Archive for the 'Uncategorized' Category
29
May
(Beyond Pesticides, May 29, 2018)Â The Farm Bill is beginning to move in the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, and your voice is critically needed to help stop provisions that are harmful to health and the environment. Tell your U.S. Senators and Representative that they should vote against the Farm Bill unless harmful provisions to health and the environment are removed. In addition to sending this urgent action on the Farm Bill, consider reaching out to your U.S. Senators and Representative when they return to your state for the Memorial Day holiday. If youâre part of a group, ask for a meeting. If you see them at an event or in town, let them know how important it is to keep the dangerous provisions listed below out of the Farm Bill. The Farm Bill in the U.S. House of Representatives, H.R. 2, reported favorably out of the House Agriculture Committee, is stalled, after being defeated on the floor over unrelated immigration legislation. The House bill is a direct attack on organic standard setting, the authority of local governments to restrict toxic pesticides, and the protection of farmworkers, endangered species, and the environment. Without public outcry, it is likely […]
Posted in Agriculture, Alternatives/Organics, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Farm Bill, Farmworkers, National Organic Standards Board/National Organic Program, Preemption, Take Action, Uncategorized, US Department of Agriculture (USDA), Wildlife/Endangered Sp. | No Comments »
25
May
(Beyond Pesticides, May 25, 2018) The results of a pilot study conducted by an international team of researchers finds that exposure to the herbicide glyphosate results in adverse health effects at levels below those regulators deem âsafeâ or acceptable. These results represent the first phase of a Global Glyphosate Study based at the Ramazzini Institute in Bologna, Italy, in coordination with the University of Bologna, the Italian National Institute of Health, George Washington University, and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, NY. Researchers are aiming to provide a truly independent, comprehensive evaluation of the risks posed by glyphosate-based herbicides. The pilot study, available now on the research teamâs website and later this month in the journal Environmental Health, focused on generating data on how glyphosate effects early-life stages of development. A three-month study on rats, used as a surrogate for human development until 18, exposed the animals to both technical grade glyphosate and the formulated herbicide Roundup. Rats ingested 1.75 miligrams of glyphosate or Roundup per kilogram of body weight each day from the womb until 13 weeks after weening. This is the chronic reference dose used by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and an exposure rate at which the […]
Posted in Glyphosate, Uncategorized | No Comments »
22
May
(Beyond Pesticides, May 22, 2018)Â AÂ staggering 209 million pounds of pesticides were used in California in 2016, according to the latest data released by the Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR). This figure refers only to applied “active” pesticide ingredients and not “inerts,” which often account for 80 to 99 percent of pesticide products and can be equally hazardous to human health and the environment. Even though pesticide use in the state has dropped by 1.4 percent from the previous year, pesticide use in 2016 was still the third highest in recorded history, since the inception of DPRâs comprehensive data collection program in 1990. In fact, the total pesticide use was only six million pounds shy of the highest amount ever recorded â 215 million pounds in 1998. The land area treated with carcinogens is as large as the size of New Jersey and Connecticut combined. Nearly 102 million cumulative acres of land were treated with pesticides in the state, ranging in toxicity from low to high risk. Each time an acre is pesticide-treated in a given year, DPR adds the acre to its cumulative list, even if the treatment is repeated on the same land. The 2016 figure represents an […]
Posted in Agriculture, California, Children/Schools, Chlorpyrifos, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Glyphosate, Metam Sodium, Uncategorized, US Department of Agriculture (USDA) | No Comments »
21
May
