(Beyond Pesticides, May 19, 2023) Agricultural intensification is the leading factor driving declines in bird populations across Europe, according to research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) this week. Among all potential anthropogenic impacts, agricultural intensification, in particular pesticide and fertilizer use, was found to be more dramatic than forest alterations, urbanization, and climate change. “I don’t think a study has looked at all these factors in one go, in such a sophisticated fashion, correcting for one variable alongside another; and it comes out with a very clear message,” lead author Richard Gregory, PhD, of UK nonprofit The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, told The Guardian.

Researchers utilized data dating back to the early-1980s, including annual bird surveys and national and supranational analyses, as well as information on land use cover, farm inputs, and temperature changes within the time frame. Bird habitat and ecological traits were also considered in the context of declines, and a statistical analysis aided researchers in capturing trends over time.

Results confirmed that birds are overall experiencing significant declines in Europe, with data recording 25% losses in bird abundance since 1980. However, certain groups of birds are faring worse than others. Birds found in and among farmlands have experienced the brunt of the declines, recording a roughly 57% decline during the study period. By contrast, birds in urban areas have declined by approximately 28% and those that make their habitat in woodland areas have seen 18% population losses. Perhaps unsurprisingly in the context of a warming climate, cold hardy birds are having a tougher time than birds that inhabit warm environments, comparing declines at roughly 40% and 17%, respectively. The authors note that universal declines are being seen in both farmland and cold hardy birds.

It follows that different anthropogenic drivers are most prevalent in different locations. Temperature change, for instance, is occurring faster at higher latitudes, placing cold hardy birds in those areas at increased risk. And the impacts of urbanization and agricultural intensification are found to be most dramatic in western Europe, compared to the eastern part of the continent.

The author’s trend analysis indicates that agricultural intensification is resulting in the greatest bird population declines, followed by urbanization and temperature change. Changes in forest cover were not related to changes one way or another in common birds. The paper notes that based on certain bird traits, anthropogenic pressures may harm some species, but improve the outlook for others. For instance, temperature increases are negative for cold dwelling and farmland species, but positive for hot dwellers and woodland species.  

Utilizing this robust dataset, researchers arrived at strong conclusions, noting, “Our results do not simply quantify correlations, but our analytical design is meant to strive for more quasicausal responses of bird populations to global change drivers.”

Researchers found that pesticide use significantly degrades the quality of food and habitat available for a range of bird species. These findings are buttressed by data showing that in small countries with lower levels of agricultural intensification, and smaller farms, have more robust bird populations than other small countries with more land under agricultural production.

The scientists issue a charge for policymakers and regulators clearly. “Considering both the overwhelming negative impact of agricultural intensification and the homogenization introduced by temperature and land-use changes, our results suggest that the fate of common European bird populations depends on the rapid implementation of transformative change in European societies, and especially in agricultural reform,” the paper reads.

Europe, for its part, has been engaged in an effort to significantly cut its use of pesticides and reform its agricultural sector through the Farm to Fork initiative, which includes a 50% reduction in the use of hazardous chemical pesticides by 2030. While Europe attempts to address this key driver of bird and biodiversity decline, the United States has worked to stifle efforts in Europe and at home that would reduce the use of dangerous synthetic pesticides.

Take action today to urge your elected U.S. Senators to cosponsor the Protect America’s Children from Toxic Pesticides Act, which would help address key deficiencies allowing the continued use of pesticides that harm birds, biodiversity, and the broader environment.  

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), The Guardian

Image Source: Wikipedia

(Beyond Pesticides, May 18, 2023) A study published in Food and Chemical Toxicology finds pesticide residues in beehive products pose a safety risk from dietary consumption. Beehive products (i.e., bee bread, propolis, beeswax, and royal jelly) from beekeeping or apiculture are said to have nutraceutical (health and medicinal benefits) properties. However, a wide range of pesticide residues (i.e., tau-fluvalinate, coumaphos, chlorfenvinphos, chlorpyrifos, and amitraz), especially acaricides for killing ticks and mites in hives, may accumulate in beehive products up to concentrations that pose a potential health risk.

Environmental contaminants like pesticides are ubiquitous in the environment, with 90 percent of Americans having at least one pesticide compound in their body. Many of these chemical compounds remain in soils, water (solid and liquid), and the surrounding air at levels exceeding U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards. Therefore, individuals still encounter pesticide compounds at varying concentrations, adding to the toxic body burden of those harmful chemicals currently in use.

The research methodology includes a review of the scientific literature on pesticide contamination in hive products and a dietary risk assessment. The risk assessment calculation uses scientific studies to determine the recommended daily intake values and concentration data. Researchers compare exposure values in products to health-based guidance, determining the potential acute and chronic health risks to consumers. The results highlight that tau-fluvalinate, coumaphos, chlorfenvinphos, chlorpyrifos, and amitraz are the most common active ingredients in beehive products, with acaricides being the most frequently detectable pesticide subtype. However, the report’s estimation for pesticide accumulation in beeswax comb honey suggests that coumaphos and chlorfenvinphos mount up to levels posing a potential health risk to consumers.

The United Nations states that 80 percent of the 115 top global food crops depend on insect pollination, with one-third of all U.S. crops depending on pollinators, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). However, research finds that many insect populations, including managed and wild pollinators, are collapsing. A systematic review of insect population decline studies published in 2019 found that 41% of insect species worldwide are declining. The declines of butterflies, wild bumblebees, and honey bees have links to hazardous pesticide use in conventional agricultural systems. Since 1990, roughly a quarter of the global insect population has been vanishing, according to research published in Science. This research finds worldwide trends in declines in terrestrial insect biomass to be nearly 1% each year (~9% each decade). Despite habitat fragmentation and climate change, extensive use of pesticides, like neonicotinoids, sulfoxaflor, pyrethroids, fipronil, and organophosphates, increase the potential risk and indiscriminate threat to all insects. Most animals on Earth are insects, which play a significant role in sustaining the ecosystem, despite their size. Insects found in nature preserves are consistently contaminated with over a dozen pesticides, calling into question the ability of these areas to function as refuges for threatened and endangered species. Research shows that residues from neonicotinoids (including seed treatments) and sulfoxaflor accumulate and translocate to pollen and nectar of treated plants. Pyrethroids and fipronil impair bee learning, development, and behavioral function, reducing survivability and colony fitness. However, inert ingredients in these products cause similar or more severe impacts on insect populations, such as disruption in bee learning behavior through exposure to low doses of surfactants. With the global reliance on pollinator-dependent crops increasing over the past decades, a lack of pollinators threatens food security and stability for current and future generations.

This review highlights the pervasiveness of pesticide residues as the presence in consumer products considered beneficial to health puts individuals across the globe at health risk. Even with a partial ban on neonicotinoid insecticides in the U.K. in 2014, 25 percent of British honey still contains residue of these “potent, bee-killing” pesticides. Research shows that residues from neonicotinoids (including seed treatments) and sulfoxaflor accumulate and translocate to pollen and nectar of treated plants. Like this study, previous research frequently detects pesticides like fluvalinate, coumaphos, chlorpyrifos, chlorothalonil, amitraz, pendamethalin, endosulfan, fenpropathrin, esfenvalerate, and atrazine in beehives. Like acaricides in the study, miticides and fungicides contaminate wax, pollen, and bees at concentrations that pose significant health risks. Scientific literature documents elevated rates of acute and chronic health effects among people exposed to pesticides, with increasing numbers of studies associated with both specific and a range of illnesses. Some common diseases affecting the public’s health also have links to pesticide exposure, including asthma, learning disabilities, birth abnormalities, reproductive dysfunction, endocrine disruption like diabetes, brain and nervous system disorders, and several types of cancer. 

To mitigate the risks associated with chemical exposure from toxic pesticides, advocates say the manufacturing and use of pesticides need addressing, first and foremost. Global leaders should curtail the continued manufacturing of chemical pollutants that readily contaminate the environment. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) appears to discount threats like the insect apocalypse, evidenced by a 75% decline in insect abundance, threatening global ecosystems and food production that depends on animal pollination. If pesticide use and manufacturing are amplifying the contamination of consumer products, especially through residue transfer, advocates argue that it is essential to advance change by adopting pesticide policy and regulations that eliminate petrochemical pesticide and fertilizer use, while supporting the transition to organic practices. 

Pollinators (such as bees, monarch butterflies, and bats) are a bellwether for environmental stress, as individuals and as colonies. Commercial beekeepers continue to experience bee declines as high as 90 percent in hives across the county. As pollinator and insect life continue to decline globally, it is critical to understand and restrict widely used chemicals. Additionally, substitutions the agrichemical industry have developed to replace them are still deplorable and harmful. Pesticide risk assessments do not adequately capture the range of harm that can occur when pesticide exposures occur  in combination, necessitating a shift to safer, alternative, and regenerative organic farming systems that do not use these dangerous chemicals. Since there is a tremendous reliance on many pollinators for essential services, like pollinating a third of food production, it has become critical to avoid using these chemicals and instead look for safer alternatives to managing pests in homes, gardens, schools, and communities. Pesticides intensify pollinators’ vulnerability to health risks (such as pathogens and parasites), with pesticide-contaminated conditions limiting colony productivity, growth, and survival. However, ending toxic pesticide use can alleviate the harmful impacts of these chemicals on species and ecosystem health. Beyond Pesticides captured the bigger picture in its introduction to its 2017 National Pesticide Forum, Healthy Hives, Healthy Lives, Healthy Land: “Complex biological communities support life.”

Learn more about the science and resources behind pesticides’ impact on pollinators, including bee pollinator decline, and take action against the use of pesticides. To find out more about what you can do to protect bees and other pollinators, check out information on the BEE Protective Campaign, pollinator-friendly landscapes, pollinator-friendly seeds, pesticide-free zones, bee-friendly habitats, and what you, or your Members of Congress and EPA, must do to protect our pollinators. For more information on the insect apocalypse, see the Beyond Pesticides article “Tracking Biodiversity: Study Cites Insect Extinction and Ecological Collapse” from our journal, Pesticides and You.

Furthermore, buying, growing, and supporting organic agriculture can help eliminate the extensive use of pesticides in the environment. Organic land management eliminates the need for toxic agricultural pesticides. For more information on how organic is the right choice for consumers and the farmworkers who grow our food, see the Beyond Pesticides webpage, Health Benefits of Organic Agriculture. 

Spring is around the corner, so get ready to grow your spring garden the organic way by Springing into Action, pledging to eliminate toxic pesticide use.

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

Source: Food and Chemical Toxicology

(Beyond Pesticides, May 17, 2023) British biotechnology company Oxitec is withdrawing its application to release billions of genetically engineered mosquitoes in California, according to a recent update from the California Department of Pesticide Regulation. The withdrawal is a victory for environmental and health campaigners concerned about the release of a novel mosquito that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had previously authorized under an “experimental use” permit. “Genetically engineered mosquitoes are an environmental justice issue for Tulare County residents who should not be human experiments,” said Angel Garcia, codirector of the statewide coalition Californians for Pesticide Reform and Tulare County resident in a press release. “We are already impacted by some of the worst pollution problems in the state and deserve prior informed consent to being part of an open-air biopesticide experiment. Ahead of any future proposal for genetically engineered insects, DPR needs to have robust regulations in place that protect community members, and meaningful, inclusive public participation in any decision making.”    

Oxitec began releasing its GE mosquitoes over a decade ago, first introducing the insects in the Brazilian town of Itaberaba. The company has made efforts to launch its mosquitoes in the United States, likely as a way to encourage other countries to embrace their new technology, as decisions from U.S. regulators are often used as the basis for governmental decisions made in other countries.

Yet, its work in other countries, such as the Cayman Islands, highlights the problems with the novel approach. After releasing millions of GE mosquitoes under a two-year contract with Oxitec, Cayman Island officials were set to renew their contract. But data from the trials indicated serious problems, leading the territory’s environmental health minister to tell the Edmonton Journal, “The scheme wasn’t getting the results we were looking for.” There was further concern that the released mosquitoes could be spreading antibiotic resistance or make mosquito-borne diseases worse by lowering individual immunity.

U.S. regulators did little to alleviate these concerns in making their initial approval of the release last year. A study published in Globalization and Health on the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) GE mosquito field trial in Key Haven, Florida in 2016 determined that it “did not proximate the conditions under which the GE mosquitoes would be used in regions of the global South where there is a high prevalence of mosquito-borne diseases.” The author further concluded that, “If ineffective public health interventions are adopted based on risk evaluations that do not closely mirror the conditions under which those products would actually be used, there could be public health and ethical costs for those population.”

Concern over health impacts were combined with an overall lack of proven efficacy with results to date. While Oxitec has made claims that it is able to reduce populations of disease-carrying Aedes aegypti by 98%, this claim has not been publicly verified, as U.S. regulators permit companies to maintain their internal data as confidential business information. Confidential Oxitec documents obtained by the British watchdog group Genewatch UK in 2012 show that 15% of GE animals are able to survive to adulthood. This was because mosquitoes were being reared on canned chicken cat food that contained trace levels of tetracycline from its production process. In the context of the proposed releases in agricultural areas of California, limits on releasing mosquitoes within 500 meters of a wastewater treatment plant, orchard crops, and livestock facilities are not likely to be effective.

It is telling that in Oxitec’s last ditch effort to maintain its contract with the Cayman Islands, the company proposed a mosquito management approach that would have included the supplemental use of mosquito adulticides.

The withdrawal from California is a major acknowledgement that the project is too ineffective and risky for public health. Neither GE mosquitoes nor highly hazardous insecticides should be the primary line of defense against mosquito problems. Disease-carrying mosquitoes can be successfully managed by placing emphasis on education and prevention. This includes eliminating standing water, and encouraging predators such as fish, bats, birds, dragonflies and frogs, and using least-toxic larvicides like bacillus thuringiensis israelensis (Bti) judiciously in problem areas. Community-wide programs should encourage residents to employ these approaches, and focus on eliminating breeding sites on public lands, monitoring and action levels in order to determine what, where, and when control measures might be needed.

While these mosquitoes will no longer be released in California, approval in Florida – specifically, for Monroe County, FL – does not appear to have changed. Residents in that region are urged to take action by contacting their local and state elected officials today. More information on safe mosquito management approaches can be found on Beyond Pesticides mosquito management and insect borne disease program page.

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

Source: California Department of Pesticide Regulation, FoE press release

Image Source: Wikimedia

(Beyond Pesticides, May 16, 2023) U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is set to be sued for its failure to implement strong protections for imperiled manatee populations. Earlier this month, the Harvard Animal Law and Policy Clinic, Center for Biological Diversity, Miami Waterkeeper, and engineer Frank González Garcia sent USFWS a notice of intent to sue after USFWS failed to respond to a petition sent by the groups last fall. “It has been months of agony and unjustified time lost for manatees in Puerto Rico,” said Mr. Garcia, an engineer who is concerned with the loss of natural resources. “Recent fatal accidents and unprecedented toxic water discharges aggravate the already precarious living and survival conditions of this beloved species,” Mr. Garcia said.

Recent reporting has captured a dismal situation for manatee populations. The species is under threat from a range of anthropogenic impacts, from boat strikes to harmful herbicide contamination, pollution-driven red tides, and algae blooms that have destroyed seagrass beds the species rely upon. Starvation resulting from the loss of seagrass beds was the cause of death for more than 1,000 manatees in 2021, prompting wildlife officials to feed them cabbage and lettuce as a last resort to keep them alive.

USFWS downgraded protections for the manatee in 2017, moving them from “endangered” status to “threatened,” a move that was widely criticized by conservation groups as premature. A species classified as endangered is in danger of extinction throughout all or a significant a portion of its range, while a threatened classification means the species is likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future.  Endangered species are given greater protections than threatened species.

Manatee advocates say that the numbers tell it all: nearly 2,000 manatees died from 2020-2022 from a range of preventable factors. “The science is clear that this species is declining precipitously, and therefore clearly merits uplisting,” Rachel Silverstein, executive director of Miami Waterkeeper. “Reclassifying the manatee as endangered and addressing water quality issues across the state is imperative to all Floridians and our unique wildlife.”

Chemical pollution harming water quality has become a significant threat to manatee habitat. Research finds that marine mammals are genetically vulnerable to the impacts of certain hazardous chemicals due to a lack of traits that assist in breaking down toxic chemicals. Within the context of increased vulnerability, a 2021 study published in Environment International found that manatees living along the U.S. coast experience chronic exposure to glyphosate weed killers. Over 55% of sampled manatees had glyphosate in their bodies in 2020, a number that steadily increased from the beginning of research conducted in 2009.  

After submitting the petition, USFWS had 90 days to make a finding in support or against the petition to upgrade the manatee’s status to endangered. With that deadline passed, groups can now formally announce their intent to sue.

A separate lawsuit filed by the Florida-based organization Bear Warriors United is suing the Florida Department of Environmental Protection for permitting human waste disposal through septic and sewage systems to contaminate manatee habitat and harm sea grass. “They never considered that maybe all the seagrass would collapse,” said Lesley Blackner, a Palm Beach attorney representing Bear Warriors, to Florida Today. “What was the hysteria for down-listing it?”

