 2023) Two-hundred-foot pesticide spray âbuffer zonesâ around 4,028 U.S. elementary schools contiguous to crop fieldsâaccording to data evaluated by Environmental Working Groupâare threatened by potential Farm Bill amendments now under consideration. Legislative language, if adopted, would take away (preempt) the authority of states and local jurisdictions to protect children and restrict agricultural pesticides used near schools. Pesticide drift is a widespread problem throughout the U.S. that has attracted national attention in recent years because of crop damage caused by the weed killer dicamba in numerous midwestern states. In the face of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencyâs (EPA) failure to mitigate drift hazards, states enact limits on when and how pesticides can be used, establish buffer zones around application sites, and in some cases, ban uses. In 2018, Arkansas banned dicamba use from mid-April through the end of October (and survived a Monsanto challenge to the ban. For a historical perspective on the drift issue, see Getting the Drift on Pesticide Trespass. Children, in particular, face unique risks from pesticide and toxic chemical exposures. Due to their smaller body size, they absorb a higher relative amount of pesticides through the food they consume and the air they breathe. Additionally, childrenâs developing […]
Posted in Agriculture, Alternatives/Organics, Children, Children/Schools, Congress, contamination, Farm Bill, Farmworkers, Federal Agencies, Herbicides, Uncategorized | No Comments »
01
Nov
(Beyond Pesticides, November 1, 2023) As communities consider maintenance and renovation of their playing fields, it is not uncommon for synthetic (or artificial) turf to come up as an alternative to natural grass. Promoters of synthetic turf argue that it provides a solution to climate change, reduces water use and maintenance costs, and allows for year-round play. But is this true? Is synthetic turf an environmentally responsible alternative to its organic grass counterpart? An established and growing body of scientific evidence is demonstrating environmental and health risks with synthetic turf. In addition, there is growing concern for the safety of those playing on artificial grass, which has led to a call from the National Football Leagueâs (NFL) Players Association to utilize natural grass on all 30 NFL stadiums after New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers suffered a season-ending Achilles tear in September and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce’s mid-game ankle injury. Synthetic turf playing fields are reliant on polluting plastic (can contain perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances-PFAS) and toxic pesticides for managing bacteria, mold and fungus, create contaminated water runoff, and cover over the natural environment, which is critical to preserving health and biodiversity, and averting climate disasters. Artificial […]
Posted in Alternatives/Organics, Antibacterial, Antibiotic Resistance, Antimicrobial, Aquatic Organisms, Biodiversity, Children, Children/Schools, Climate Change, Disinfectants & Sanitizers, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Herbicides, Lawns/Landscapes, Parks, Poisoning, Pollinators, soil health, Toxic Waste, Uncategorized, Water | No Comments »
15
Aug
(Beyond Pesticides, August 14, 2023) Marijuana regulators in the state of Washington issued administrative holds on 18 licenses due to pesticide-contaminated marijuana, forcing producers and processors to cease operations until now. This shutdown of legal marijuana businesses serves as a window into a broader historical backdrop of pesticide issues within the marijuana industry. Within Washington, pesticide concerns have been growing since a study in 2018 of legal marijuana farms in the state had 84.6% (of 26 samples) with significant quantities of pesticides including insecticides, fungicides, miticides, and herbicides. Last year, a national study identified a list of contaminants in 36 states and the District of Columbia and found 551 pesticides within cannabis products. For over a decade, Beyond Pesticides has sounded the alarm about the highly-concentrated levels of pesticides in marijuana products, calling on state officials to require organic marijuana, especially in the context of medical marijuana. The absence of federal regulations for pesticides in cannabis production has raised significant concerns about exposure risks for recreational and medicinal use, exposure risks to workers, and potential environmental contamination impacting wildlife. Since marijuana is classified as a Schedule 1 narcotic under the Controlled Substances Act, the EPA does not regulate pesticides in […]
Posted in Agriculture, Alternatives/Organics, Cannabis, Chemicals, contamination, DDT, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Farmworkers, Federal Agencies, Herbicides, Pesticide Drift, Pesticide Regulation, Poisoning, Uncategorized, Washington | No Comments »
01
Aug