(Beyond Pesticides, May 21, 2018)Â Â 490,000 Pounds of Toxic Pesticides Sprayed on National Wildlife Refuges in 2016 The nationâs 562 national wildlife refuges play a critical role in protecting fish, plants, and other wildlife. They include forests, wetlands, and waterways vital to thousands of species of plants and animals, including 280 that are protected under the Endangered Species Act. However, private chemical-intensive commercial farming of crops like corn, soybeans, and sorghum has become common on refuge lands, with the increasing use of highly toxic pesticides that threaten the long-term health of sensitive habitats and the creatures who depend on them. The Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) estimates that 490,000 pounds of pesticides were applied to commodity crops like corn, soybeans, and sorghum grown in national wildlife refuges in 2016, the most recent year for which data are available. Tell FWS to take toxic pesticides out of wildlife refuges. The nearly half million pounds of pesticides used on wildlife refuges in 2016 include 2,4-D, dicamba, and paraquat, all of which are toxic to fish, amphibians, crustaceans, and other animals. Also included are 116,200 pounds of glyphosate, the herbicide that has caused widespread decreases in milkweed plants, helping to trigger the 80 percent […]
Posted in 2,4-D, Agriculture, Dicamba, Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), neonicotinoids, Paraquat, Uncategorized | No Comments »
17
May
(Beyond Pesticides, May 17, 2018) Among the many reports of the salutary effects of nature on human health and well-being comes new research demonstrating that children who live in âgreenâ neighborhoods have reduced risk of developing asthma. Researchers Jeroen Douwes, PhD and Geoffrey H. Donovan, PhD, of New Zealandâs Massey University (Centre for Public Health Research) and the U.S. Forest Service, respectively, conducted the longitudinal study with New Zealand subjects born in 1998, following them until 2016. The authors say the study results âsuggest that exposure to greenness and vegetation diversity may be protective of asthma.â Of concern are the pesticides used in green spaces. See Beyond Pesticides’ brochure, Asthma, Children, and Pesticides and El Asma, los NiĂąos y los Pesticidas: Lo que usted debe saber para proteger a su familia. Also, see Children and Pesticides Don’t Mix. In addition to the well-substantiated benefits of exposure to nature â reduction of the experience of stress; reduction in production of cortisol (the âstressâ hormone that is linked to weight gain, hypertension, cardiac disease, weakened immune function, and loss of bone density); improved mental health; better cognitive function; and lower BMI (body mass index) â this latest research evaluates the impact on childrenâs risk for asthma. […]
Posted in Alternatives/Organics, Asthma, Biodiversity, Children, Uncategorized | No Comments »
16
May
(Beyond Pesticides, May 16, 2018) Northern Harvest Sea Farms, an ocean-based fish farm in New Brunswick, Canada, was appeared in court yesterday to answer legal charges stemming from the off-label use of an unnamed pesticide added to its operations to combat severe sea lice outbreaks. The company holds nine licenses for farmed Atlantic salmon cages on the Bay of Fundy, as well as for fish farms off the Newfoundland coast. Sea lice outbreaks are a common at over-crowded, ocean-based fish farms because such facilities afford the optimum conditions for rapidly reproducing and spreading lice. In response, some companies have turned to using illegal and off-label pesticide applications to stave off the problem, which causes huge farmed salmon kills. The company was issued a $12,000 fine that was challenged as inadequate by the Grand Manan Fishermen’s Association. Bonnie Morse, project manager for the association told Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) news, “I think any time there’s a fine that’s a deterrent to illegal activity, it should be an actual deterrent to the activity,” said Morse. “When you’re looking at $1.5 million worth of fish, their actions speak for themselves.” Maria Recchia, the executive director of the Fundy North Fishermen’s Association, questioned the allowance of fish […]
Posted in Aquaculture, Canada, contamination, cypermethrin, National Organic Standards Board/National Organic Program, Uncategorized | No Comments »
14
May
(Beyond Pesticides, May 14, 2018) Under EPA Administrator Pruittâs proposed âtransparencyâ plan, the public will still lack access to key data about the effects and efficacy of commercial poisons approved for sale and application in their communities and homes. Tell EPA to adopt a real transparency plan for pesticides! The proposed policy, posted on April 30 in the Federal Register, declares that it will âhelp ensure that EPA is pursuing its mission of public health and the environment in a manner that the public can trust and understand,â yet it applies only to a very limited set of studies used to support certain EPA regulations. The pesticide registration and review processes are particularly lacking in transparency, opportunity for public review, and access to data. Because pesticides are toxic chemicals broadcast into the environment, nowhere is transparency more important than in pesticide registration. The proposed new policy does not cover pesticide registrations, warning labels, use restrictions, or proof of effectiveness. In the current process, the pesticide manufacturer produces the underlying data for these EPA approvals and controls access to them. Thus, despite Pruittâs sweeping claims of âtransparency in regulatory scienceâ: The public does not have access to the underlying data provided by the manufacturer […]