The problems facing manatees and other marine wildlife require a holistic approach and meaningful action. Efforts must be focused on reducing the need to spray toxic pesticides and store waste in a manner that creates environmental contamination.

Support efforts to protect critical manatee populations by telling your Congressional Representative to cosponsor H.R. 4946 and your Senators to introduce identical legislation. Through this action, you can also tell USFWS to upgrade manatees to endangered and urge further action by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission.

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

Source: Florida Today, Center for Biological Diversity

Image Source: Wikimedia

(Beyond Pesticides, May 15, 2023) Say “legacy contaminant” or “forever chemical” and most people today think “PFAS” (perfluoroalkyl substances), but PFAS are just the latest persistent toxic chemicals recognized as presenting an alarmingly difficult cleanup problem. Fortunately, steps are being taken by governments and businesses to eliminate use of PFAS. (Organic farmers concerned about the integrity of their products have been leaders in these efforts.)

Although government officials often devote considerable energy and resources to cleaning up contamination, the continued manufacturing of these chemicals and their release into the environment creates a futile situation. The U.S. is a signatory to the 2001 Stockholm Convention, which provides an international framework for moving persistent organic pollutants out of commerce, but the U.S. Senate never ratified it.    

Ask your Senators to ratify the Stockholm convention. Tell EPA that persistent toxic pesticides must be considered to pose an “unreasonable risk to the environment under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA),” which must result in cancellation of their registrations. 

PFAS contamination is just the latest chapter of a very old story. Legacy contamination of our bodies and the environment is partly a result of a slow piecemeal approach to eliminating these toxic chemicals. PFAS contamination is found in pesticides—and chlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (“dioxins”) and chlorodibenzofurans (“dibenzofurans” or “furans”) are also found in pesticides like 2,4-D and pentachlorophenol. 
 
Lead and arsenic are legacy contaminants arising from historical use of lead arsenate as a pesticide, but most legacy pesticide contamination comes from persistent organic (meaning containing carbon) pollutants or POPs. These include organochlorine pesticides like pentachlorophenol, DDT, dieldrin, aldrin, chlordane, mirex, endrin, heptachlor, hexachlorobenzene, and toxaphene. Although use of many persistent organic pesticides is not allowed in the U.S., use of others–notably pentachlorophenol and lindane–is still permitted. (Lindane’s use is allowed by FDA as a pediculicide.) Some of those not used in the U.S. are used elsewhere and move in the environment. 

POPs are hazardous chemicals that threaten human health and the planet’s ecosystems. POPs take a long time to degrade, are widely distributed throughout the environment, bioaccumulate and biomagnify through the food chain, and are toxic to humans and wildlife. POPs are linked to adverse immune system effects, reproductive disorders, and population declines in birds, fish, and other species. They are associated with reproductive, developmental, behavioral, neurological, endocrine, and immunological health effects in humans. 

The persistence and mobility of these toxic chemicals requires a global approach to their removal. The Stockholm Convention on POPs requires signatories to adopt a range of control measures to reduce and, where feasible, eliminate the release of POPs but the U.S. has not ratified the treaty.

Ask your Senators to ratify the Stockholm convention. Tell EPA that persistent toxic pesticides must be considered to pose an “unreasonable risk to the environment under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA),” which must result in cancellation of their registrations.

Letter to U.S. Senators

Say “legacy contaminant” or “forever chemical” and most people today think “PFAS” (perfluoroalkyl substances), but PFAS are just the latest persistent toxic chemicals recognized as presenting an alarmingly difficult cleanup problem. Fortunately, steps are being taken by governments and businesses to eliminate the use of PFAS. Although we should be devoting energy to cleaning them up, unless we stop manufacturing them and releasing them into the environment, cleanup efforts will be futile. 

PFAS contamination is just the latest chapter of a very old story. Legacy contamination of our bodies and the environment is partly a result of a slow piecemeal approach to eliminating these toxic chemicals. One source of PFAS contamination is pesticides—and chlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (“dioxins”) and chlorodibenzofurans (“dibenzofurans” or “furans”) are also found in pesticides like 2,4-D and pentachlorophenol.

Lead and arsenic are legacy contaminants arising from historical use of lead arsenate as a pesticide, but most legacy pesticide contamination comes from persistent organic (carbon-containing) pollutants or POPs. These include organochlorine pesticides like pentachlorophenol, DDT, dieldrin, aldrin, chlordane, mirex, endrin, heptachlor, hexachlorobenzene, and toxaphene. Although use of many persistent organic pesticides is not allowed in the U.S., use of others–notably pentachlorophenol and lindane–is still permitted. (Lindane’s use is allowed by FDA as a pediculicide.) Some of those not used in the U.S. are used elsewhere and move in the food system and the environment.

POPs are hazardous chemicals that threaten human health and the planet’s ecosystems. POPs take a long time to degrade, are widely distributed throughout the environment, bioaccumulate and biomagnify through the food chain, and are toxic to humans and wildlife. POPs are linked to adverse immune system effects, reproductive disorders, and population declines in birds, fish, and other species. They are associated with reproductive, developmental, behavioral, neurological, endocrine, and immunological health effects in humans.

The persistence and mobility of these toxic chemicals requires a global approach to their removal. One global mechanism is the Stockholm Convention on POPs, which requires signatories to adopt a range of control measures to reduce and, where feasible, eliminate the release of POPs. Although the U.S. has signed the Stockholm convention, it still requires Senate ratification.

I ask you to advocate for a vote to ratify the Stockholm convention.

Thank you.

(Beyond Pesticides, May 12, 2023) With the growth of chemical-intensive land management over the last century, the world has been held captive by pesticide companies. For part of that time, it could be said the modern society has suffered from Stockholm Syndrome, a theory about abusive relationships in which one party exerts power over the other using threats, fear, and lies and the victim comes to depend on the perpetrator emotionally. During the so-called “Green Revolution” (circa 1945-1985), the world came to depend on vast amounts of fertilizers and herbicides, insecticides, and fungicides. Many people believed that food, clothing, and shelter made from naturally-occurring materials such as fruit, flax and wood could not be provided to the world without pesticides. It seemed that science and commerce could indefinitely raise the standard of living around the world, perhaps leading to world peace.

This is not what happened. Soon observers noticed the harmful effects of many pesticides, including their persistence in the environment, their tendency to accumulate in the bodies of humans and wildlife, and their influence on the risk of contracting many diseases, from cancer to asthma—not to mention the Darwinian inevitability of pest resistance.

By the turn of the 20^th century, it was clear something had to be done. And something was done. After several years of exploration and negotiation by the United Nations, the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) came into being when some 90 countries signed the treaty in 2001. They agreed to reduce or eliminate the use of nine chemicals, minimize the inadvertent production of two more (dioxins and furans, formed in combustion), and more selectively apply one (DDT, against malaria). The full list of 12 was dubbed the “Dirty Dozen” after the 1967 film of the same name.

The Convention went into force in 2004. For a while it appeared that society might escape its captors. Sadly, this has been delayed. A country can sign a treaty without ratifying it. This is what the United States has done. According to the U.S. Department of State, “The United States signed the Stockholm Convention in 2001, but has yet to ratify because we currently lack the authority to implement all of its provisions. The United States participates as an observer in the meetings of the parties and in technical working groups.” [Emphasis added.] Signing is an aspirational act; ratification is a legal commitment. The U.S. has tried to have it both ways.

To be fair, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) points out that despite the failure of Congress to ratify the Stockholm Convention, the agency has taken many steps to reduce or eliminate the listed chemicals in the U.S. The first dozen Stockholm POPs were aldrin, chlordane, dieldrin, endrin, heptachlor, hexachlorobenzene, mirex, toxaphene, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), DDT, dioxins and furans. According to the EPA:

“[N]one of the original POPs pesticides listed in the Stockholm Convention is registered for sale and distribution in the United States today and in 1978, Congress prohibited the manufacture of PCBs and severely restricted the use of remaining PCB stocks. In addition, since 1987, EPA and the states have effectively reduced environmental releases of dioxins and furans to land, air, and water from U.S. sources. These regulatory actions, along with voluntary efforts by U.S. industry, resulted in a greater than 85 percent decline in total dioxin and furan releases after 1987 from known industrial sources.”

However, the U.S. is out of sync with international scientific consensus on the need to eliminate many persistent pesticides. Most notably, the wood preservative pentachlorophenol and the insecticide lindane are still permitted to be used in the U.S. (Lindane’s use is allowed by FDA as a pediculicide.)

Unfortunately, the POPs chemicals are so persistent that people, animals, and ecosystems continue to be exposed to them in dangerous quantities. For example, for 40 years the Army Corps of Engineers dumped tons of waste containing PCBs and mercury directly into the Columbia River at Bradford Island, a small islet near the Bonneville Dam. Despite the Corps’ actions to dredge the sediment, filter the water, and haul away 32 tons of solid waste, the fish residing within a mile of the island still have the highest levels of PCBs in the nation. Both Oregon and Washington warn people not to eat the fish. According to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, “smallmouth bass were found at concentrations as high as 183,000 parts per billion. A safe level for human consumption of fish is less than 1 part per billion.”

So while there has been progress on letting the past be the past, it is two steps forward, one step back. This is partly owing to the chemical industry’s propensity for substituting a new problem for an old one by offering compounds that are chemically analogous to the hazardous ones, such as advertising “BPA-free” (bisphenol-A) water bottles that are made of BPS (bisphenol-S). Both types of bisphenol are endocrine disrupters.

The Stockholm Convention continues to consider other chemicals for addition to the treaty. In June 2022 the parties added perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS) to the Convention. PFHxS is one of the family of the perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) known as “forever chemicals.” PFAS are used in food wrappers, non-stick pans, climbing ropes, guitar strings, ammunition, firefighting foam and many other products. They’ve been available since the 1950s and there are at least 9,000 separate PFAS compounds. The chemical bonds between their carbon and fluorine atoms are almost impossible to break.

In the U.S., EPA has proposed new limits to PFAS levels in drinking water, and not a minute too soon; PFAS have been found in water supplies in nearly 3,000 locations in all 50 states and two territories. PFAS chemicals have been found in human breast milk, umbilical cord blood, deer meat, fish, and beef. They are found in pesticides. One study using data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) found PFAS compounds in 97% of Americans. Studies have suggested a wide range of health effects, including raised cholesterol levels, high blood pressure or pre-eclampsia during pregnancy, and increased risk of kidney cancer.

Congress and EPA have been relatively active in starting efforts to assess and measure the amount of PFAS chemicals in the environment, especially in water. President Biden wants to fund more research and recently supported the classification of PFAS as hazardous substances for Superfund listing. But these efforts move very slowly through the gears and conveyor belts of government. So far, they are piecemeal and mostly inadequate. For example, in March 2021 EPA began a process to regulate perfluorooctanoic acid and perfluorooctane sulfonate—just two of thousands of PFAS varieties—but the rulemaking process will likely take years. The U.S. military, notorious for polluting land and water worldwide, has tested drinking water at 63 installations but has formed remediation plans for only nine of 50 bases marked for cleanup. Actual remediation is underway at only one Department of Defense site.

While waiting for the federal government to act, about 35 states have adopted various policies to limit exposures to PFAS, such as Alaska’s prohibitions on firefighting foam, California’s elimination of PFAS from cosmetics and menstrual products, and Georgia’s disclosure requirements for PFAS, lead, formaldehyde and other hazardous chemicals in cosmetics. Illinois now requires landfills to capture PFAS-contaminated leachate before it escapes from the landfill or is transported for wastewater treatment. One problem with this is that PFAS pass through standard water treatment processes chemically unchanged. According to EPA, several removal technologies are available, ranging from ion exchange to activated carbon that could be applied at municipal plants and in consumer-grade water filters.

Private businesses and farmers are taking action too. The Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association has developed a resource page for members to keep abreast of testing and certification issues regarding PFAS. California and New York are requiring apparel to be PFAS-free starting in 2025, and the footwear company KEEN has reduced PFAS in its products by 65% simply by asking its suppliers to stop using it where possible.

PFAS may seem like new chemicals, but it is just public awareness of them that is new. Like the Dirty Dozen POPs, they are actually “legacy” pollutants; according to the Environmental Working Group (EWG), chemical giant 3M knew from its own mouse studies in the 1950s that PFAS bioaccumulate. (For a comprehensive timeline based on industry documents, see the EWG’s major report. This report also demonstrates the deep capture of academic researchers by industry.)

Beyond Pesticides takes the position that these toxic chemicals are in the environment (including our bodies) mostly because of bad decisions in the past. We should be devoting energy to cleaning them up, but given their persistence (hence “forever”), unless we stop manufacturing them and releasing them into the environment, cleanup efforts will be futile. Further, if we do not develop true alternatives rather than knock-off chemical analogues to these chemicals, we will extend our legacy into forever. And then we will be back in Stockholm Syndrome captivity.

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

(Beyond Pesticides, May 11, 2023) A study published in NeuroToxicology finds occupational (work-related), chronic exposure to pesticides increases risk factors of epilepsy, a neurological disorder causing unprovoked, reoccurring seizures. Mounting evidence over the past years shows that chronic exposure to sublethal (low) levels of pesticides can cause neurotoxic effects or exacerbate preexisting chemical damage to the nervous system. Although the mechanism by which pesticides induce disease development remains unclear, this study suggests environmental pesticide exposure increases seizure risk through mechanisms at molecular or subcellular levels.

Approximately 3.4 million individuals in the U.S. live with epilepsy, and mortality from this disorder is rising nationwide. Over 300 environmental contaminants and their byproducts, including pesticides, are chemicals commonly present in human blood and urine samples and can increase neurotoxicity risk when crossing the brain barrier. Considering half of all epilepsy etiologies (causes) are of idiopathic (unknown) origins, studies like this highlight the importance of understanding how consistent chemical exposure can impact long-term health and disease prognosis. The study notes, “[The] approach to a real-world exposure scenario to pesticides in a large agriculture area over 17 years; […] can be linked to the novel approaches proposed for simulating real-life exposures, thus contributing to a better understanding of the real-life risk associated with long-term exposure to multiple pesticides.”

To determine work-related risk factors associated with epilepsy among farmers and pesticide applicators, researchers performed a case-control study on 19,704 individuals from 2000 to 2016 (17 years) to observe epilepsy cases. Researchers gathered data from Almería (South-Eastern Spain) hospital records and the Centre for Prevention of Occupational Risks. Of the 19,704 individuals, 5,091 have a record of epilepsy. The researchers attribute an increase in epilepsy risk among those working in chemical-intensive, enclosed (indoor) agriculture (high-yield greenhouse crops) compared to chemical-intensive, open-air (outdoor) agriculture (open-air crops). However, this study supports previous findings on the association between epilepsy and pesticide exposure in the general population. Epilepsy risk is greatest among individuals living in rural areas with high pesticide use (e.g., farming regions) and individuals without proper personal protective equipment (PPE), including gloves and masks.

Epilepsy is a common neurological disorder that affects a person’s brain (e.g., stroke, brain tumors, traumatic brain, or head injuries) and central nervous system (CNS). These conditions can disrupt nerve cell communication in the brain and lead to prolonged seizures (status epilepticus) due to abnormal electrical activity in the brain. Although the most common cause of seizures is epilepsy, not every person who has a seizure has epilepsy. Although medical treatments can manage epilepsy, typical anti-seizure medication for epilepsy is ineffective in the treatment of non-epileptic seizures. Certain chemicals, including pesticides, can be seizurogenic chemicals or toxic agents that cause seizures by different mechanisms and molecular pathways. The most known mechanisms include hyperstimulation of nicotinic and muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (neurotransmitters), blockage of voltage-gated sodium channels, altered function of GABAergic neurons, glutamatergic hyperactivity, neuronal excitotoxicity, intracellular calcium overload, oxidative stress, and increased neuroinflammatory responses, among others. Pesticides with neurotoxic properties include organophosphates, carbamates, and organochlorines. 

Despite many studies linking acute pesticide poisonings to seizures, this study is one of the few to address concerns about those chronically exposed to pesticides. A 2016 study in the same region of Spain demonstrates workers who applied pesticides were more likely to have neurological symptoms lasting more than two days, such as cramps, tremors, muscle fatigue, loss of consciousness, and convulsions. Many pesticides used in the past and present can lead to the formation of a single seizure or epilepsy due to chronic poisoning. Thus, the study highlights the importance of PPE as a preventive measure critical for reducing the risk of developing pesticide-related symptoms and diseases. Farmers without gloves and masks have two- and three-time higher risks of epilepsy, respectively. The Agricultural Health Study (AHS) used to estimate pesticide exposure intensity expects farmers to experience a 90 percent reduction in pesticide exposure when using proper PPE. However, PPE alone is not enough to prevent pesticide exposure, especially for everyday exposure from disinfectants, residues on food, and contamination of the ecosystem. The study concludes, “[…P]revious findings suggesting a higher risk of epilepsy in the general population associated to pesticide exposure and extends the presumed increased risk to farmers occupationally exposed to pesticides, particularly those with lack of or improper use of PPE.”