(Beyond Pesticides, August 1, 2023) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced that it is publishing a decade’s worth of pesticide incident data in a searchable database that will be updated on a monthly basis. The Incident Data System (IDS), with poisoning reports generated mostly from chemical manufacturers, states, a national hotline, and poison control centers, offers information on reported pesticide exposures from accidental poisoning of pets, wildlife, and humans, to pesticide drift, noncompliance, and other pesticide incidents that may be associated with product uses in compliance with label instructions. Tracking this incident data is essential to understanding the risks and damages associated with pesticide use. Â The bulk of the data on incidents is from consumer reports to chemical manufacturers. Chemical companies are required under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), Section 6(a)(2) to report incidents: âIf at any time after the registration of a pesticide the registrant has additional factual information regarding unreasonable adverse effects on the environment of the pesticide, the registrant shall submit such information to the Administrator.â The determine of threshold number of incidents required to be reported as a pattern of âunreasonable adverse effectsâ is left to the manufacturers to determine. Through […]
Posted in Agriculture, Alternatives/Organics, Chemicals, Death, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Federal Agencies, Herbicides, Pesticide Regulation, Pests, Pollinators, Rodenticide, Uncategorized, Wildlife/Endangered Sp. | 1 Comment »
25
Jul
(Beyond Pesticides, July 25, 2023) How can scientists fight the elimination of national pesticide data? More data! A new report surveys 58 academic institutions, nongovernmental organizations, government officials, and businesses to measure the scientific, educational, and policy use of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) Pesticide National Synthesis Project (PNSP), a database that is getting phased out by the current administration.  According to the report authors, Maggie Douglas, PhD, Bill Freese, Joseph G. Grzywacz, PhD, and Nathan Donley, PhD, the PNSP is the âmost comprehensive public description of pesticide use in U.S. agriculture.â Despite its widespread use across the government and 348 citations since 2010, the database has been degraded in recent years, including a shift from monitoring 400 pesticides to 72 pesticides in 2019. Moreover, starting in 2024, estimates of agricultural pesticide use will be released every five years (instead of annually). Advocates believe the loss of PNSP data could further hinder the ability to manage pesticide impacts on humans, agriculture, and the environment. These concerns are outlined in a letter to USGS and the Department of Interior, signed by more than 250 scientists. Beyond Pesticides extensively tracks USGS data and resulting findings to inform local and state […]
Posted in Agriculture, Alternatives/Organics, Biodiversity, Chemicals, Congress, Federal Agencies, Herbicides, Pesticide Regulation, U.S. Geological Survey, Uncategorized | No Comments »
15
Dec
(Beyond Pesticides, December 15, 2022) Industrial agriculture has both created and amplified the spread of the now highly problematic waterhemp (Amaranthus tuberculatus) plant, according to research published this month in the journal Science. Over the last 80 years, the push to increase monoculture plantings, expand cropland, and utilize chemical fertilizers and pesticides has changed waterhemp from a tame riparian wild plant into an aggressive, weedy intruder able to compete with row crops like corn and soybean. âThe genetic variants that help the plant do well in modern agricultural settings have risen to high frequencies remarkably quickly since agricultural intensification in the 1960s,â said study author Julia Kreiner, PhD with the University of British Columbiaâs Department of Botany. âThe types of changes weâre imposing in agricultural environments are so strong that they have consequences in neighbouring habitats that weâd usually think were natural.â To better understand how this plant went from a waterside obscurity to North Americaâs most notorious “weed,” researchers tracked the shifts occurring within the plants genome. Using data from herbarium samples first collected in 1828 until 2011, scientists sought out alleles (genetic mutations) that corresponded with agricultural intensification and analyzed the frequency of their occurrence over the nearly […]
Posted in Agriculture, Herbicides, Resistance, Uncategorized | No Comments »
11
Nov
(Beyond Pesticides, November 11, 2022)Â A paper published in Trends in Ecology & Evolution in late October sounds an unnerving alarm about the globally ubiquitous use of herbicides and the ecological destruction being caused. It asserts that widespread environmental contamination with these herbicide compounds is influencing soil, plant, and animal microbiomes in ways that are not only not well understood, but also, can have significant impacts on the functioning of organisms and their ecosystems â with evolutionary implications. Impacts of herbicides on microbiota in soils include, for example, those on nutrient cycling, and altered organism and plant performance, which can affect pollination and animal consumption of plants. This research reinforces what Beyond Pesticides wrote in covering a 2021 study: âThe popular herbicide glyphosate negatively affects microbial communities, indirectly influencing plant, animal, and human health. Exposure to sublethal concentrations of glyphosate shifts microbial community composition, destroying beneficial microorganisms while preserving pathogenic organisms.â Herbicides are a category of pesticide used to control weeds in agriculture and commercial forests, on managed landscapes, byways, gardens, and lawns, and directly on surface waters to control aquatic weeds. They are designed to kill âtargetâ plant species considered undesirable in any of those circumstances. Herbicide use has exploded […]