Posted in Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Take Action, Uncategorized | No Comments »
10
May
(Beyond Pesticides, May 10, 2018) Rodenticides like bromadiolone, used to kill vole populations on farms, act like âsuper-predatorsâ that imperil ecosystem health, according to preliminary results published by researchers working for the European Union. âControlling voles with bromadiolone reduces the amount of food available to predators and increases their risk of secondary poisoning when they eat the contaminated rodents,â project researcher Javier Fernandez de Simon, PhD, said in a press release. The study provides a model that may alleviate the impact of rodenticide use and provide a balance between on-farm pest management and sustainability. There are several types of rodenticides available on the market, including acute poisons like strychnine, fumigants like phosphine gas, and anti-coagulants such as warfarin and bromadiolone. Anti-coagulants, the focus of the present study, work by blocking the ability of the body to form blood clots. Animals exposed to bromodialone and other anti-coagulants experience ruptured blood vessels, hair loss and skin damage, nosebleeds, and bleeding gums prior to death. These pesticides are generally applied through secured bait boxes that only allow rodent pests to feed, however secondary poisoning is a common occurrence, leading researchers to dub these rodenticides, in effect, as âsuper-predators.â Rodents that ingest anti-coagulant pesticides […]
Posted in btomsfiolone, Phosphine, Rodenticide, Rodents, strychnine, Uncategorized, Warfarin | No Comments »
09
May
(Beyond Pesticides, May 9, 2018) An insectâs gut microbiome plays an important role in conferring pesticide resistance, according to a new review published in the Annals of the Entomological Society of America. âWhether youâre looking at agricultural pests, household pests like cockroaches, or medical pests like disease-carrying mosquitoes, insects are great at adapting to whatever we throw at them, especially when it comes to different chemicals,â said lead author Jose Pietri, Ph.D to Entomology Today. The review adds to the numerous ways pests can evade the effects of chemical agriculture, reinforcing calls from recent studies showing that the best method of addressing this issue is to simply stop using synthetic pesticides and employ alternative pest management practices. The authors identify two overarching methods through which microbes help confer resistance to toxic pesticides. The first involves the pest accepting a physiological trade-off, where a pest is able to better withstand an insecticide at the cost of losing its ability to regulate certain gut bacterium. For instance, diamondback moths resistant to fipronil and chlorpyrifos are found to contain higher levels of Lactobacillales, Pseudomonadales, and Xanthomonadales bacteria than non-resistant moths. While this trade-off affects the fitness of the organism, alterations of the bacterial […]
Posted in Agriculture, Microbiome, Monsanto, Resistance, Uncategorized | No Comments »
08
May
(Beyond Pesticides, May 8, 2018)Â U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruittâs controversial plan for disclosing the underlying data supporting its regulatory science has a big blind spot âpesticides. Â An analysis released today by Beyond Pesticides and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) points out that under Pruittâs plan the public will still lack access to key data about the effects and efficacy of commercial poisons approved for sale and application in their communities and homes. The proposed policy posted on April 30 in the Federal Register declares that it will âhelp ensure that EPA is pursuing its mission of public health and the environment in a manner that the public can trust and understand” yet it only applies to a very limited set of studies used to support certain EPA regulations. It does not cover pesticide registrations, warning labels, use restrictions, or proof of effectiveness. Â In the current process, the pesticide manufacturer produces the underlying data for these EPA approvals and controls access to it. Â Thus, despite Pruittâs sweeping claims of âtransparency in regulatory scienceâ â The public does not have access to the underlying data provided by the manufacturer to justify registering a new pesticide for commercial distribution; Industry […]