The brain and nervous system are an integral part of the human body and include the brain, spinal cord, and a vast network of nerves and neurons, all of which are responsible for many of our bodily functions—from sense to movement. The impacts of pesticides on the nervous system are hazardous, especially for chronically exposed individuals (e.g., farmworkers) or during critical windows of vulnerability and development (e.g., childhood, pregnancy). Researchers identify the role agricultural chemicals play in CNS impacts causing neurological diseases like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and Parkinson’s disease, dementia-like diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, and other effects on cognitive function. Therefore, studies related to pesticides and neurological disorders can help scientists understand the underlying mechanisms that cause neurodegenerative diseases. As captured by epidemiologic studies in Beyond Pesticides’ Pesticide-Induced Diseases Database (PIDD) and Daily News Blog, the adverse health effects of pesticides, exposure, and the aggregate risk of pesticides showcase a need for more accurate research on pesticide exposure. Existing information, including this study, supports the clear need for a strategic shift away from pesticide dependency. For more information on the effects of pesticide exposure on neurological health, see Beyond Pesticides’ PIDD pages on brain and nervous system disorders, including epilepsy and seizures, and other impacts on cognitive function. 

Beyond Pesticides advocates for organic land and agriculture management as a precautionary approach to pest prevention and management. Buying, growing, and supporting organic can help eliminate the extensive use of pesticides in the environment and from your diet. For more information on why organic is the right choice for consumers and the farmworkers who grow our food, see the Beyond Pesticides webpage, Health Benefits of Organic Agriculture. 

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

Source: NeuroToxicology

(Beyond Pesticides, May 10, 2023) Scientists are uncovering more information about a fungal pathogen behind a disease outbreak in Indian hospitals that sickened 10 pre-term infants. According to a study published in mBIO late last month, the yeast pathogen Lodderomyces elongisporus was the causative agent of this outbreak and is rapidly evolving resistance to control measures. There is growing concern globally over the spread of fungal pathogens, with scientists increasingly identifying agriculture as the driver behind pathogenic mutations and resistance.

Scientists in Delhi, India were called to investigate an outbreak of L. elongisporus that sickened ten infants with low birthweight in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) from September 2021 to February 2022. L. elongisporus is more commonly known for attacking severely immunocompromised adults, including those with heart conditions or a history of intravenous drug use. However, there are an increasing number of reports of fungal infections in neonatal care units. Further, the fungus appears to be spreading globally, with reports of infections in the Middle East, Europe, Australia, and North America.

“This yeast is among a growing list of fungi capable of causing severe infections among humans,” said lead study author Jianping Xu, PhD a professor at McMaster University in Canada to ETHealthworld. “The genetic mechanisms underlying their adaptations to humans, and to hospital and natural environments warrant further investigation and measures to contain their spread and persistence.”

Researchers aimed to determine the origin of the yeast in the NICU, how it came to infect neonates, and its current genetic makeup and potential resistance to control measures and treatments.

As part of the outbreak investigation, scientists learned that one infant was initially sickened, and treated with common antifungals, but, after isolating the infection and determining it to be L. elongisporus, switched to a more intensive treatment. After a second case was found, prevention practices and cleaning increased, and only two cases occurred over the next couple months. Then a cluster of four neonates were sickened, resulting in environmental sampling of the NICU. Researchers found two locations where L. elongisporus remained – on the railing of the neonate open care warmer (a machine that houses neonatal infants) and on its temperature control panel. This information and more strict protocols on handwashing and disinfection contained the outbreak. Nine of the ten patients sickened survived treatment with an antifungal known as amphotericin B, a very strong antifungal that itself has severe and potentially lethal side effects.

Further environmental sampling and genetic sequencing determined that stored apples outside of the hospital contained a similar, though not exact, strain of L. elongisporus. Testing on the hospital strain and apple strain showed significant diversity between how samples responded to antifungal drugs. Most concerningly, scientists found evidence of recombination in all samples. This indicates that this fungus is evolving rapidly.

“The findings are worrisome because the hospital environment seems to be selecting for stress-resistant fungal pathogens. They are adapting and evolving very, very quickly,” said Dr. Xu to ETHealthworld.

While scientists found that L. elongisporus was able to be killed by antifungals, its susceptibility to disinfectants is another story. The fungus is surprisingly resistant to bleach employed to clean hospital rooms of infectious agents.

Lodderomyces elongisporus appears to be speed running a virulent path similar to that of Candida auris and Aspergillus fumigatus. C. auris has been rapidly spreading across the world over the last decade, posing significant risks to public health. A 2022 study published on the spread of A. fumigatus found a direct connection between fungicide use on farms and growing resistance and virulence in the hospital setting. Such a pathway with a more genetically diverse and rapidly evolving fungus is a chilling prospect for global public health.

Despite these dangers, regulators and politicians are not responding with the urgency that scientists say is needed. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s guidance released on the rise of drug-resistant Candida auris is case in point. The agency failed to consider the resistance impacts of pesticides that are not used for public health purposes; EPA only evaluated the efficacy of antimicrobial compounds whose use patterns classify them as human-health-related.

At the international level, a Freedom of Information Act request reveals officials at the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) working on behalf of the chemical industry to downplay the role of synthetic fungicide use in chemical agriculture as a factor in the rise of drug-resistant fungal infections. Evidence reveals officials within the industry trade group Croplife America urging USDA to “make certain” that the United Nation’s (UN) Codex Alimentarius, a set of international guidelines and standards established to protect consumer health, made no mention of how fungicides contribute to antibiotic resistance. Government agencies in the U.S. are thus not only failing to take action, but actively blocking efforts to address this issue.

Evidence shows that the only true way to eliminate resistance is to stop using the material that is causing resistance to occur in the first place. Organic agriculture is the best response to rising resistance, placing strong controls on allowed materials. This ensures that life-saving medication will be retained to protect people’s health, not grow crops. For more reasons to go organic, see Beyond Pesticides Why Organic webpage.

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

Source: ETHealthworld, mBIO

(Beyond Pesticides, May 9, 2022) The Colorado legislature last week passed SB23-266, a bill limiting the use of bee-toxic neonicotinoid pesticides in the state. The news comes as other states consider their own restrictions, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is publishing details on exactly which endangered species are set to be harmed by the ongoing use of these harmful insecticides. This latest news shows that protecting pollinators is possible, and urgently needed given growing understanding of the dangers these chemicals pose to the most vulnerable wildlife in the country.  

The Colorado bill requires the state’s commissioner of agriculture to adopt rules designating neonicotinoid pesticides as ‘limited-use’ pesticides in the state. With this designation, only licensed pesticide dealers may sell products containing these chemicals. Per the state’s legal code, the “limited-use” designation means the same as a federal “restricted-use” pesticide, which permits sales and use only for certified applicators. Passage of this bill marks an important step forward for pollinator protection efforts in the state. It will help ensure that homeowners are not able to easily purchase this product at big box retailers, but will allow continued use in residential areas and in agriculture.

Colorado’s bill fulfills guidance that EPA itself has advised but is not actually proposing. In releasing the interim decisions to reregister bee-toxic pesticides for another 15 long years, EPA noted that it is proposing “language on the label that advises homeowners not to use neonicotinoid products.” That is correct – the agency is planning to approve chemicals it is advising individuals not to use. In this context, actions by state lawmakers represent the bare minimum in instituting protections that the federal government itself apparently believes that it should be implementing.

Colorado’s bill is similar to restrictions implemented in the states of Maryland, Connecticut, New York, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Vermont. However, it falls short of the strongest state models that have been passed in New Jersey and Maine that eliminate all outdoor uses of these chemicals, even by certified applicators. This is a result of a recognition that, even if applied perfectly according to the label, there is no safe level of exposure to these pesticides for pollinators. Connecticut, Nevada, and New York are considering legislation that would enact broader restrictions.

All of these state level bans pale in comparison to the robust protections currently implemented in the European Union (EU). The EU has banned neonicotinoid pesticide use on all outdoor areas, allowing use only in enclosed greenhouses.  

It is evident from EPA’s own data that similar restrictions are urgently needed in the United States. According to a biological evaluation that EPA is required to perform (and yet did so only as a result of several legal challenges), neonicotinoid have been found to adversely effect a majority of nontarget endangered species. According to EPA, endangered species are likely to be harmed at the following percentages: for imidacloprid, 1,445 (79%); for clothianidin, 1,225 (67%); and, for thiamethoxam, 1,396 (77%).

New data released this month is focused on exactly the species and their habitats whose existence is threatened by ongoing use of these chemicals. This list includes species one may expect to be impacted, like the imperiled rusty-patched bumblebee and the Karner blue butterfly, but also includes the greater prairie-chicken, vernal pool fairy shrimp, American burying beetle, and even plants like the Western prairie fringed orchid.

Local and state level action indicates that many lawmakers are paying attention to the latest science and willing to act. However, it will take significant efforts from consumers and U.S. residents at all levels to get EPA and the U.S. Congress to take meaningful action to protect pollinators.

Join Beyond Pesticides today in urging President Biden and Congress to take actions to restore scientific integrity to EPA and eliminate pesticide industry corruption within the agency. These actions are critical for the agency to make unbiased decisions about the registration of well-known hazardous pesticides like the neonicotinoids. For more information on how you can get involved in protecting pollinators, see Beyond Pesticides BEE Protective webpage.

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

Source: Colorado General Assembly, EPA, Common Dreams

Image source: Wikimedia

(Beyond Pesticides, May 8, 2023) The Farm Bill in Congress covers many areas—ranging from the supplemental nutritional assistance program (SNAP) to trade—and the pesticide industry would like to insert a provision that takes away (preempts) local authority to restrict pesticide use—which would undercut the local democratic process to protect public health and safety. Even if communities are not now regulating toxic pesticides, we do not want to close the door on future action, as communities take on petrochemical pesticide and fertilizer use that is contributing to health threats, biodiversity collapse, and the climate emergency.   

Part 1: Tell your local officials to sign onto a letter opposing the preemption language. Part 2: Tell your U.S. Representative and Senators to support communities by opposing anti-democratic preemption language in the 2023 Farm Bill. 

As Congress drafts the 2023 Farm Bill, there is an opportunity for many topics—good and bad—to be introduced. Dating back to Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal of the 1930s, which addressed threats posed by the Great Depression and drought, the Farm Bill is an omnibus bill passed every five years. It is designed to secure a sufficient food supply, establish fair food prices for both farmers and consumers, and protect the soil and other natural resources on which farmers depend, but includes much more. In the 117th Congress, H.R. 7266 was introduced to prohibit local governments from adopting pesticide laws that are more protective than federal rules. If such language were to be incorporated into the 2023 Farm Bill as the pesticide industry plans to do, it would overturn decades of precedent as well as prevent local governments from protecting their residents from hazardous chemicals in their environment.  

This is a direct assault on nearly 200 communities across the country that have passed their own policies to restrict the use of toxic pesticides. Communities must maintain the right to restrict pesticides linked to cancer, water-contamination, and the decline of pollinators to protect their residents’ health and unique local ecosystems. 

The provision hinges on the concept of preemption: a legal theory that allows larger jurisdictions (federal and state) to limit the authority of a jurisdiction within it to regulate a specific issue. In 1991, the Supreme Court specifically upheld the authority of local governments to restrict pesticides throughout their jurisdictions under federal pesticide law in Wisconsin Public Intervenor v. Mortier. The Court ruled that federal pesticide law does not prohibit or preempt local jurisdictions from restricting the use of pesticides more stringently than the federal government throughout their jurisdiction. According to Mortier, however, states may retain authority to take away local control.  

Part 1: Tell your local officials to sign onto a letter opposing the preemption language. Part 2: Tell your U.S. Representative and Senators to support communities by opposing anti-democratic preemption language in the 2023 Farm Bill.    

In response to the Supreme Court decision, the pesticide lobby immediately formed a coalition, called the Coalition for Sensible Pesticide Policy, and developed boilerplate legislative language that restricts local municipalities from passing ordinances on the use of pesticides on private property. The Coalition’s lobbyists descended on states across the country, seeking, and passing, in most cases, preemption legislation that was often identical to the Coalition’s wording. Since the passage of those state laws, there have been numerous efforts to prohibit localities from developing policies reflecting the unique needs and values of the people living there.  

If the pesticide industry is successful, the impacts for public health and ecological stability would be devastating. Only states and the federal government would be able to regulate pesticide use. With most state agencies allowing all uses on labels approved by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), local jurisdictions would be forced to follow the rulemaking of an agency that has been documented to be captured by industry interests.

Preemption would quash a growing national grassroots movement encouraging alternatives to toxic pesticides where people live, work, and play. Federal preemption would prevent local governments from instituting pesticide regulations that are stricter than federal regulations, taking away communities’ basic right to secure their own safety and interrupting a burgeoning movement of local pesticide restrictions. Such preemption provisions will likely prevent states from giving localities the right to regulate pesticides.  

Many pesticides targeted by local city residents, including neonicotinoids, glyphosate, and atrazine, have been banned or restricted in other countries due to health or environmental concerns. However, in the U.S. the Environmental Protection Agency has not taken similar action on these pesticides. Given federal inaction and the previous administration’s failure to follow sound science, it is imperative that local governments retain the ability to tailor laws so localities can respond to federal actions that permit the use of toxic chemicals that residents do not want in their community.  

Having failed to curtail prohibitions against local restrictions into the 2018 Farm Bill after massive pushback from health advocates, local officials, and Congressional allies, the chemical industry is renewing its attack. The industry continues to flex its muscle in Congress through attempts to add preemption language in the 2023 Farm Bill as a growing number of communities are deciding to act.  

Part 1: Tell your local officials to sign onto a letter opposing the preemption language. Part 2: Tell your U.S. Representative and Senators to support communities by opposing anti-democratic preemption language in the 2023 Farm Bill.   

The targets for this Action are the U.S. Congress and local elected officials across the United States.

Part I: Ask your local officials to sign on this letter opposing the preemption language.

Mayors, city council members, and county commissioners should make their voices heard in opposition to preemption, which prohibits local governments from adopting pesticide laws that are more protective than federal and state rules and overturns decades of precedent and Supreme Court rulings. It could prevent local governments from tailoring laws to the specific needs of their communities.

Please send your mayor and other local officials a short note (see below) asking them to sign this letter! [Note: Only sign-ons of local officials can be accepted]

To find contact information for local elected officials, check out this tool from usa.gov: https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials 

• Letter Link: bp-dc.org/official-local-letter-pesticide-preemption
• Link for a local elected official to sign: https://secure.everyaction.com/aMcVHaaV7ES6Qw6RhBOCbw2

Sample email to local elected officials (please cut-and-paste, as needed):

As a local elected official, please make your voice heard in opposition to federal preemption of local authority, which prohibits local governments from adopting pesticide laws that are more protective than federal and state rules and overturns decades of precedent and Supreme Court rulings. It could prevent local governments from tailoring laws to the specific needs of our community. Please see the letter and a link to sign onto the letter below:

Letter: bp-dc.org/official-local-letter-pesticide-preemption
Link to sign on to the  letter: https://secure.everyaction.com/aMcVHaaV7ES6Qw6RhBOCbw2

While having differing views on pesticides, local leaders take very seriously a duty to protect constituents. Federal pesticide preemption is a direct attack on this authority. This provision prohibits local governments from adopting pesticide laws that are more protective than federal rules. It overturns decades of precedent and Supreme Court rulings and could prevent local governments from tailoring laws to the specific needs of their communities. 

As of 2023, nearly 200 communities across the country have passed policies to restrict the use of pesticides in response to emerging evidence about potential human and environmental impacts. The exact concerns differ by pesticide, but include links to cancer, developmental challenges, lower IQ, and delayed motor development. Many of these laws work to protect the most vulnerable among us, such as children, who take in more pesticides relative to their body weight than adults and have developing organ systems. Others focus on safeguarding precious water resources, or the protection of wildlife like declining pollinator species critical to our environment and food supply.   

While not every city has taken these actions, it is important to support the right to do so and you should oppose forfeiting this right for the indefinite future. In fact, federal pesticide preemption undermines the key role that local governments play across the country. 

Please sign this letter in opposition to including preemption in the Farm Bill. 

Thank you. 

Part II: Tell Congress to support communities by opposing anti-democratic preemption language in the 2023 Farm Bill

Letter to Congress
I am writing to urge you to oppose adding language in the 2023 Farm Bill that seeks to deny local communities the power to protect themselves from chemical exposure when state and federal regulation is inadequate. If incorporated into the upcoming 2023 Farm bill, it would amend federal pesticide law to prohibit local governments from restricting pesticide use within their jurisdictions. However, the rights of local governmental jurisdictions under existing pesticide law, the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), have been left to the states since the law’s adoption. In fact, 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.