Posted in Agriculture, Biodiversity, Glyphosate, Herbicides, soil health, Uncategorized | No Comments »
26
Oct
(Beyond Pesticides, October 26, 2022) Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) may be exacerbated by exposure to the herbicide propyzamide, used in both agriculture and on ornamental lawns and landscapes, according to research published in the journal Nature this month. As the rate of autoimmune diseases continues to increase rapidly in the U.S. and the world, it is critical for scientists to better understand the etiology behind these diseases and the environmental factors contributing to their development. Recent data show that the number of people living with Crohnâs disease and ulcerative colitis, common types of IBD, have risen annually by 3.4% and 2.8% respectively, between just the years 2001 to 2018. âAs we learn more about the environmental factors that might contribute to disease, we can develop state- and national-level strategies to limit exposures,â said study coauthor Francisco Quintana, PhD. âSome chemicals donât seem to be toxic when tested under basic conditions, but we do not yet know about the effect of chronic, low-level exposures over decades, or early-on in development.â Researchers did not begin their study investigating propyzamide. Initial intent focused on better understanding environmental factors that may be contributing to IBD. Using a range of different models, scientists cross-referenced data […]
Posted in Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Herbicides, Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), propyzamide, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
28
Sep
(Beyond Pesticides, September 28, 2022) âWeedy rice,â a close relative of cultivated rice that invades rice fields and reduces yields, is rapidly developing herbicide resistance in critical rice growing areas throughout the United States. According to research published this month in Communications Biology, the widespread planting of herbicide-resistant rice, developed through traditional, transitional (non-genetically engineered) breeding techniques, is driving this concerning phenomenon. The findings highlight the risk to agricultural production that relies on crops developed to tolerate repeated applications of synthetic chemicals, regardless of their method of development. Weedy rice is a form of rice that was âre-wilded,â or âde-domesticatedâ from cultivated rice, independently evolving multiple times throughout the world. It is highly adapted to grow in areas where cultivated rice is produced, and can result in significant yield loses, as well as a reduction in quality that reduces marketability. In the early 2000s, the agrichemical industry believed they had found a solution to the weedy rice. Multinational chemical corporation BASF developed a line of rice cultivars, produced through traditional breeding, that conferred resistance to imidazolinone class herbicides. This includes chemicals like imazapyr, imazaquin, imazethapyr, and imazamox, which poses cancer, reproductive, and neurotoxic risks to human health, and is toxic […]
Posted in Agriculture, Genetic Engineering, Herbicides, Resistance, Uncategorized | No Comments »
23
May
(Beyond Pesticides, May 23, 2022)  The climate change-induced increase in wildfire frequency and intensity has lent new urgency to efforts to manage so-called âinvasiveâ plants. Unfortunately, the herbicide-based approach favored by many is both counterproductive and hazardous. It must be replaced by an organic system, incorporating biological control agents like goats and establishing a more resilient ecology.  Tell your county/city officials to replace herbicides with organic vegetation management. Tell EPA and Congress that herbicides must be evaluated in the context of the availability of organic systems. Use of the herbicide indaziflam is an example of the ineffectiveness of management based on herbicides. While indaziflam is considered a âselectiveâ herbicide, it actually kills and prevents germination of a wide range of broad-leaved plants and grasses and comes close to being a soil sterilant. The action on seedlings is long-lasting, thus inhibiting the growth and establishment of a resilient plant community that is resistant to invasion. Given its persistence and nonselective action and the extent of the damage it causes to native soil seed banks and plant biodiversity, indaziflam could contribute to the eventual ecological collapse of ecosystems where itâs applied, similar to the cascading impacts of the systemic insecticides, fipronil and […]
Posted in Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Herbicides, indaziflam, Invasive Species, Nervous System Effects, Take Action, Uncategorized | No Comments »