Posted in Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Pesticide Regulation, Uncategorized | No Comments »
07
May
(Beyond Pesticides, May 7, 2018)Â Beyond Pesticides and The Organic Consumers Association (OCA) today responded to a federal judgeâs ruling against Monsanto Co.âs motion to dismiss the groupsâ lawsuit, filed in April, 2017. The lawsuit challenged Monsantoâs safety claim on its Roundup (glyphosate) products as misleading and fraudulent. Monsanto displays a claim on its Roundup product label that states that the chemicals in the product âtargets an enzyme bound in plants but not in people or pets,â when, in fact, the chemical adversely affects beneficial bacteria essential to the gut biome and normal body functions. Jay Feldman, executive director of Beyond Pesticides, the lead plaintiff in the case, said: âIn the face of EPAâs poor regulation of pesticides, misleading pesticide product labeling cannot be left unchecked. The courtâs decision to allow our case to move forward, in denying Monsantoâs motion to dismiss, is critical to showing that the company is deceiving the public with a safety claim on its Roundup (glyphosate) label. Its advertising and labeling claim that Roundup âtargets an enzyme found in plants but not in people or petsâ is false, given the devastating harm that glyphosate has on beneficial bacteria in the gut biome. The disruption of the […]
Posted in Glyphosate, Monsanto, Uncategorized | No Comments »
06
May
(Beyond Pesticides, May 6, 2018) The Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) temporarily denied a permit to spray Willapa Bay and Grays Harbor with the toxic neonicotinoid insecticide imidacloprid. Your comments helped achieve the temporary decision and comments are now needed again to make the denial permanent. The public comment period closes on May 14, 2018. Willapa Bay and Grays Harbor, with a number of unique ecosystems, and among the most pristine estuaries in the U.S., have been targeted with a plan to spray the toxic neonicotinoid insecticide imidacloprid to kill the native burrowing shrimp in beds of commercial Japanese oysters. This insecticide use will have deadly effects on keystone aquatic organisms. Based on a Supplemental Environmental Impact Statement (SEIS) and public input, Ecology temporarily denied the permit. Tell Ecology to restore the bays instead of spraying them! Ecology bases its decision on these factors: Too great an impact on the marine organisms that live in the sediments where the pesticide application is proposed. Too much uncertainty about the long-term impacts associated with this pesticide. Negative impacts on fish and birds caused by killing sources of food and disrupting the food web. Even at low concentrations, imidacloprid has significant impacts […]
Posted in Aquatic Organisms, Imidacloprid, Uncategorized, Washington, Water | No Comments »
04
May
(Beyond Pesticides, May 4, 2018) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt proposed a new rule, on April 24, that, if adopted, will restrict the use of certain kinds of science research in the agencyâs writing of regulations. Titled âStrengthening Transparency in Regulatory Science,â the rule will permit EPA to consider only research studies for which the underlying data are publicly available when considering new âsignificantâ regulations â typically, those estimated to impose costs of $100 million or more. Supporters of the rule say that EPA has, in crafting regulations in the past, relied on âsecret scienceâ â studies for which the underlying data cannot necessarily be accessed by members of the public. At face value, this may sound reasonable. Administrator Pruitt and proponents call the proposed rule a plus for transparency that will boost public confidence in the science bases of EPA decision making. âToday is a red-letter day,â Mr. Pruitt told supporters at agency headquarters. âThe science that we use is going to be transparent.â That so-called âtransparency,â however, comes at a huge cost: the elimination of decades of scientific studies from consideration when EPA regulations are written. In studies over the past few decades, researchers frequently collected data â […]
Posted in Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Uncategorized | No Comments »
03
May