This is a direct assault on nearly 200 communities across the country that have passed their own policies to restrict the use of toxic pesticides. Communities must maintain the right to restrict pesticides linked to cancer, water contamination, and the decline of pollinators to protect their resident’s health and unique local ecosystems.

The rights of local governments to protect people and the environment were upheld by 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. In Wisconsin Public Intervenor v. Mortier, the Court ruled that FIFRA does not prohibit, or preempt, local jurisdictions from restricting the use of pesticides more stringently than the federal government. According to Mortier, however, states may retain authority to take away local control.

This legislation would quash a growing national grassroots movement encouraging alternatives to toxic pesticides where people live, work, and play. It would prevent local governments from instituting pesticide regulations that are stricter than federal regulations, confiscating communities’ basic right to secure their own safety and interrupting a burgeoning movement of local pesticide restrictions. Many pesticides targeted by local city residents, including neonicotinoids, glyphosate, and atrazine, have been banned or restricted in other countries due to health or environmental concerns. However, in the U.S. the Environmental Protection Agency has not taken similar action on these pesticides. Given federal inaction and the previous administration’s failure to follow sound science, it is imperative that local governments retain the ability to tailor laws so localities can respond to federal actions that permit the use of toxic chemicals that residents do not want in their community.   

Please let me know your position on these preemption provisions.

Thank you.

(Beyond Pesticides, May 5, 2023) Low level exposure to pyrethroid insecticides found in common pesticide brands like RAID and ORTHO result in neurodevelopmental damage to laboratory animals, reinforcing evidence of harm found in epidemiological studies on human exposure to these chemicals. According to research published in PNAS Nexus, mice exposed to the pyrethroid deltamethrin displayed atypical behavior similar to humans with developmental disorders. “We are not saying these mice have autism or that they have ADHD. That’s not the goal here,” said James Burkett, PhD, study coauthor and assistant professor of neuroscience in the UToledo College of Medicine. “What we are saying is that something in their brain has been altered by this exposure and it’s resulting in the same kinds of behaviors that we see in children with autism.”

Scientists arrived at this determination by exposing a group of mouse mothers to consistent low levels of deltamethrin in their food during preconception, pregnancy, and lactation. The study notes that the amount of pesticide provided was “well below the benchmark dose for regulatory guidance.” A separate control group was given no pesticide in its food. Offspring from the female mice were then put through behavioral tests on social behavior, restrictive or repetitive behaviors, cognition and communication.

Results found that mouse pups whose mothers were exposed to deltamethrin increased their repetitive behaviors. In tests, they buried more marbles than control pups, and performed more self-grooming than the control group. Male pups exposed to deltamethrin also produced fewer vocalizations when being separated from their mothers. Pesticide exposure also impaired learning and memory; in a fear conditioning test, exposed mice were less likely to react to a fearful event they encountered before.

In addition to behavior, scientists observed physiological changes in pups whose mothers were pyrethroid-exposed. These mice exhibited significant changes in dopamine levels and transport around the body. For autistic individuals, the metabolite homovanillic acid (HVA) is considered the earliest biomarker for the condition, and exposed mice pups displayed increased levels of the substance.

“These are all similar to symptoms human patients with neurodevelopmental disorders might have,” Dr. Burkett said.

Synthetic pyrethroids are hazardous pesticides that have flown below even pesticide advocates radar for far too long, not receiving nearly as much attention as other dangerous and commonly used pesticides like glyphosate.

“If you have someone who comes and sprays in your house, this is likely what they’re spraying. It’s used in landscaping, it’s what they fog in the streets for mosquitos. It’s everywhere,” said Dr. Burkett. “Our study, however, adds to the evidence that these chemicals might not be as safe for children and pregnant women as we once believed.”

In fact, Beyond Pesticides has never believed these chemicals to be safe for children or pregnant women. The depth of historical reporting on these chemicals in the Daily News Blog bares this out. As far back as 2008, Beyond Pesticides was reporting on the risk these chemicals pose to children’s development.

The research on this class of chemicals has sounded a consistent drumbeat that of developmental harm to children. In 2011, research determined that children exposed to higher levels of synthetic pyrethroids are three times as likely to have mental delay compared to less exposed children. A study from 2014 associated proximity to pesticide treated agricultural fields in pregnancy to increased risk of autism to children of exposed mothers. Data published in 2015 find that deltamethrin increases risk of ADHD in children, with one study finding impacts specifically to boys. Studies published two years later determined that synthetic pyrethroid exposure increases risk of premature puberty in boys, and another associated the chemicals with externalizing and internalizing disorders. Another study found that aerial mosquito spraying, which is most frequently conducted with synthetic pyrethroids, is linked to elevated autism rates.

The impacts seen are not all developmental. A 2012 study associates pyrethroid exposure before, during, and after pregnancy with increased risk of infant leukemia. And a recent study published earlier this year finds that synthetic pyrethroid exposure during mosquito control operations increases risk of respiratory disease and certain allergies.

Rather than rein in use of these chemicals, EPA in 2019 stripped away protections that reduced children’s exposure to pyrethroids. In making its decision, the agency allowed a letter from the pesticide industry umbrella group Croplife America to dictate its approach to protecting children from hazardous, neurotoxic pyrethroids. The model proposed by Croplife eliminated safety factors for children. In a rare instance, EPA conducted an outside literature review to buttress its argument, but instead ignored those data and prioritized the unprotective model proposed by the pesticide industry.

After selling out children’s health, the agency then took directions from a group referring to themselves as the Pyrethroid Working Group (PWG), comprised of major pesticide manufacturers Bayer, FMC, Syngenta, BASF, AMVAC, and Valent. At the request of this working group, EPA reduced a proposal from EPA staff scientists to implement 66 foot buffer zones between agricultural fields and water bodies down to 10-25 feet. The agency also agreed that wind speeds up to 15 miles per hour were acceptable for pyrethroid applications, despite previous proposals setting the cut-off at 10 mph.

“We have reduced our exposures to many classes of dangerous pesticides over the past few decades through restrictions and regulations,” said study coauthor Gary Miller, PhD, vice dean for research strategy and innovation at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. “This study adds to a growing body of literature that the widely used pyrethroids are not without adverse effects and should be further evaluated for their safety.”

While further study is warranted, it should be conducted while this class of chemicals is suspended from public use. Rather than place the burden of proof on scientists to show harm, chemical manufacturers should be required to provide evidence that these chemicals will not harm children’s health. It is evident that they cannot, and with every new study there is growing awareness from the scientific community that these chemicals do not belong on the market.

Take action today by signing the ladybug pledge and urging your mayor to convert your community parks to land care practices that do not use synthetic pyrethroids or other toxic pesticides.

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

Source: MedicalXpress, PNAS Nexus

(Beyond Pesticides, May 4, 2023) One of the most widely used insecticides in California, Intrepid 2F, contains harmful levels of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), or “forever chemicals,” according to a report by the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). In fact, 40 percent of pesticide products in the report tested positive for high levels of PFAS. PFAS are common in non-stick cookware, cleaning/personal care products, food packaging, and other consumer products. However, these compounds are also in pesticide products. Despite evidence on the dangers of PFAS stretching as far back as the 1950s, federal agencies sat by the sidelines as the plastics industry continued adding the material to new products. From widespread presence in farm fields and sewage sludge to contaminated water bodies throughout the U.S., PFAS has made its way into the environment and our bodies. PFAS are even present in remote environments like the Arctic, Antarctica, and Eastern European Tibetan Plateau. A study published in 2020 identified PFAS as common products to which Americans are exposed daily.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) determined that 98% of Americans have some level of PFAS in their bloodstream, with studies reporting PFAS compounds are detectable in infants, children, and pregnant women. With health risks including developmental, metabolic, cardiovascular, and reproductive harm, cancer, damage to the liver, kidneys, and respiratory system, as well as the potential to increase the chance of disease infection and severity, PFAS presents a chronic danger to people that demands urgent regulatory action. CBD and PEER submitted the test results to the EPA and the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (CDPR), advising the agencies to remove these pesticide products from the market until contaminants from supply lines can be removed.

CBD authorized independent, certified lab testing on seven agricultural pesticides with common uses in California to determine the part per trillion (ppt) of PFAS in pesticide products. The insecticide product Malathion 5EC (active ingredient: malathion) contains 510s ppt perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and 680 ppt perfluoroheptanesulfonic acid (PFHpS), with a PFOA level over 100,000 times higher than the level EPA considers safe in drinking water (0.004 ppt). The insecticide Oberon 2SC (active ingredient: spiromesifin) contains 1,500 ppt perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA), and Intrepid 2F (active ingredient: methoxyfenozide) contains 50 ppt of perfluorobutanesulfonic acid (PFBS).

PFAS are a group of nearly 10,000 human-made chemicals in various consumer products that people use daily. Although some PFAS compound manufacturing has ceased, these chemicals last forever in the environment as their chemical structure makes them resistant to breakdown. Thus, PFAS contamination is significantly underrepresented and much more perverse that previously thought, polluting storage and transportation containers, food and water resources, and other chemical products. Not only is the public exposed to such chemicals, those who work in factories that create products that include PFAS, or workers who use them regularly, have higher cumulative exposures. Across multiple states, firefighters have begun to bring lawsuits against manufacturers of the foams, charging that the companies knowingly made and sold products with these forever chemicals that put the workers’ health at risk. Others at greater-than-average exposure risk include pregnant or lactating people and young children. Although some PFAS compound manufacturing has ceased, these chemicals last forever in the environment as their chemical structure makes them resistant to breakdown. Thus, PFAS contamination is significantly underrepresented and much more perverse than previously thought, polluting storage and transportation containers, food and water resources, and other chemical products. For instance, many reports address the high levels of PFAS contamination in the mosquito insecticide Anvil 10+10.

Although EPA does not regulate PFAS in pesticide formulas, the agency lists these substances in the inert ingredient database, and thus product labels do not require disclosure of contaminants fundamental to pesticide products as a result of the manufacturing or packaging process. Concerning the ecosystem, the ongoing detection of PFAS in various environments and soils also threatens the ability of growers, including organic growers, to produce food that does not harbor these compounds. PFAS do not break down in the environment and are detectable in more than 330 animal species globally, including species at extinction risk. PFAS chemical residues persist in food and drinking water, with over six million U.S. residents regularly encountering drinking water with PFAS levels above the EPA health advisory of 70 ng/L. Therefore, PFAS are detectable in almost all of the U.S. population—disproportionately afflicting people of color communities—and have implications for human health. 

Nathan Donley, Ph.D., environmental health science director at CBD, states, “I can’t imagine anything that could make these products any more dangerous than they already are, but apparently, my imagination isn’t big enough. […] The EPA has to take control of this situation and remove pesticide products that are contaminated with these extremely dangerous, persistent chemicals.”

Despite EPA considering the primary source of PFAS contamination in pesticides from leach from fluorinated containers, PFBS and PFHpS, like in Intrepid 2F and Malathion 5EC, respectively, are not known to leach. Thus, this report indicates that PFAS contamination of agricultural pesticide products comes from additional unknown sources. For instance, PFAS in rainwater, surface water, and soil exceeds the planetary boundary for chemical pollution, contaminating above EPA’s proposed guideline levels, and exceeding safe limits for humanity. Despite reductions in the global emissions for PFAS compounds, the environmental persistence and hydrological cycling of these toxic chemicals make them an ever-present source of contamination, especially as PFAS compounds do not break down in the environment. Studies from the past year highlight:

1. “Levels of PFOA and PFOS in rainwater often greatly exceed US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Lifetime Drinking Water Health Advisory levels, and the sum of the aforementioned four PFAAs (Σ4 PFAS) in rainwater is often above Danish drinking water limit values also based on Σ4 PFAS;
2. Levels of PFOS in rainwater are often above Environmental Quality Standard for Inland European Union Surface Water; and
3. Atmospheric deposition also leads to global soils being ubiquitously contaminated, and to be often above proposed Dutch guideline values.”

PEER’s science policy director Kyla Bennett, Ph.D., cautions, “While communities around the country are struggling to remove PFAS from their drinking-water supplies, we are spraying millions of acres of our land with the same toxic chemicals. […] It’s nonsensical; we can’t protect our drinking water unless and until we get PFAS out of all pesticides.”

Ubiquitous environmental contaminants, like PFAS, have severe consequences, especially on the health of vulnerable individuals. Various pesticide products act similarly to PFAS. Individuals can encounter these substances simultaneously, resulting in more severe health outcomes. Therefore, advocates urge that policies enforce stricter pesticide regulations and increase research on the long-term impacts of pesticide exposure. Many states are issuing regulatory limits on various PFAS in drinking water, groundwater, and soil. However, EPA must require complete product testing and disclosure of ingredients for proper PFAS regulation. Furthermore, the agency must identify the unreasonable of exposure to toxic pesticides by citing the productivity and profitability of organic and ecological pest management practices. Solutions like buying, growing, and supporting organic can help eliminate the extensive use of pesticides in the environment. Organic land management and regenerative organic agriculture eliminate the need for toxic agricultural pesticides. Given the wide availability of nonpesticidal alternative strategies, families and industry workers can apply these methods to promote a safe and healthy environment, especially among chemically vulnerable individuals. For more information on why organic is the healthy choice, see the Beyond Pesticides webpage, Health Benefits of Organic Agriculture. Additionally, learn more about how the lack of adequate pesticide regulations can adversely affect human and environmental health by visiting the Beyond Pesticides’ Pesticides and You article “Regulatory Failures Mount, Threatening Health and Safety.”

Spring is here, so grow your spring garden the organic way by Springing Into Action, pledging to eliminate toxic pesticide use.

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

Source: Analytical Report, Center for Biological Diversity  

(Beyond Pesticides, May 3, 2023) New research is highlighting the best flowers to plant in order to attract syrphid flies (also known as hover flies, or flower flies), an important pollinator and, in its larval stage, a predator of many common farm and garden pests. With spring in full swing, the results of the study, published in the journal Environmental Entomology by researchers at the University of New Hampshire (UNH), provide a helpful guide for growers wishing to avoid pesticide use and leverage biological pest management techniques.

Study authors indicate that their research is partly a response to growers in the New England region moving away from planting brassicas due to the impact of the cabbage aphid. While there is considerable research on the benefits of syrphid flies for growers in other parts of the country, less is known about the species and flowers that support these insects in the Northeast. “This paper is the first report of the species composition of syrphids living and foraging in our local vegetable systems,” said study coauthor Anna Wallingford, PhD, of UNH. “We knew that syrphids as a group can provide important ecosystem services, and we knew plenty about the foraging behaviors of species in the western U.S. and Europe, but now we know which species are active here in New England.”

A field study was established whereby insectary plants, those attractive to beneficial insects like syrphid flies, were established in 3x6ft plots in the states of Connecticut, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts. Insectary plants included sweet alyssum, ammi (‘white dill’), buckwheat, calendula, cilantro, dill, phacelia, and fennel. These plots were surrounded by various vegetable plantings that changed over the three years of the study. Intercropping included winter rye, cabbage, willow, sweet corn, cucumbers, lettuce, barley, broccoli, sunn hemp, winter rye, bok choy, grape, strawberry, and brussels sprouts.

Syrphid flies were regularly collected  (15-16 samples) in the summer and fall months in all plots, and analyzed for their relative abundance on different plants. All insectary plants were compared to sweet alyssum, as the plant has been well established as attractant to hover flies in other studies conducted around the world.

Results show that very few insectary plants are more attractive than sweet alyssum. Ammi, calendula, and phacelia generally hosted fewer flies than sweet alyssum, but cilantro and dill sometimes did reach parity. Buckwheat was a standout, at times attracting over 4 times more hover flies than sweet alyssum.

But while buckwheat is an incredibly effective attractant, its overall impact is reduced by its incredibly short bloom period, averaging just under 30 days. Sweet alyssum, with its average of nearly 90 days of bloom, remain the most effective year-round syrphid fly habitat.  

Overall, researchers collected 1,447 syrphid flies representing 21 different species. “Toxomerus marginatus, or the margined calligrapher, is the most abundant syrphid fly found in this study (about 70 percent of the total surveyed syrphids) and is known to be abundant across North America,” said coauthor Alina (Harris) Cypher ’19G. “In addition to eating aphids, their predatory larvae feed on a variety of other soft bodied insects (thrips, caterpillars, mealy bugs), which suggests our insectary plant research has implications of contributing pest management services in range of crops and pest complexes.”

The findings should help inform the annual plantings farmers and gardeners along the US East Coast may want to consider as they work to reduce pest pressure on their plots. “One drawback of using buckwheat, dill and cilantro over alyssum is that they bloom for shorter time periods, and they aren’t as cold hardy in the spring and fall,” said Cypher. “Sweet alyssum was the standout species, due to its season-long continuous bloom period that did not require multiple plantings throughout the year.”

Research consistently finds that adding diversity to a cropping system results in significant ongoing benefits for pest management and yield, while monocultures harm biodiversity and the capacity for biological pest management.

Take action today to urge elected officials to embrace organic approaches to pest management and crop production in the upcoming Farm Bill by supporting a national transition to organic farming.