(Beyond Pesticides, May 3, 2018)Â Hawaiiâs bill to ban the dangerous, neurotoxic pesticide, chlorpyrifos, passed its final hurdle this week in the state legislature. Governor David Ige is expected to readily sign SB3095 into law, in light of the unanimous support it received from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. The statewide prohibition of chlorpyrifos will take effect beginning in January 2019. This legislative action marks the first time that any state in the country has passed an outright ban on the highly toxic organophosphate pesticide. While multiple scientific studies have determined that chlorpyrifos damages fetal brains and produces cognitive and behavioral dysfunctions, particularly in utero and in children, states have been slow to institute a complete prohibition, due to its widespread use in agriculture. Lawmakers in New Jersey and Maryland have recently tried unsuccessfully to pass similar bans. Hawaiiâs bill contains a caveat that allows the stateâs Department of Agriculture (DOA) to grant special permits for companies that argue that they need more time to phase-out chlorpyrifos, but that exemption will end at the close of 2022. The new law also requires restricted use pesticide (RUP) users to report to the Hawaiiâs DOA which ones they are applying on […]
Posted in ADHD, Agriculture, Autism, Children, Children/Schools, Chlorpyrifos, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Farmworkers, Hawaii, Uncategorized | No Comments »
30
Apr
(Beyond Pesticides, April 30, 2018)Â Organic standards are under attack in the Farm Bill, H.R. 2, passed by the Agriculture Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives and in language emerging in the Senate Agriculture Committee. This adds to the attacks on which we have previously taken action. Tell Congress to Vote Against the Farm Bill if It Weakens Organic Standards The Organic Foods Production Act (OFPA) gives the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) broad authority and responsibility to ensure organic integrity. The Farm Bill contains provisions that: Will permit the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to sidestep the NOSB in allowing post-harvest handling substances (sanitizers) to be used in organic production; Change the classification of types of people who may be appointed to the NOSB by adding employees of farmers, handlers, and retailers; and Force consideration of the judgment of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) when those agencies find a material to meet their own (less stringent) criteria for use. These provisions are a direct attack on the strength of organic standards. When OFPA was passed and placed under USDA authority, Congress established a board composed of members of the organic community âfarmers, handlers/processors, […]
Posted in Agriculture, Alternatives/Organics, National Organic Standards Board/National Organic Program, Take Action, Uncategorized | No Comments »
27
Apr
(Beyond Pesticides, April 27, 2018)Â Â After more than five years of intensive negotiations, European Members of Parliament (MEP) overwhelmingly passed the long-anticipated, new organic certification and labeling regulations, with 466 voting in favor, 124 against and 50 abstentions. While the European Union (EU) Council of Ministers, must formally adopt the regulations, their easy passage is expected. Regulations will take effect in January 2021. The new organic regulations are purported to provide more clarity to organic producers and consumers and to harmonize organic regulation across the EU. But, they also are likely to fuel disharmony with the U.S. National Organic Program (NOP) by failing to act swiftly to curtail fraudulent organic exports and by prohibiting hydroponics systems of production in organic, which the US currently allows. âThe development of organic production is a political objective of the EU,â According to the EPâs background document on the regulations. As a strategy for increasing organic agriculture, which now encompasses 6.7% of EU agricultural land, MEPs intend for the new regulations to encourage more farmers to go organic, enhance consumer trust in the EU organic logo, and improve the quality of organic food. According to the European Parliamentâs press release, âStrict, risk-based checks will take […]
Posted in Agriculture, Alternatives/Organics, Hydroponics, National Organic Standards Board/National Organic Program, Uncategorized | No Comments »
26
Apr