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

Source: UNH Today, Environmental Entomology

Image Source: Wikimedia

(Beyond Pesticides, May 2, 2023) On April 20, the European Commission’s new rules on endocrine disrupting chemicals took effect. Called “Classification, Labelling & Packaging” (CLP), the rules create four new hazard categories for endocrine disruptors. The categories range from “suspected of causing” or “may cause” endocrine disruption in the environment to “suspected of causing” or “may cause” endocrine disruption in humans. After a transition period, users will have to indicate on labels and packaging if a substance falls into any of the hazard classes. All actors in the supply chain are obligated to provide the information to every downstream participant. The  new CLP rules, implementing a 2022 measure adopted by the European Commission and then the European Parliament, also specify a minimum font size for the hazard information and for the first time include standards for labeling in online commerce and in places where customers use refillable containers to transport, store, and use the chemicals.

According to the EU Directorate-General for the Environment: “The new hazard classes are the result of extensive scientific discussions and will provide easier access to information to all users of such chemicals, notably consumers, workers and businesses. They allow further action to address and mitigate the risks of substances and mixtures under other EU legislation such as REACH, while taking account of socio-economic impacts.”

Endocrine disruptors are chemicals that can replace or add to naturally occurring hormones whose delicate balance is essential for human and animal health. They can affect that balance at extremely low levels. The European Union (EU) has identified at least 50 pesticide active ingredients as endocrine disruptors. Their effects have been tied to obesity, endometriosis, declines in sperm counts and viability, thyroid malfunction, and many other endpoints.

Extending its Green Deal initiative, the EU adopted its “Farm to Fork” strategy in October 2021. As part of the program, in June 2022 it banned all pesticide use in sensitive areas, including urban greenspaces, parks, playgrounds, and areas set aside to protect pollinators. Further, Farm to Fork aims to halve “the use and risk of chemical pesticides” by 2030.

High Contrast with the U.S.

The EU action adds to the evidence that Europe is far ahead of the United States (U.S.) in protecting against endocrine disruptors. The EU has taken a markedly different approach than the U.S. to such chemicals. Political and economic pressure in the U.S. has kept the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) focus on risk (the likelihood of exposure) rather than hazard (the potential to cause harm), whereas the EU considers hazard first.

Focusing on risk has led the EPA to accept the industry’s suggestion that most people are unlikely to be exposed to dangerous chemicals, an approach belied by the mass of evidence demonstrating the ubiquity of many chemicals in humans and animals, such as the NHANES 2013-2014 data showing glyphosate is present in the urine of 81% of the US population over the age of six.

EPA is well known to have dragged its feet on regulating ED chemicals for decades. Congress passed the Food Quality Protection Act in 1996, amending federal pesticide and food safety policy and directing the EPA to implement its Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program within three years. As Beyond Pesticides noted last January, two investigations by the EPA’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) in 2011 and 2021, observed that the EPA had made no “meaningful progress” in implementing the mandatory endocrine disruptor screening program. The 2021 OIG report stated that “some EPA staff were instructed to function as if the screening program had been eliminated from EPA’s budget” even though the program had a budget that year of $75 million.

The U.S. still uses 85 pesticides banned in other countries, according to an analysis by the Center for Biological Diversity. In 27 years the EPA has failed to test 96 percent of registered pesticides, according to a 2022 complaint against the EPA filed by the Center for Food Safety and four other environmental groups. The most recent action in that case has been to admit attorneys for CropLife America, an industry group, as intervenors for the defendant in the action. In its motion, CropLife claimed, both simultaneously disingenuously and candidly, that:

“its members are key stakeholders in ensuring EPA can meet its obligations under the Food Quality Protection Act (“FQPA”) to implement the Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program…without imposing unnecessarily burdensome and time-consuming barriers to pesticide registration…CropLife’s members have invested tens of millions of dollars in research and testing of their pesticides to provide assurance of their safety, and the value of their EPA-issued licenses would be significantly diminished by a finding that EPA violated federal laws in issuing them or failed to consider the risks of endocrine effects during the review process…if Plaintiffs obtain the relief they seek, CropLife’s ability to protect its members’ interests would be impaired….”

This statement illustrates what Center for Biological Diversity environmental health director Nathan Donley, PhD, observed in a 2022 Brookings Institution essay: “The EPA pesticide office tends to view its relationship with the pesticide industry as a “partnership” and often asks permission instead of acting decisively.”

But, Dr. Donley writes, the U.S. is shooting itself in the foot economically by failing to implement pesticide safety policies. This is because many other countries have already banned pesticides the U.S. does not, and will not accept imports of agricultural products bearing those pesticides’ residues. For example, U.S. cherry growers use dimethoate, a neurotoxic pesticide. France refused U.S. cherries for four years and then the EU set the maximum allowable dimethoate residue on imports to the detection limit, making it functionally impossible for U.S. cherries to be accepted. This cost U.S. growers an estimated $5 million. Some estimates put U.S. fruit growers’ export losses at $17 million per year owing to the EU’s pesticide residue limits.

What Is to Be Done?

The EU’s relative speed in regulating endocrine disruptors puts the EPA’s glacial pace in an even worse light. Still, in addition to the various lawsuits, there are other U.S. efforts to reform pesticide policy. Senate Bill 3283, the Protect America’s Children from Toxic Pesticides Act, was introduced in 2021 by Senator Cory Booker (although it has been languishing in committee). Congress could also ratify the Stockholm and Rotterdam Conventions, which regulate persistent organic pollutants and international trade in hazardous chemicals, respectively. Additionally, the U.S. could establish dramatic transition goals to eliminate endocrine disruptors in land management, which is required under the USDA organic seal of the Organic Foods Production Act. While U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack has announced increased support for organic, the funds behind the rhetoric fall far short of what is needed to meet the current health crisis (including the impact of endocrine disruptors), dramatic biodiversity decline, and the climate emergency.

Concrete actions at the personal, local and regional levels may make a more effective and less frustrating difference. An organic diet can rapidly reduce the body burden of many pesticides, especially for children. Beyond Pesticides has partnered with activists and organic producers to support pollinators and reduce pesticide use, such as cosponsoring the Ladybug Pledge. Many communities are now following the “No Mow May” movement to leave lawns and gardens alone while bumblebees and other native insects establish themselves in the early spring. Eliminating reliance on endocrine disruptors and all toxic pesticides and fertilizers is possible in communities through Beyond Pesticides’ Parks for a Sustainable Future program, which helps towns/cities/counties transition their parks, playing fields, and open space to organic land management.

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

Source: Directorate-General for Environment

(Beyond Pesticides, May 1, 2023) The sheer number of different chemicals in the nation’s waterways and thus potential for toxic mixtures presents significant risks to health and the environment. However, the range of pesticides and the widespread contamination across the country would not be as fully uncovered without the work of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). Research conducted by USGS and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on urban runoff across the country in 2019 found 215 of 438 sampled toxic compounds present in the water.

The toxic soup in many U.S. waterways is unsustainable and threatens the foundation of many food chains. Imbalances in aquatic environments can ripple throughout the food web, creating trophic cascades that further exacerbate health and environmental damage. The data on water contamination has become one of the compelling reasons to abandon reliance on toxic chemicals in favor of organic land management to eliminate these threats.

Tell Secretary of Interior Deb Haaland to expand USGS mapping of pesticide use and monitoring of waterways. Tell EPA Administrator Michael Regan that pesticides shown to contaminate rivers and streams must be banned.

The USGS Water Resources Mission Area (WMA) researches pesticide use, trends in pesticide occurrence in streams, concentrations of pesticides in water of potential human health concern, pesticide toxicity to aquatic organisms, pesticides and stream ecology, and pesticides and lake sediment. While agricultural practices appear to correlate with peaking pesticide contamination during the growing season, urban runoff represents a larger overall proportion of the contamination flowing into waterways. With little to no natural soil to filter contamination, and impervious surfaces creating massive outflows of polluted water, this finding is unsurprising.

A recent USGS study shows that waterways that flow into the Great Lakes are experiencing year-round pesticide contamination that exceeds benchmarks meant to protect aquatic life. This is only one of many studies based on USGS monitoring of 110 stream and river sites, combined with mapping of annual agricultural chemical use. Other recent studies by USGS have found that dozens of pesticides are consistently found in midwestern streams; 88 percent of water samples in U.S. rivers and streams contain at least five or more different pesticides; 41% of public water supply wells are contaminated with pesticides or their degradates; and degradation of rivers from pesticide pollution continues unabated.

The studies relating pesticide use and contamination of waterways should be used by the EPA in pesticide registration decisions. “What you use makes it into the water,” Sam Oliver, PhD, coauthor of the most recent study, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. As important as the existing monitoring network is, a joint study by USGS and EPA shows that it underestimates the problem—more frequent sampling detects twice as many pesticides, at higher concentrations.

Tell Secretary of Interior Deb Haaland to expand USGS mapping of pesticide use and monitoring of waterways. Tell EPA Administrator Michael Regan that pesticides shown to contaminate rivers and streams must be banned.

Letter to U.S. Secretary of Interior Deb Haaland

A recent study by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) shows that waterways that flow into the Great Lakes are experiencing year-round pesticide contamination that exceeds benchmarks meant to protect aquatic life. This is only one of many studies based on USGS monitoring of 110 stream and river sites, combined with mapping of annual agricultural chemical use. Other recent studies by USGS have found that dozens of pesticides are consistently found in midwestern streams; 88 percent of water samples in U.S. rivers and streams contain at least five or more different pesticides; 41% of public water supply wells are contaminated with pesticides or their degradates; and degradation of rivers from pesticide pollution continues unabated.

The studies relating pesticide use and contamination of waterways should be used by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in pesticide registration decisions. “What you use makes it into the water,” Sam Oliver, PhD, coauthor of the most recent study, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. As important as the existing monitoring network is, a joint study by USGS and EPA shows that it underestimates the problem—more frequent sampling detects twice as many pesticides, at higher concentrations.

The USGS Water Resources Mission Area (WMA) researches pesticide use, trends in pesticide occurrence in streams, concentrations of pesticides in water of potential human health concern, pesticide toxicity to aquatic organisms, pesticides and stream ecology, and pesticides and lake sediment. While agricultural practices appear to correlate with peaking pesticide contamination during the growing season, urban runoff represents a larger overall proportion of the contamination flowing into waterways. With little to no natural soil to filter contamination, and impervious surfaces creating massive outflows of polluted water, this finding is unsurprising. Research conducted by USGS and EPA on urban runoff across the country in 2019 found 215 of 438 sampled toxic compounds present in the water. The sheer number of different chemicals and thus potential for even more toxic mixtures presents significant risks to health and the environment.  

The toxic soup in many U.S. waterways is unsustainable and threatens the foundation of many food chains. Imbalances in aquatic environments can ripple throughout the food web, creating trophic cascades that further exacerbate health and environmental damage. The data on water contamination has become one of the compelling reasons to abandon reliance on toxic chemicals in favor of organic land management to eliminate these threats.

Scientific research by USGS is essential to evaluating the impacts of pesticides and must be included in EPA’s pesticide registration decisions. I urge you to increase USGS research into pesticide use and impacts.

Thank you.

Letter to U.S. EPA Administrator Michael Regan

A recent study by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) shows that waterways that flow into the Great Lakes are experiencing year-round pesticide contamination that exceeds benchmarks meant to protect aquatic life. This is only one of many studies based on USGS monitoring of 110 stream and river sites, combined with mapping of annual agricultural chemical use. Other recent studies by USGS have found that dozens of pesticides are consistently found in midwestern streams; 88 percent of water samples in U.S. rivers and streams contain at least five or more different pesticides; 41% of public water supply wells are contaminated with pesticides or their degradates; and degradation of rivers from pesticide pollution continues unabated.

The studies relating pesticide use and contamination of waterways should be used by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in pesticide registration decisions. “What you use makes it into the water,” Sam Oliver, PhD, coauthor of the most recent study, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. As important as the existing monitoring network is, a joint study by USGS and EPA shows that it underestimates the problem—more frequent sampling detects twice as many pesticides, at higher concentrations.

The USGS Water Resources Mission Area (WMA) researches pesticide use, trends in pesticide occurrence in streams, concentrations of pesticides in water of potential human health concern, pesticide toxicity to aquatic organisms, pesticides and stream ecology, and pesticides and lake sediment. While agricultural practices appear to correlate with peaking pesticide contamination during the growing season, urban runoff represents a larger overall proportion of the contamination flowing into waterways. With little to no natural soil to filter contamination, and impervious surfaces creating massive outflows of polluted water, this finding is unsurprising. Research conducted by USGS and EPA on urban runoff across the country in 2019 found 215 of 438 sampled toxic compounds present in the water. The sheer number of different chemicals and thus potential for even more toxic mixtures presents significant risks to health and the environment.  

The toxic soup in many U.S. waterways is unsustainable and threatens the foundation of many food chains. Imbalances in aquatic environments can ripple throughout the food web, creating trophic cascades that further exacerbate health and environmental damage. The data on water contamination has become one of the compelling reasons to abandon reliance on toxic chemicals in favor of organic land management to eliminate these threats.

Scientific research by USGS is essential to evaluating the impacts of pesticides and must be included in EPA’s pesticide registration decisions. EPA must not register toxic chemicals that pollute waterways and groundwater. No contamination is reasonable under federal pesticide law, given the availability of cost-effective alternative practices and products certified by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Organic Program.

Thank you.

Letter to U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators

A recent study by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) shows that waterways that flow into the Great Lakes are experiencing year-round pesticide contamination that exceeds benchmarks meant to protect aquatic life. This is only one of many studies based on USGS monitoring of 110 stream and river sites, combined with mapping of annual agricultural chemical use. Other recent studies by USGS have found that dozens of pesticides are consistently found in midwestern streams; 88 percent of water samples in U.S. rivers and streams contain at least five or more different pesticides; 41% of public water supply wells are contaminated with pesticides or their degradates; and degradation of rivers from pesticide pollution continues unabated.

The studies relating pesticide use and contamination of waterways should be used by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in pesticide registration decisions. “What you use makes it into the water,” Sam Oliver, PhD, coauthor of the most recent study, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. As important as the existing monitoring network is, a joint study by USGS and EPA shows that it underestimates the problem—more frequent sampling detects twice as many pesticides, at higher concentrations.

The USGS Water Resources Mission Area (WMA) researches pesticide use, trends in pesticide occurrence in streams, concentrations of pesticides in water of potential human health concern, pesticide toxicity to aquatic organisms, pesticides and stream ecology, and pesticides and lake sediment. While agricultural practices appear to correlate with peaking pesticide contamination during the growing season, urban runoff represents a larger overall proportion of the contamination flowing into waterways. With little to no natural soil to filter contamination, and impervious surfaces creating massive outflows of polluted water, this finding is unsurprising. Research conducted by USGS and EPA on urban runoff across the country in 2019 found 215 of 438 sampled toxic compounds present in the water. The sheer number of different chemicals and thus potential for even more toxic mixtures presents significant risks to health and the environment.  

The toxic soup in many U.S. waterways is unsustainable and threatens the foundation of many food chains. Imbalances in aquatic environments can ripple throughout the food web, creating trophic cascades that further exacerbate health and environmental damage. The data on water contamination has become one of the compelling reasons to abandon reliance on toxic chemicals in favor of organic land management to eliminate these threats.

Scientific research by USGS is essential to evaluating the impacts of pesticides and must be included in EPA’s pesticide registration decisions. USGS needs your continued support to elevate its role in uncovering and documenting the contamination caused by registered pesticide use. In addition, please urge EPA to cancel pesticides that pollute waterways and groundwater. No contamination is reasonable under federal pesticide law, given the availability of cost-effective alternative practices and products certified by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Organic Program.

Thank you.

(Beyond Pesticides, April 28, 2023) A study published in Science of The Total Environment finds agricultural communities encounter chronic and measurable pesticide exposure regardless of seasonal pesticide applications. Several biomonitoring studies demonstrate people living adjacent to or within agricultural areas often experience elevated levels of organophosphate (OP) insecticides, even while not working directly with OPs. Six dialkyl phosphate (DAP) metabolites (breakdown products) of OPs persist in urine during the spraying and non-spraying seasons. Despite 75 percent of OPs metabolizing into one or more of the six DAPs and excreting within six to 24 hours after exposure, the consistent levels of DAPs in urine highlight continuous exposure beyond regular seasonal pesticide applications.

OP compounds have a global distribution, with evaporation and precipitation facilitating long-range atmospheric transport, deposition, and bioaccumulation of hazardous chemicals in the environment. OPs are highly toxic and, as this study shows, residues are consistently present in human and animal urine, as well as blood, tissues, and milk. Considering 90 percent of Americans have at least one pesticide compound in their body, primarily stemming from dietary exposure, including food and drinking water, advocates maintain that current restrictions on their use must adequately detect and assess total chemical contaminants. The study notes, “We suggest that among agricultural communities that experience chronic exposure to nearby pesticide applications, OPs may persist in indoor and outdoor environments. The results of the current analysis provide additional evidence to suggest that residents of agricultural communities experience OP exposure even when [a] recent application has not occurred.”