(Beyond Pesticides, April 26, 2018)Â Each year, the Environmental Working Group (EWG) publishes its Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce™. The guide includes the âDirty Dozenâ and âClean 15â lists of conventionally grown produce items that, respectively, are the most heavily tainted by toxic pesticide residue, and by contrast, have little if any residue. EWG analyzes testing conducted by the U.S. Department of Agricultureâs (USDAâs) Pesticide Data Program to arrive at its annual assessment. Its report for 2018 found that nearly 70% of conventional produce is contaminated with residue and/or breakdown byproducts of one or more of the 230 pesticides that USDA evaluated. The top items on the 2018 Dirty Dozen list include strawberries, spinach, nectarines, apples, and grapes. One-third of all the strawberry samples harbored 10 or more pesticides, and one sample showed residue of 22 different compounds. Pesticide contamination was found in 97% of spinach samples, 94% of nectarines, 90% of apples, 96% of grapes, and 99% of peaches. Topping the 2018 Clean 15 list of the least-toxic conventionally grown produce items are avocados (99+% of samples tested negative for pesticides), sweet corn (98+%), pineapples (90%), onions (90+%), and cabbage (86%). EWG again this year added hot peppers as […]
Posted in Agriculture, Alternatives/Organics, Farmworkers, Uncategorized | No Comments »
23
Apr
(Beyond Pesticides, April 23, 2018) The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is accepting comments on its human health and environmental risk assessments of glyphosate (sold as Roundup™, Rodeo™, and many other products) until April 30. Evidence is mounting that glyphosate products cause cancer and many other human health and environmental problems. Sign the petition asking EPA to ban glyphosate. Despite the prevalent myth that this widely used herbicide is harmless, glyphosate is associated with a wide range of illnesses, including non-Hodgkinâs lymphoma, genetic damage, liver and kidney damage, and endocrine disruption, as well as environmental damage, including water contamination and harm to amphibians. Researchers have also determined that the âinertâ ingredients in glyphosate products, especially polyethoxylated tallow amine or POEA âa surfactant commonly used in glyphosate and other herbicidal productsâ are even more toxic than glyphosate itself. Monsanto, manufacturer of glyphosate, formulates many products (such as Roundup™Â and Rodeo™) and markets formulations exclusively used on genetically engineered (GE) crops. Glyphosate is one of the most widely used herbicides in the world, due in large part to the increased cultivation of GE crops that are tolerant of the herbicide. This petition summarizes the reasons glyphosate should be banned. More information can be […]
Posted in Glyphosate, Take Action, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
20
Apr
(Beyond Pesticides, April 20, 2018) There is an extraordinary attack on local community rights to protect people and the environment from pesticides in the Republican Farm Bill, passed by the Agriculture Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives on April 18 on a straight party line vote. The language inserted in the Farm Bill amends the federal pesticide law with a provision that prohibits local governments from restricting pesticide use on private property within their jurisdictions. Local laws in two states, Maine and Maryland, will be overturned with final passage of this law in the U.S. House and Senate. In those 43 states that forbid local pesticide laws by state law, future reconsideration of this prohibition, pushed by the chemical and pest management industry, will be foreclosed. Local laws protecting the environment and public health have historically emerged out of local governments, with laws related to recycling, smoking, pet waste, building codes, and zoning. The fight to defend the authority of local governments to protect people and the environment has been ongoing for decades, reaching the U.S. Supreme Court in 1991. The Court specifically upheld the authority of local governments to restrict pesticides throughout their jurisdictions under federal pesticide law. […]
Posted in Preemption, Uncategorized | No Comments »
19
Apr
(Beyond Pesticides, April 19, 2018) With the passage yesterday of the Republican amendments to the 2018 Farm Bill, H.R. 2, in the U.S. House of Representatives’ Agriculture Committee, Congress has launched a full-frontal attack on the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and required pesticide reviews to protect endangered species. According to the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD), the bill, on a party-line vote, will “completely exempt the use of pesticides from ESA, effectively dooming hundreds of endangered species to extinction and making it legal to kill any endangered species with a pesticide at almost any time.” The legislation is sponsored by House Agriculture Committee Chairman U.S. Representative Mike Conaway (R-Texas). The Farm Bill’s ESA provision will do away with EPAâs legally-mandated scientific consultations with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the Interior Departmentâs Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), the two main agencies charged with government oversight of species protection. If Congress fails to eliminate this undesirable provision from the Farm Bill, it is viewed as a tragic end to a success story, which began with the enactment of ESA in 1973. The law effectively prevented the extinction of 99 percent of species under its jurisdiction over the past 45 years. Few federal laws […]