Researchers gathered data from agricultural community members in the Central Valley of California to determine important factors associated with urinary DAPs levels among these high-exposure communities. The cohort included 80 children and adults who lived within 61 m (200 ft) of agricultural fields in the Central Valley of California in January (pesticide non-spraying season) and June (pesticide spraying season) 2019. The researchers collected one urine sample per participant during each visit to measure DAP metabolites. Additionally, researchers gathered supplementary data with in-person surveys to identify health, household, sociodemographic, pesticide exposure, and occupational risk factors. Using a data-driven, best-subsets regression approach, researchers identified key factors that influence urinary DAP levels.

The results find those with seasonal employment, likely to be in agriculture, have higher DAPs concentration in urine than those who do not work seasonally. However, the subset regression identifies numerous individual- and household-level factors that influence total DAPs: “the number of years spent living at the current address, household use of chemical products to control mice/rodents, and seasonal employment status.” Among adults, those with education on pesticide exposure mitigation and age are significant factors associated with total DAPs in urine. Among adults only, the study identifies educational attainment (for total DAPs) and age category (for EDM) as significant factors.

Numerous occupational hazards are associated with chemical exposure, especially among individuals with occupations that involve regular exposure to xenobiotic (foreign substance) compounds. The agricultural sector has a long-standing history of synthetic chemical use, which disproportionally affects farmworkers‘ health. Furthermore, farmworkers’ children are at greater risk as their immune system response is immature and especially vulnerable to stressors from pesticide exposure. Synthetic chemicals in pesticides can accumulate in bodies, causing an amalgamation of health effects. These effects can range from heightened risks of various cancers (e.g., prostate, hepatic, liver, etc.) and endocrine disruption to mental health problems (e.g., depression), respiratory illnesses (asthma), and many other pesticide-induced diseases. However, pesticide exposure is ubiquitous and not confined to where it is applied. Pesticides and other toxic chemicals can enter homes from the workplace via clothes, shoes, and home-based personal protective equipment (PPE) and accumulate residues on laundry, on carpets, and in art/house dust. Some cases demonstrate that levels of chemicals transported into the house can be high enough to cause an adverse health effect in a resident child or spouse. Although pesticide exposure through the skin or inhalation is most prevalent among individuals working around these toxic chemicals, the general population also experiences pesticide exposure through residues in food and water resources. Many of these chemical compounds remain in soils, water (solid and liquid), and the surrounding air at levels exceeding U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards. The increasing ubiquity of pesticides concerns public health advocates as current measures safeguarding against pesticide use do not adequately detect and assess total environmental chemical contaminants. Therefore, individuals will continuously encounter varying concentrations of pesticides and other toxic chemicals, adding to the body’s burden of current-use chemicals.

Organophosphate (OP) insecticide use is widespread, while the industry promotes the chemicals as having greater efficiency and lesser environmental persistence. However, OPs are a class of insecticides known to have adverse effects on the nervous system, having the same mode of action as nerve agents for chemical warfare. OPs originate from the same compounds as World War II nerve agents, adversely affecting the nervous system. Chemical exposure can cause a buildup of acetylcholine (a chemical neurotransmitter responsible for brain and muscle function) and lead to acute impacts, such as uncontrolled, rapid twitching of some muscles, paralyzed breathing, convulsions, and, in extreme cases, death. The compromise of nerve impulse transmission can have broad systemic impacts on the function of multiple body systems. In addition to being highly toxic to terrestrial and aquatic organisms, human exposure to organophosphates can induce endocrine disruption, reproductive dysfunction, fetal defects, neurotoxic damage, and kidney/liver damage. Exposure can increase vulnerability to deadly diseases, including COVID-19. Furthermore, OPs are one of the leading causes of intentional poisoning globally, as pesticide toxicity makes them potentially lethal substances.

Urinary OP biomarker levels did not vary, and the risk was the same throughout all seasons. OP metabolites are typically excreted in the urine within a 6- to 24-hour period, so the study concludes that participants who had detectable levels of urinary DAPs had a recent exposure to OPs, regardless of seasonal spraying. There are other more prominent sources of OP contamination. For instance, diet accounts for a considerable proportion of people’s exposures to pesticides in the U.S.; 2016 data from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) show that 47% of domestically produced foods and 49% of imported foods had detectable pesticide residues. A number of studies point to organics as protective as studies confirm that urinary DAP levels reduce after a week-long shift to an organic diet; a 2015 study that found that adults who consumed organic produce had lower urinary levels of organophosphate residues (as detected via levels of DAPs); and another in 2015 that concluded that a switch to an organic diet reduced the body burden of pesticides in children, especially in low-income urban, marginalized, and agricultural communities. Considering this study finds urinary OP metabolites among children and household dust OP levels increase as residential distance to orchards decreases, the study identifies important factors that influence pesticide exposure among agricultural communities. Given proximity to applications, take-home exposure from occupational workers, and residual environmental exposures, a majority of pesticide exposure disproportionately burdens Hispanic/Latino(a) communities, which contain most of the population in the study area. However, the study suggests future research establishes exposure routes that put agricultural communities, and others at risk.

The study concludes, “We suggest that future research should explore more refined exposure assessment methods to evaluate unique routes of exposure (i.e., inhalation, ingestion, or dermal contact). These efforts will support strong epidemiologic research to identify health impacts of OPs. Findings may also support community education about effective and personalized exposure mitigation strategies for agricultural community members to promote environmental justice.”

Although most OP uses in the U.S. are now agricultural, toxicity experts recommend banning all OPs for agricultural use. EPA and the World Health Organization (WHO) consider over 40 OPs that are moderately or highly hazardous to human health. EPA classifies as probable carcinogens some commonly used OPs like malathion, a popular mosquito control, and tetrachlorvinphos, a common flea and tick killer in pet collars and shampoos. States, including Hawaii, California, New York, and Maryland, had already adopted plans to phase out uses of the OP chlorpyrifos, to different degrees, in agriculture following evidence of neurotoxic effects on children. EPA announced the cancellation of all chlorpyrifos food production uses in the U.S., as chemical contamination among the general population remained considerable even after implementing residential use restrictions over two decades ago. However, even with the agency announcement of agricultural use cancellations, chlorpyrifos will still remain available for golf courses and as mosquito adulticide.

The pesticide marketplaces still contain many chemicals that cause similar endocrine-disrupting, cancer-causing, neurotoxic health effects. Additionally, imported goods can still contain chemical residues as chlorpyrifos residues do not disappear immediately after end-use and will persist in our environment for quite some time.

Therefore, policies should enforce stricter pesticide regulations and increase research on the long-term impacts of pesticide exposure. Beyond Pesticides tracks the most recent studies related to pesticide exposure through our Pesticide Induced Diseases Database (PIDD). This database supports the clear need for strategic action to shift away from pesticide dependency. For more information on the many harms of pesticides on health, see PIDD pages on body burdens (urine and other compartments), endocrine disruption, cancer, and other diseases. Learn more about how inadequate pesticide use regulations, including organophosphates, can adversely affect human and environmental health; see Beyond Pesticides,’ Pesticides and You article “Highly Destructive Pesticide Effects Unregulated.”

Beyond Pesticides advocates a precautionary approach to pest management in land management and agriculture by transiting to organic. Buying, growing, and supporting organic can help eliminate the extensive use of pesticides in the environment and from your diet. For more information on how organic is the right choice for consumers and the farmworkers who grow our food, see the Beyond Pesticides’ webpage, Health Benefits of Organic Agriculture. 

Spring is here, so grow your spring garden the organic way by Springing Into Action, pledging to eliminate toxic pesticide use.

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

Source: Science of The Total Environment

(Beyond Pesticides, April 27, 2023) The Nevada Assembly, by unanimous vote, took the state one step closer to banning the use of neonicotinoid insecticides used on plants, with a waiver for commercial agricultural purposes. Despite dramatic declines in bee populations linked to neonicotinoid pesticides and other toxic pesticides, the U.S. Environmental Protection (EPA) and state regulatory authorities have for the most part ignored beekeepers and the independent scientific literature by allowing widespread toxic pesticide use—forcing elected officials to take protective action. Portions of the bill would take effect upon passage or no later than January 1, 2024. Maine and New Jersey have adopted similar legislation.

The failure to adequately regulate pesticides under federal law, the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), and EPA inaction is viewed by environmentalists as the shocking disregard for the importance of biodiversity to sustaining life. The inadequate restriction of pesticides and slower than necessary transition to organic land management practices are viewed as major contributors to the “insect apocalypse.” The legislation (A.B. 162), led by Assemblywoman Michelle Gorelow and a group of nine other Assemblymembers, illustrates a growing trend of local and state legislative bodies asserting their authority to protect against health, biodiversity, and climate crises, linked to petrochemical pesticides and fertilizers, that are escalating out-of-control to devastating levels—with the U.S. Congress and federal agencies standing silent.

“We applaud the Nevada Assembly’s initiative to protect pollinators and urge elected officials nationwide to see the pending biodiversity collapse as reason for broader action to eliminate petrochemical pesticides and fertilizers with organic systems that are effective and cost competitive,” said Jay Feldman, executive director of Beyond Pesticides.

A systematic review of insect population studies worldwide in Biological Conservation magazine (2019) reports on “the dreadful state of insect biodiversity in the world, as almost half of the species are rapidly declining and a third are being threatened with extinction.” The study concludes with the dire prediction that insects as a whole will go extinct in the next few decades if patterns of pesticide use and other factors continue. Many systemic pesticides, like neonicotinoids are taken up by the vascular system of the plant and expressed through pollen, nectar, and guttation droplets, causing indiscriminate poisoning and death to pollinating and foraging insects, including bees, butterflies, and birds. The chemicals also move through soil, killing terrestrial and aquatic organisms.

The complexity of pesticide hazards is captured in a statement by biology professor Matthew Forister, PhD, University of Nevada (Reno), who told the Natural Resources Nevada Assembly Committee: “[T]he extreme and prolonged droughts of recent decades are reducing the densities of beneficial insects in . . .open lands. This new reality elevates the importance of all decisions that we make about managed lands, and chief among these decisions is the use of pesticides.”

As is typical, pesticides often cause a mixture of environmental and public health effects. According to Drew Toher, community resource and policy director, Beyond Pesticides, “Emerging data shows neonicotinoids can act as hormone disruptors, increasing the risk of breast cancer; they can readily transfer from mother to fetus through the placenta, increasing risk of birth defects; they are associated with liver damage, and neurological impacts like memory loss.”

The Toiyabe Chapter of the Sierra Club said, “The good news is that there are many safe alternatives to using neonicotinoid pesticides. If we switch to these safer methods, we could save the pollinators, other animals, and improve human health.”

The New York State Assembly passed a similar bill (A03226), the Birds and Bees Protection Act. The Act bans neonicotinoid use on outdoor ornamental plants and turf, with a general exemption for agriculture except for treated seed. The bill, opposed by the New York Farm Bureau, contains a ban on seeds treated with neonicotinoids, but includes an “emergency” override by the State Commissioner of Agriculture, based on a written determination that (i) a valid environmental emergency exists; (ii) the pesticide would be effective in addressing the environmental emergency; and (iii) no other, less harmful pesticide or pest management practice would be effective in addressing the environmental emergency. The bill would immediately ban chlothianidin or dinotefuran, leaving the most widely used neonicotinoid imidachloprid, as well as thiamethoxam or acetamiprid, on the market until July 1, 2025.

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

Sources: A.B. 162; Beyond Pesticides’ Nevada testimony; statement of Dr. Forister; Statement of Toiyabe Chapter of the Sierra Cub; Birds and Bees Protection Act..

(Beyond Pesticides, April 26, 2023) Organic methods of honey bee management are just as or more effective than conventional, chemical-intensive management systems, according to research published this month in the journal Scientific Reports by a team of Penn State scientists. This finding is important as managed pollinators continue to be under stress primarily from pesticide exposure, but also other factors, such as disease, pests, climate change, and habitat loss. In this context, beekeeping management practices can mean the difference between a colony thriving, surviving, or declining.

“Beekeeping management is a key aspect of honey bee health because it can help mitigate some of the negative effects caused by these stressors,” said study co-author Robyn Underwood, PhD, of Penn State Extension. “For example, supplemental feeding can mitigate a lack of flowering plants nearby for foraging, and beekeepers can manage pests such as Varroa mites with cultural, mechanical and chemical control practices.”

Scientists developed protocols to test different beekeeping management systems through participatory science. Thirty beekeepers were invited to work with scientists using protocols on experimental design, applying three different management approaches: i) conventional chemical; ii) organic; and iii) management without inputs. “We wanted to replicate what beekeepers were doing in their bee yards,” study coauthor Margarita López-Uribe, PhD, said. “It wasn’t scientists just telling beekeepers how to do things—it was beekeepers telling us how they do things, and then we collected data over multiple years comparing the different systems.”

The experiment worked with eight certified organic farms in the Pennsylvania and West Virginia region, establishing 288 different colonies, with each farm housing 36 colonies. All colonies were established from packaged bees. Scientists worked to homogenize the genetic background of the colonies by requeening all colonies with grafted sister queens from a colony located near Utica, NY that had not received varroa treatments for seven years or more.

Management approaches differed based on the approach. Conventionally managed colonies had screened bottom boards, and were treated each fall with the miticide Apivar, containing the conventional chemical amitraz. They were given candy boards over winter in January.

Organic colonies contained solid bottom boards, and were treated with a rotation of organic-approved materials. Combs designed specifically to rear drones (and subsequently be removed to address Varroa) were employed, and over winter rations included granulated sucrose provided in January.

Colonies without inputs utilized a smaller cell foundation than the other two colonies (4.9mm vs 5.4 mm), used solid bottom boards, a cotton cloth inner cover, and were not treated for mites or given over winter food unless there was evidence of hive starvation.

Colonies were inspected every two weeks in 2018 and 2019, and every three weeks in 2020 due to the pandemic. Pests and pathogens were counted in October of each year, screening for a range of honey bee diseases. Scientists also looked at gene biomarkers corresponding to honey bee health.

Beekeeping methods without inputs were unable to maintain strong colonies over the course of the experiment. Out of the 96 colonies assigned to each management system, only 1 single colony remained by the end of the study. While conventional chemically managed colonies had 29 survive, the organic system enabled the greatest survival, with 38 colonies at the end of the experiment.

In addition to survival, organic and conventional methods provided for more total honey production than the no-input system. Both organic and conventional systems also adequately addressed pests and diseases. Mites were found in 92% of hives, and organic was able to effectively match chemical management in reductions – by 72% in organic to 78% in conventional, relative to the chemical-free system. Chemical-free colonies consistently had the highest level of varroa, averaging 4.5 mites per 100 bees. This trend held with other diseases, such as deformed wing virus and Nosema. Despite the overall success of systems that treated bees, input-free management did result in higher gene expressions corresponding to honey bee health.  

In sum, given the similarities in outcomes between conventional chemical and organic approaches to beekeeping, the authors conclude that organic represents an effective, sustainable method that improves colony health. “Taken altogether, these results suggest that not only is the organic system suitable for a sustainable beekeeping industry but that the use of threshold-based criteria for the application of organic miticides can have positive effects on colony health,” the study reads.

The failure of input-free system appears to be a result of heavy pest pressure experienced with beekeeping in the modern era, and it is evident that more research and development is needed to adequately manage the scourge of varroa with completely non-pesticidal interventions.  

Despite the success of organic methods, beekeepers utilizing these techniques are unable to label their honey as organic certified. Organic certified honey, under current USDA regulations, must be able to maintain a guaranteed 3km (1.8 mile) radius around colonies where no pesticide spray is used. Currently, this is only possible in remote locations, and why many organic consumers can only find certified organic honey from foreign countries like Brazil. “Our future research about the landscape and foraging should help us to inform changes in the standards for certification to decrease the required radius of ‘clean’ forage, assuming our hypotheses are supported,” said Dr. Underwood. For more information on organic beekeeping methods, see Penn State’s publication “An Organic Management System for Honey Bees.”

With honey bees and other pollinators under constant stress from pesticides, parasites, pathogens, climate change, and habitat destruction, it is critical that we all take what actions we can to protect these critical species. See Beyond Pesticides recent Earth Day 2023 post for activities you can take to proactively benefit pollinators and other wildlife.

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

Source:Penn State, Scientific Reports

(Beyond Pesticides, April 25, 2023) Today, Beyond Pesticides released a special issue, Transformative Change: Informed by Science, Policy, and Action of its journal, Pesticides and You, with a compendium of “shocking scientific findings that compel us to act in our communities, states, and as a nation and world community.” The 168-page issue documents the last year of scientific, peer-reviewed articles, policy deficiencies, and action for change that intersect not only with petrochemical pesticides and fertilizers, but with existential health crises, biodiversity collapse, and the climate emergency.

Included in the issue of reviews of published articles spanning three categories—health, biodiversity, and climate. They include:

Human Health Threats: Children’s health—Motor skill deficiency; Respiratory disease; Prenatal exposure and ear infections; Oxidative stress, DNA damage, and cancer; Pediatric cancer; Childhood diabetes; Developmental delays; Biomonitoring of pregnant women; Kidney cancer; Early onset puberty; Autism; Gut microbiome—Disinfectant/antimicrobial and inflammatory bowel disease; Metabolic distress; General—Parkinson’s disease; Farm exposure and effects; Multigenerational effects and cancer; Environmental injustice: Disproportionate exposure and impacts; Post-hurricane water contamination; Global pesticide hazard footprint; Military exposure hazard: Gulf War illness; Male infertility; Alzheimer’s/Neurodegenerative disease; Thyroid cancer; Endocrine disruption; Hazardous inert ingredients underregulated; Covid: Elevated disinfectant hazards.

Biodiversity: Insect decline; Biodiversity collapse; Bee gut microbiome; Honey bee susceptibility to pathogens; Pollination disturbed; International warning; Ecosystem services; Benefits of nature; Inerts harm pollinators; Multigenerational effects to birds; Aquatic ecosystem threatened; Contaminated sediment; Weed killer destroys soil life; Tree spraying destroys biological control; Antibiotic/Antifungal resistance; Glyphosate induces antibiotic resistance; Monarchs threatened by store-bought plants; Greenhouse gas from house fumigation; Chemical no-till contributes to climate crisis; Soil management, carbon sequestration, organic.

Climate: Greenhouse gas from house fumigation; Chemical no-till contributes to climate crisis; Sulfuryl fluoride ban petitioned; Soil management carbon sequestration, and organic. [The pieces cited in this issue are supplemented by the Beyond Pesticides’ Pesticide-Induced Diseases Database.]

Failed policies reviewed in this publication include: widespread PFAS contamination; subsidies drive environmental collapse; continued use of neurotoxic organophosphate insecticides and deadly wood preservatives; and efforts in Congress to further weaken federal pesticide law and codify a prohibition of local authority to restrict pesticides more stringently than state and federal law.

In addition, this issue cites current actions in communities that chart a course for a livable future, including: local ordinances that ban toxic pesticides and fertilizers; European Union (EU) bans park pesticides; compost outperforms fertilizers; organic food in schools; and state laws that increase protections for pollinators.                  

Beyond Pesticides cites this collection of pieces in Transformative Change as foundational in demonstrating the vital need for a transformation to land and building management systems that align with nature and, at the same time, are more effective and efficient at producing food while contributing to quality of life.

Jay Feldman, executive director of Beyond Pesticides, writes in the publication’s introduction, “The transformative solution is a partnership with nature, practices that have been adopted in organic systems. With this approach, we honor all organisms who play a role in ecological systems on which life depends and we seek the rapid adoption of those practices and materials that are already available to us or can be incentivized to become widely available quickly.”

An electronic version of the issue with links to citations can be found at bp-dc.org/transformativechange.

(Beyond Pesticides, April 24, 2023) It is well-known that trees and other plants help fight climate change by sequestering carbon in their wood and roots—especially when they are allowed to grow continuously. However, plants help in other ways as well. 

Plants—especially trees—also moderate the climate through their participation in the water cycle. And when the weather is hot and dry, they hold the soil, preventing dust bowl conditions. In the 1930’s, the U.S. Forest Service, Civilian Conservation Corps, and the Works Progress Administration, together with local farmers, planted more than 220 million trees, developing 18,000 miles of windbreaks on the Great Plains. Unfortunately, those windbreaks are now endangered by the same economic impetus that helped create the Dust Bowl—making more room for economically valuable crops. 

Tell your U.S. Representative and Senators to address climate change in the Farm Bill by incorporating a large-scale, national transition to certified organic agriculture and restoration and resilience strategies that prohibit the use of petrochemical pesticides and fertilizers. Tell Secretary of Agriculture Vilsack to implement the NOSB recommendation to remove incentives to convert native ecosystems to organic farms.   

Organic farming helps resist climate change in several ways. Regenerative organic farming sequesters carbon in the soil. Organic farming does not rely on synthetic fertilizers that release nitrous oxide, which is 300 times more potent than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas. Finally, organic producers are required to conserve biodiversity, which involves preserving elements of natural ecosystems. Unfortunately, however, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has yet to implement the recommendation of the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) to remove incentives to convert native ecosystems to organic farms. 

Dating back to Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal of the 1930s, which addressed threats posed by the Great Depression and drought, the Farm Bill is an omnibus bill passed every five years. It is designed to secure a sufficient food supply, establish fair food prices for both farmers and consumers, and protect the soil and other natural resources on which farmers depend. Although the Farm Bill now covers many areas—ranging from the supplemental nutritional assistance program (SNAP) to trade—over its history, conservation has been a major concern addressed in the bill. This year, incorporating climate-friendly provisions is more urgent than ever. 

Moving forward: 

• Congress must incorporate into the Farm Bill support for a national transition to organic farming, incentives to build soil health and eliminate dependence on petrochemical inputs, disincentives for removing trees and native vegetation, and incentives to plant hedgerows and shelterbelts.
• USDA must implement the NOSB recommendation to remove incentives to convert native ecosystems to organic farms. Currently, organic farmers transitioning from nonorganic practices must wait three years before selling products as organic, while farmers who bulldoze forests can sell organic products immediately. 

U.S. Representatives and Senators are developing bills for incorporation in the Farm Bill. So far, the Agriculture Resilience Act (ARA) includes the provisions and investments to ensure the long-term viability of our farms and food system, and the Protect the West Act calls for a $60 billion investment in the region’s forests, grasslands, and watersheds, with the aim of preventing another Dust Bowl. These bills are not perfect—the ARA avoids mentioning organic agriculture, and the Protect the West Act advances “restoration and resilience,” but contains unqualified support for control of invasive species without mandating restrictions on petrochemical pesticides and fertilizers.

Needless to say, without these critical restrictions, we will see ongoing and increasing dependency on toxic chemicals that contribute to health threats, biodiversity collapse, and the climate emergency. We must advocate with those ready to consider a Farm Bill that addresses climate change clear stipulations to eliminate use of fossil fuel-based pesticides and fertilizers.

Tell your U.S. Representative and Senators to address climate change in the Farm Bill by incorporating a large-scale, national transition to certified organic agriculture and restoration and resilience strategies that prohibit the use of petrochemical pesticides and fertilizers. Tell Secretary of Agriculture Vilsack to implement the NOSB recommendation to remove incentives to convert native ecosystems to organic farms. 

Action targets are the U.S. Congress and the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Letter to U.S. Representative and Senators:

Agriculture both contributes to climate change and suffers from its impacts. As the 2023 Farm Bill is developed, it is important that it contain provisions to mitigate climate change and adopt restoration and resilience strategies prohibiting the use of petrochemicals—with dramatically increased support for conversion to organic land management and strict protection of native ecosystems.

Although trees and other plants help fight climate change by sequestering carbon in their tissues, they help in other ways as well.

Plants—especially trees—also moderate the climate through their participation in the water cycle. And when the weather is hot and dry, they hold the soil, preventing dust bowl conditions. In the 1930’s, 18,000 miles of windbreaks were planted on the Great Plains. Unfortunately, those windbreaks are now endangered by the same economic impetus that helped create the Dust Bowl—making more room for economically valuable crops.

Organic farming helps resist climate change by sequestering carbon in the soil;, eliminating reliance on synthetic fertilizers that release nitrous oxide (300 times more potent than carbon dioxide as a greenhouse gas); and conserving biodiversity and natural ecosystems. Unfortunately, however, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has yet to implement the recommendation of the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) to remove incentives to convert native ecosystems to organic farms. Currently, organic farmers transitioning from nonorganic practices must wait three years before selling products as organic, while farmers who bulldoze forests can sell organic products immediately.

Dating back to the New Deal of the 1930s, which addressed threats posed by the Great Depression and drought, the Farm Bill is an omnibus bill passed every five years. It now covers many areas—ranging from the supplemental nutritional assistance program (SNAP) to trade—but conservation has always been a of major importance in the bill. This year, incorporating climate-friendly provisions is more urgent than ever.

Congress must incorporate into the Farm Bill support for a national transition to organic farming, incentives to build soil health and reduce farm use of petrochemical inputs, disincentives for removing trees and native vegetation, and incentives to plant hedgerows and shelterbelts.

Some bills developed for incorporation in the Farm Bill address issues affecting climate. The Agriculture Resilience Act (ARA) includes provisions and investments to ensure the long-term viability of our farms and food system; the Protect the West Act calls for a $60 billion investment in the region’s forests, grasslands, and watersheds, with the aim of preventing another Dust Bowl. These bills are not perfect—the ARA avoids mentioning organic agriculture, and the Protect the West Act advances “restoration and resilience,” but contains unqualified support for control of invasive species without mandating restrictions on petrochemical pesticides and fertilizers that are critical to reduce dependency on toxic chemicals that contribute to health threats, biodiversity collapse, and the climate emergency.

As you consider a Farm Bill that addresses climate change, please establish clear requirements to eliminate use of fossil fuel-based pesticides and fertilizers in any provisions advancing important restoration and resilience practices.

Please advocate for a Farm Bill that promotes a large-scale, national transition to certified organic farming (which contains incentives to build soil health and eliminates dependence on petrochemical inputs) and includes disincentives for removing trees and native vegetation and incentives to plant hedgerows and shelterbelts.

Please tell USDA to implement the NOSB recommendation to remove incentives to convert native ecosystems to organic farms.

Thank you.

Letter to Secretary Vilsack:

In 2018, the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) voted nearly unanimously to protect native ecosystems. It sought to change the current perverse regulation that incentivizes the immediate destruction of native ecosystems and conversion to organic production as a cheaper and faster option than transitioning existing conventional farmland over a three-year period. It is now time for the National Organic Program (NOP) to take action to protect the integrity of the seal and help reverse the biodiversity crisis and reduce global warming.

Protecting native ecosystems slows climate change, something the Biden Administration and organic consumers care deeply about, but NOP regulations will continue to contribute to the problem until the NOP makes this regulatory change. Native ecosystems store carbon in woody plants, in the soil’s duff layer and its deeper horizons. Native grassland and forest soils contain 20 to 50 tons of organic carbon per acre in about the top three feet of soil. When land is converted from a natural ecosystem to cropland, 30 to 50 percent of soil carbon is lost to the atmosphere over a 50-year period. Conversion of forests causes larger losses of carbon from woody biomass, especially if the land is burned before being cropped—up to 75 percent of organic carbon is lost in 25 years when a tropical forest is cleared. It also causes disruption of the water cycle that exacerbates climate change.

Destroying native ecosystems is more than a national issue; it is international. We are in the middle of a 6^th mass extinction. In the last 50 years, animal populations worldwide have declined by almost 70%. With this proposed regulation, the NOP can address biodiversity loss and climate change, while maximizing co-benefits. Ecosystems help regulate floods, enhance water quality, reduce soil erosion, and ensure pollination and pest control. Overexploitation of natural resources has led to changes in climate and the biodiversity crisis, and the NOP needs to now be part of the solution.

The NOSB recommended that the National Organic Program (NOP) add the following definition to §205.200:

Native Ecosystems: Native ecosystems can be recognized in the field as retaining both dominant and characteristic plant species as described by established classifications of natural vegetation. These will tend to be on lands that have not been previously cultivated, cleared, drained or otherwise irrevocably altered. However, they could include areas that have recovered expected plant species and structure.

It also recommended that the NOP add the following language to §205.200 General:

(a) A site supporting a native ecosystem cannot be certified for organic production as provided for under this regulation for a period of 10 years from the date of conversion.

The recommended regulations allow native ecosystems to be used in organic production, including low-impact grazing, mushrooms, maple syrup production, and other kinds of wild crop harvesting.

Organic consumers are distressed to learn that the NOP rules incentivize native ecosystem destruction. Organic farmers do not think it is fair that this loophole allows immediate certification, when many have complied with a three-year requirement to transition conventional land. 

The Organic Farming Production Act (OFPA) states that the NOP must ensure standards are consistent throughout. NOP claims that it “conserve(s) biodiversity” and “ecological balance” over 300 different times on its website, while it incentivizes the conversion of native ecosystems to organic production. The NOP is charged with making sure the organic market stays strong, but it is undermining consumer confidence with its inaction.

Please immediately initiate rulemaking to remove the incentive to convert native ecosystems to organic farms.

Thank you.

(Beyond Pesticides, April 21, 2023) Into the annals of “entropic methods of agricultural pest control” arrives recent research showing that pests are, unsurprisingly, developing resistance to a genetically engineered (GE) biopesticide used for more than 90% of U.S. corn, cotton, and soybeans. Bt (Bacillus thuringiensis) is a naturally occurring bacterium; the versions deployed in conventional agriculture are engineered into Plant Incorporated Protectants (PIPs) — GE ingredients “inserted” into seeds for multiple kinds of crop plants. These PIPs target multiple crop-destructive insect species, including (in larval form) the corn rootworm and cotton bollworm, in particular. Beyond Pesticides continues to warn that “controls,” whether synthetic chemical pesticides or GE “biological” agents (such as GE Bt) that target living things (e.g., pests and weeds) are not sustainable over time because — in addition to the harms they cause — the issue of resistance will ultimately thwart their efficacy.

There are two basic categories of genetic engineering employed in conventional agriculture. One technology transfers genetic material into seed to make plants tolerant of specific herbicide compounds that will be applied after planting (for example, the infamous “Roundup Ready,” glyphosate-tolerant seeds and plants). The other comprises plant-incorporated protectants (PIPs), in which the genetic material introduced causes endogenous production of proteins harmful to particular insect pests. (See much more on Bt through the Beyond Pesticides Bt archive.)

As U.S. Right to Know (USRTK) explains in its coverage of a 2016 independent research study on the subject, “Crops engineered with Bt genes express specific proteins (known as Cry proteins) that make the crops toxic to specific insects — the plants effectively provide their own insecticide — [theoretically] reducing the need for chemical applications. . . . Th[is] research adds to evidence that after 20 years of use of crops engineered to tolerate herbicides and resist certain harmful insects, both technologies are losing effectiveness.”

Corn seed engineered with Bt was developed in 2003 by Monsanto and deployed to deal with the Western corn rootworm. EPA stepped in early on to require that producers using Bt products create so-called “refuge” areas — fields of specific size and proximity (to the Bt fields) that are planted without PIPs. These “refuge” areas aimed to ensure that breeding would occur between nonresistant rootworms from the untreated corn and resistant individuals that would emerge from the areas planted with Bt varieties. The theory is that such breeding would dilute the frequency of the genes that encode resistance and inhibit their inheritance in subsequent generations of rootworms.

This refuge tweak has largely failed, in part because of noncompliance. PIP manufacturers responded to that issue by creating a farmer-friendlier “refuge in a bag” system that allowed farmers to avoid setting aside some of their field areas as free of the Bt trait. How? By encouraging the spreading of uneven low doses of the Bt toxin to feeding insects throughout all their fields. Monsanto “‘touted refuge-in-a-bag’ as fast and convenient for farmers, allowing them to plant the specialized seed ‘fence row to fence row.’” In reality, the tactic catalyzed resistance in the insects over time. Progressive Farmer warned of this in 2012.

In addition, critics of EPA’s introduction of the “refuge” tactic noted that to be at all effective, the refuge areas needed to be much bigger than EPA required. In 2012, a study concluded that, “EPA should more than double the percentage of corn acres planted to mandated refuges to delay insect resistance.” (One investigator and co-author of that study was the same Bruce Tabashnik, PhD who was lead author on the subject study cited above.)

The increasing recognition of developing resistance to GE-Bt-as-PIP underscores several problems:

(1) all pesticides are ultimately doomed to fail because of the all-but-inevitable development of resistance in organisms (including weeds)

(2) the response of industry and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to resistance continues to be, respectively, doubling down on chemical approaches, and/or tweaking use parameters to try to rein in problematic impacts

(3) there are many Bt strains, some of which are permitted for pest management purposes in organic agriculture (in addition to the many GE insecticide versions); the increasing use of Bt in GE-plus-chemical agriculture — and the resulting uptick in resistance — represent a real threat to this useful tool for the organic sector

EPA acknowledges the resistance issue: “Like [with] most pesticides, insects are capable of developing resistance to Bt proteins. In Bt PIPs, this risk may be heightened by the fact that: 

• Bt proteins are expressed at high levels in most or all plant tissues
• the proteins are produced by the plant continually during the growing season (i.e., throughout the lifespan of the plant)
• some of the major target pests, such as European corn borer, corn rootworm, and pink bollworm, feed almost exclusively on corn or cotton

These factors can increase insect exposure to the controlling toxins (Bt protein) and hence, increase selection pressure for resistance. That means that if the toxin kills susceptible insects, those that survive and reproduce are more likely to be resistant to the toxin.”