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
18
Apr
(Beyond Pesticides, April 18, 2018) A new report from the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), Betrayal at the USDA, concludes that a myriad of personnel and policy decisions by Trump administration Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, in his first year, are harming the public. Enacted through the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), these decisions have weakened public safety and health protections, ignored science, and advantaged agribusiness interests over those of the public, farmers, and rural communities. Given the mission of USDA â to provide âleadership on food, agriculture, natural resources, rural development, nutrition, and related issues based on sound public policy, the best available science, and efficient managementâ â the U.S. population would understandably expect that the agency would make good on that mission. People might assume the agency would employ sound science in promoting innovative, sustainable agricultural practices, and in helping maintain a domestic food system that ensures a safe and healthful food supply, supports farmersâ success, and protects the natural resources on which both of those depend. UCS concludes that, in the Trump era, people would be wrong. USDA has considerable, albeit not-always-obvious, impact on peopleâs everyday lives. As the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) notes, âThe agency’s programs and […]
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
17
Apr
(Beyond Pesticides, April 17, 2018) In a case that appalled the nation, the U.S. Justice Department finally last week secured an indictment against an applicator who illegally applied a fumigant at a U.S. Virgin Island resort, causing devastating and long-term health effects to a family on vacation. Terminex has already been fined and paid a multi-million dollar settlement with the poisoned family. Jose Rivera, 59, was indicted last Thursday by a federal grand jury for violating the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). According to the indictment, Mr. Rivera illegally applied fumigants containing methyl bromide in multiple residential locations in the U.S. Virgin Islands, including the condominium resort complex in St. John, where a family of four fell seriously ill in March 2015, announced Assistant Attorney General Jeffrey H. Wood of the Environment and Natural Resources Division and U.S. Attorney Gretchen C.F. Shappert for the District of the Virgin Islands.  The indictment alleges that Mr. Rivera knowingly applied restricted-use fumigants at the Sirenusa resort in St. John for the purpose of exterminating household pests on or about Oct. 20, 2014, and on or about March 18, 2015. The defendant was also charged with applying the restricted-use pesticide in eight residential […]
Posted in Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), methyl bromide, Uncategorized | No Comments »
16
Apr
(Beyond Pesticides, April 16, 2018)Â Ethics scandals pile up regarding Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruittâs failure to do his job, leading to the inevitable conclusion that he must go. Tell Congress and the President to Dump Pruitt. On the ethics side, there are: A unique too-good-to-be-true housing deal at a rental owned by an industry lobbyist; High-priced first class airfare for Pruitt and his personal security detail; Questionable claims of a need for expensive personal security measures; Reassigning or demoting EPA employees who question him; Using âspecial hiresâ to bring on political appointees; and Failing to investigate civil rights complaints. All of these ethics issues are in addition to Pruittâs attacks on the environment he is charged with protecting: Reversing a ban on chlorpyrifos; Delaying rules designed to protect farmworker children; Eliminating from EPA advisory boards those scientists who have received EPA grants; and Attempting to slash EPAâs staff in half. Tell Congress and the President to dump Pruitt. [Link to anchor in action page; in email link to action page.] Letter to Congress (Reps and Senators) and the President: Please tell President Trump to fire Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt. His ethical choices reflect poorly on the administration […]
Posted in Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), National Politics, Take Action, Uncategorized | No Comments »