The issue of resistance to Bt began to be noticed in 2008 in cotton bollworms — a mere five years after initial deployment of Bt products. The industry claim that genetic manipulation of plants would result in reduced pesticide use began to be exposed as false a decade ago. In 2013, The Wall Street Journal noted that, as resistance to Bt products began to ratchet up and corn rootworm damage surged, farmers returned with a vengeance to chemical insecticides — unraveling a central argument for the GE Bt strategy. (Beyond Pesticides wrote about typical industry response to resistance in 2019: “Manufacturer response is often either to find a new chemical, or to “double down” with combined-ingredient products that may be effective until the next wave of resistance develops.”)

A 2013 study published in PNAS (the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences) concluded that, “The widespread planting of crops genetically engineered to produce insecticidal toxins derived from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) places intense selective pressure on pest populations to evolve resistance. . . . These [early] cases of resistance by western corn rootworm highlight the vulnerability of Bt maize to further evolution of resistance from this pest and, more broadly, point to the potential of insects to develop resistance rapidly.”

In 2020, EPA issued a draft proposal for ways to “improve” the problem of pest resistance for Bt PIPs in corn and cotton crops. The agency’s goal was to “prolong the durability of Bt PIPs from pests.” Zeroing in on the lack of meaningful changes in the proposal, Beyond Pesticides, led a group of nine other advocate organizations, commented on it: “The agency is proposing changes to three aspects of . . . insect resistance management that consist of new resistance definitions, increased resistance monitoring and mitigation efforts, and modified annual reporting to the agency. These changes do not address or impact the biology of pest populations developing resistance, but only the recognition and identification of such resistance [emphasis by Beyond Pesticides]. In addition to the above proposed framework changes, the agency is considering options to . . . increase percent of refuge in seed blend products, and change . . . refuge compliance measures. These options at best will only delay the development of more prevalent pest resistance to Bt toxins. . . . [W]e find that the proposed new resistance management framework . . . will do little to curb the trajectory in the increasing resistance.” (See draft comment here.)

In that same year, EPA also began considering a proposal to reduce, gradually, the use of some Bt corn and cotton products in an attempt to combat pest resistance. One tactic was a three-year “phasedown” to some unspecified “minimal acreage cap” of Bt products for corn. The agency also considered (again) increasing the ratio of non-Bt corn seeds in blends used in “refuge” areas, the aim being to slow resistance by allowing nonresistant insects to mate with resistant insects. The proposal received significant pushback from grower groups and the crop protection industry. The former is very accustomed to use of Bt PIPs and considers them still useful despite evidence that efficacy is time limited, given galloping resistance. The latter is looking to Hoover up profits from this technology for as long as it can.

The very human, and very unwise, tendency to think short term is on full display throughout the agrochemical and agro-biotech sectors, as well as at EPA. In 2020, Beyond Pesticides wrote: “Resistance to pesticides is nearly inevitable. Development of resistance is an entirely normal, adaptive phenomenon: organisms evolve, ‘exploiting’ beneficial genetic mutations that give them survival advantage. For nearly a century, human response to this has been primarily a chemical ‘chasing’ of such evolutionary changes — developing a compound that kills the offending organism (whether pest or weed or bacterium or fungus) for a while. Organisms nearly inevitably change to become resistant to that particular chemical assault, whereupon people — the chemical industry, researchers, applicators, farmers, public health workers, clinicians, et al. — have typically moved on to the next chemical ‘solution.’” To the “chemical” critique, “biotechnical” approaches can now readily be added.

Last year, Beyond Pesticides coverage of a study on emerging Crispr technology quoted Ethan Bier, PhD on that new technology. His comment is equally relevant in this Bt context, and underscores Beyond Pesticides’ perspective: “This is no silver bullet. You never win when you try to play the evolutionary game with insects.” We would add, “or with other living organisms.” Industry focus on, and EPA collusion with, the search for “silver bullets” without precautionary forethought to the issue of resistance is the Achilles heel of pesticide — and now biotech — dependence in conventional agriculture. These are eventually doomed to failure, and meanwhile, EPA continues to power the pesticide and GE treadmills.

Beyond Pesticides believes that consideration of (1) the incorporation into food crops of genes from a natural bacterium, such as Bt, (2) the development of herbicide-tolerant crops and their paired use with herbicides, such as Roundup Ready soybeans and glyphosate, and (3) the ongoing planetary assault by thousands of synthetic pesticide compounds leads to the conclusion that these GE and chemical approaches to agriculture and pest management are short sighted and dangerous, and as noted above, entropic by their very nature. At broad scale, they generate adverse environmental, human health, biodiversity, climate, and economic consequences; they also are undermining the use of Bt as a biological pest management tool in organic production. Regenerative organic approaches are the only genuinely sustainable practices, and are the linchpin of a thoughtful, future-conscious route forward for humankind.

Source: https://entomologytoday.org/2023/04/18/insect-resistance-transgenic-bt-crops-bacillus-thuringiensis/

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

(Beyond Pesticides, April 20, 2023) This Earth Day (Saturday, April 22, 2023), Beyond Pesticides urges individuals to spread awareness of the toxic pesticides that poison people and the environment and the safe alternatives that are available to safeguard communities and the surrounding environment. On Earth Day, reflecting on the beauty and wonder of the natural world highlights the importance of restoration and preservation to maintain the planet’s intricate web of life. However, the natural world on which life depends is under dire threat as the dependence on toxic chemicals (e.g., pesticides) enables ongoing environmental contamination.

Mechanized and industrial human activity perpetuates ongoing toxic chemical contamination, resulting in massive die-offs of beneficial organisms, increased rates of autoimmune diseases, endocrine disrupting and transgenerational chemical effects, and widespread pollution of our air and waterways. Beyond Pesticides, has the tools needed to increase environmental awareness in your community. Therefore, this Earth Day, Beyond Pesticides continues to advocate for the adoption of organic practices and policies that alleviate threats to ecosystems and enhance biodiversity. Michigan State University professor Thomas Dietz, Ph.D. highlights, “Continuing the successes of environmentalism—an integration of science, a concern with human well-being and justice, and a recognition of the need to consider facts, values, and uncertainty—is crucial for dealing with climate and other global environmental challenges.”

Share information about the chemicals entering our communities in the United States and around the world. Pesticides are pervasive in all ecosystems, soils, water (solid and liquid), and air, frequently at levels exceeding U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards. However, many people do not know what pesticides they encounter and the associated negative effects. It is critically important to make people aware of both the hazards associated with cosmetic lawn care pesticides and the availability of alternative practices and products. Of the 40 most commonly used lawn pesticides, 26 are possible and/or known carcinogens, 24 have the potential to disrupt the endocrine (hormonal) system, 29 are linked to reproductive effects and sexual dysfunction, 21 have been linked to birth defects, 24 are neurotoxic, 32 can cause kidney or liver damage, and 33 are sensitizers and/or irritants. Of those same 40 lawn pesticides, 21 are detected in groundwater, 24 have the ability to leach into drinking water sources, 39 are toxic to fish and other aquatic organisms vital to our ecosystem, 33 are toxic to bees, 18 are toxic to mammals, and 28 are toxic to birds. [Check out the Beyond Pesticides Infographic!]

Importantly, Beyond Pesticides’ Gateway on Pesticide Hazards and Safe Pest Management provides information on the health and environmental effects of nearly 400 registered pesticide active ingredients. It is searchable by chemical name, product name, or health and environmental effects. The database is designed to provide decision and policymakers, practitioners, and activists with easier access to current and historical information on pesticide hazards and safe pest management, drawing on and linking to numerous sources and organizations that include information related to pesticide science, policy, and activism. As decision-makers and the community become educated, let us know of chemicals you think should be added to the Gateway to [email protected]  or the Story Submission page.

Discover how environmental exposure impacts human health. Ninty percent of Americans have at least one pesticide biomarker (including parent compound and breakdown products) in their body. The presence of pesticides in the body has implications for human health, especially during vulnerable life stages like childhood, puberty, pregnancy, and old age. The scientific literature demonstrates pesticides’ long history of severe adverse human health effects (i.e., endocrine disruption, cancer, reproductive/birth abnormalities, neurotoxicity) and effects. Beyond Pesticides capture the scientific literature through the Pesticide-Induced Diseases Database, documenting elevated rates of chronic diseases among people exposed to pesticides, with increased numbers of studies associated with both specific illnesses and a range of diseases. Currently, the database is searchable for 1,300 scientific references relating to brain and nervous system disorders (e.g., Alzheimer’s, ALS, Parkinson’s), birth defects, cancer, endocrine dysfunction, learning and developmental disabilities, and sexual reproductive dysfunction, among others. With consistent updating, the database is a vital resource for individuals, organizations, and other institutions can refer to when discussing pesticide’s impact on human health. As you become educated, consider sending studies you think should be added to the database to [email protected] or the Story Submission page.

How Pesticides Impact Crucial Pollinator Species and Other Wildlife. The globe is currently going through the Holocene Extinction, Earth’s 6th mass extinction, with one million species of plants and animals at risk. The impacts of pesticides on wildlife are extensive and expose animals in urban, suburban, and rural areas to unnecessary risks. Pesticides can affect animals through direct application or indirectly through drift, secondary poisoning, and runoff. Some animals could encounter direct spraying, while others may consume plants or prey contaminated with pesticides. However, the climate crisis adds another level of concern, especially regarding passive pesticide and microbial exposure from snowmelt. With the increasing rate of biodiversity loss, it is essential for government agencies around the globe to research how previous and ongoing use of pesticides can impact present-day species. Therefore, animals can act as sentinel species for chemical contamination, detecting risk to humans by exhibiting signs of environmental threat sooner than humans in the same environment. Unless more is done to address chemical pollution, humans will also continue to see similar declines in general health, fitness, and well-being. Learn more about how pesticides threaten wildlife and what you can do through Beyond Pesticides’ wildlife program page.

Exposure to pesticides can alter an organism’s behavior, impacting its ability to survive, reproduce, and provide necessary ecosystem services (e.g., pollination, soil fertility, population control, etc.). For instance, the United Nations states that 80 percent of the 115 top global food crops depend on insect pollination, with one-third of all U.S. crops depending on pollinators, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). However, research finds that many insect populations are in decline, including managed and wild pollinators. Monarchs are near extinction, and commercial beekeepers continue to experience declines that are putting them out of business. The continued loss of mayflies and fireflies disrupts the foundation of many food chains. Additionally, the decline in many bird species has links to insect declines. Since the 1970s, three billion birds have vanished.

However, a decade ago, Earth Day 2013 saw the launch of the BEE Protective campaign spearheaded by Beyond Pesticides and our friends at Center for Food Safety. This campaign continuously generates a tremendous outpouring of support through local action, social media, and information requests to Beyond Pesticides. New backyard beekeepers and gardeners are fostering local pollinator resilience and creating bee-friendly habitat that brings communities together and fuels the campaign to BEE Protective of pollinators. Pesticides pose an imminent threat to all aspects of biodiversity, including pollinators and numerous other beneficial species.

As we appreciate the Earth and all it provides on this Earth Day, we hope you will use our resources, take action, and educate others on the ways toxic chemicals jeopardize the complex natural processes on which we rely. Through the promotion and adoption of alternative systems like organic, we can work with the Earth’s natural systems to produce a safer, healthier world for all living species.

• Least-Toxic Control of Pests in and Around the Home and Garden.
  • ManageSafe
• Learn how to:
  • Maintain landscapes without toxic pesticides, 
  • Protect honeybees, and other pollinators from neonicotinoids and other insecticides, 
  • Protect aquatic species from pesticide run off, including endocrine disrupting chemicals,
  • Protect streams, lakes, and rivers we all depend on from the widespread use of harmful synthetic pesticides and fertilizers.

Consider a food system that enhances, not harms, human and environmental health. Multiple studies have found that eating a conventional (nonorganic) diet will increase the presence of pesticides and their metabolites in an individual’s urine, including higher pesticide body burden from eating conventional foods. Additionally, children carry higher levels of the weed killer glyphosate and other toxic pesticides in their body. Many studies show that many common pesticides result in developmental problems in children, such as higher rates of ADHD. There is also strong evidence that organophosphate insecticides, still widely used on fruits and vegetables in the United States, are dropping children’s IQs on a national and global scale, costing billions to the economy in the form of lost brain power.

That’s why switching from a conventional to organic diet will drastically reduce the levels of pesticide in one’s body, with one week on organic food showing a 70% reduction in glyphosate in the body, according to one study. Socioeconomic factors play a large role in access to heathy organic foods, and the ability to provide the sort of environment that allows a child’s brain to flourish. But eating organic should not be a choice to make – all food should be grown with high quality standards that reject the use of brain-damaging pesticides and protect the wider environment. 

Beyond Pesticides’ Eating with a Conscience database is designed to help explain the urgent need for a major shift to organic food consumption. Those foods that are often referenced as “clean” commodities may be grown with hazardous pesticides that get into waterways and groundwater, contaminate nearby communities, poison farmworkers, and kill wildlife, while not all showing up at detectable or elevated levels on our food. Database users select an individual crop that will bring up a page that lists all of the pesticides that have registered tolerance (legal residue) allowances on that specific crop, from which we extrapolate use patterns. The database lists the human health (acute, and chronic effects) and environmental (surface water contaminant, ground water contaminant, wildlife poison, bee poison, long-range transport) effects linked to each pesticide.

• Affordable Organic: Buying and Growing Organic Produce.
  • Beyond Pesticides article on The Real Story on the Affordability of Organic Food.

Join Beyond Pesticides as the organization continues to push for that reality. See Beyond Pesticides’ Resources and sign up for our Action of the Week and Weekly News Update.

With Earth Day coming up, get ready to grow your spring garden the organic way by Springing Into Action, pledge to eliminate toxic pesticide use by signing the Ladybug Love Pledge and follow up with other actions that will make a difference.

(Beyond Pesticides, April 18, 2023) Crop diversification is effective at reducing pest abundance in growing climates across the globe, according to a meta-analysis published this month in the Journal of Applied Ecology. The meta-analysis, which includes a review 44 field studies from six continents, provides greater weight to approaches that work with natural processes, rather than those focused on human-made chemical sprays for pest management.

Within the studies reviewed, researchers aimed to understand the associational effects that resulted in either associational resistance (a decrease) or associational susceptibility (an increase) in insect herbivores on the primary crop being grown. Researchers reviewed a range of variables, comparing pest numbers in monocultures vs bicultures, evaluating whether the pest is a generalist or specialist, how it feeds (checking or piercing/sucking), its origin (native/non-native), as well as climate, crop type (only onions, brassicas, cotton, and cucurbits were evaluated), plot size, and the experimental design within each particular study.  

In sum, the review represents one of the most comprehensive evaluations of intercropping to date. And the results confirm the benefits many farmers and gardeners across the world have found anecdotally in their own plots. “Overall, intercropping proved to be very effective against pests, but it did vary based on the pest and their feed preferences,” said study coauthor Philip Hahn, PhD of University of Florida. “It also depended on crop type, with cabbage and squashes showing the strongest resistance, while resistance was less strong for onions and cotton.”

Bicultures are provide a significant reduction in pest pressure. But this approach is most effective in protecting crops from generalist predators. “In the studies we examined, we found intercropping was more effective for generalist pests that feed on a variety of crops,” Dr. Hahn said. “Specialist pests that target one type of crop were less affected.” This makes sense, as pest predators that evolved a close relationship with a crop are much less likely to be enticed to feed on a crop it did not specialize in consuming.

The effect of intercropping did appear to wane as latitudes increased, but only for certain crops and certain insect pests – specifically specialist, piercing, and native pests. “We did find a stronger benefit for pest suppression at lower latitudes—so, in tropical systems versus northern temperate systems,” Dr, Hahn said. “There are lots of reasons we could have found that pattern, of course; the tropics are places where there tend to be more species of insects year-round. It was surprising that the pattern was not as strong as I would have expected.”

The meta-analysis and studies previously reported on by Beyond Pesticides show the benefits of increasing crop diversity on farms. A 2020 study found that crop diversity in agriculture is just as important as plant diversity in non-commercial landscapes, and that less diversity leads to more pesticide use. A 2021 study reported on found that multi-crop farmlands produced higher biomass and seed yields than single crop monocultures. While intercropping and multi-cropping provide numerous benefits, monocropping contributes to the loss of biodiversity, including pollinator populations, according to a 2019 study.

It is incredibly important to continue research like the present study, so scientists can aide farmers in determining the best natural strategies to take as part of their production practices. But it is apparent from the data collected that one generally can’t go too wrong with such an approach. “There are a few combinations that seem to be particularly effective at reducing pest abundance,” Dr. Hahn indicates. “Overall, for growers interested in organic methods, intercropping seems to be a very effective tool.”

For more information on the benefits associated with organic agriculture, see Beyond Pesticides webpage on Why Organic is the right choice for the future of farming.

All unattributed positions and opinions in this piece are those of Beyond Pesticides.

Source: Journal of Applied Ecology, University of Florida press release

Image Source: PXfuel