(Beyond Pesticides, April 10, 2012) The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has opened the public comment period on proposals from the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) prior to the board’s spring meeting on May 22-25, 2012 in Albuquerque, NM. The proposals will be open for public input until 11:59pm Thursday, May 3, 2012. The documents on these issues can be found on the NOSB website along with further information on the meeting as well as where and how to register for in-person comments or to submit written comments. See Beyond Pesticides’ Keeping Organic Strong webpage for more information on the upcoming issues and how to submit comments. We will be updating this webpage with our perspectives on the issues, so be sure to check back as new information is added. Public participation is vital to the development of organic standards, as we are all stakeholders in ensuring a safe and sustainable food supply. The public comment process represents the best opportunity for consumers, as well as farmers and processors, to have a voice as these standards are debated and adopted by the NOSB. To read all of the recommendations from the various NOSB committees, go to this page and select […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 6, 2012) A number of communities on Cape Cod, Massachusetts have begun to adopt or explore organic turf management practices for municipal parks and athletic fields. The towns of Wellfleet, Eastham, Barnstable, Brewster, Orleans, Chatham, and Harwich have all made moves toward adopting policies or informal practices that seek to limit the application of toxic pesticides on town-owned property and opt instead for organic methods of pest management. Furthest along in the effort is Wellfleet, which last month officially adopted the Cape’s first codified organic turf management policy. The policy bans all pesticides and chemical fertilizers on town parks, playgrounds, and athletic fields, while allowing for some exceptions such as rodent bait traps, according to the Cape Cod Times. Wellfleet’s Board of Selectmen, which unanimously adopted the policy on March 13th, were concerned about the possibility of lawn chemicals leading to environmental contamination and presenting serious risks to people and wildlife. Eastham, just to the south of Wellfleet, is working on passing its own bylaw outlining a set of organic turf management practices to restrict pesticides throughout the town. The town of Barnstable has also begun to explore how it might go about implementing an organic turf […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 3, 2012) Last week, the journal Science published two new studies linking neonicotinoid pesticide exposure to bee health. These two studies, one French, one British, add to a growing body of scientific literature and strengthen the case for removing pesticides toxic to bees from the market. The French study shows that pesticides interfere with honey bee brains, affecting their ability to navigate. The British research finds that pesticides prevent bumble bees from collecting enough food to produce new queens. These studies were released on the heels of an emergency legal petition by beekeepers and environmental groups, including Beyond Pesticides, that calls for the ban of the bee-killing pesticide clothianidin. Neonicitinoids are highly toxic to a range of insects, including honey bees and other pollinators. They are taken up by a plant’s vascular system and expressed through pollen, nectar and gutation droplets from which bees forage and drink. They are particularly dangerous because, in addition to being acutely toxic in high doses, they also result in serious sublethal effects when insects are exposed to chronic low doses, as they are through pollen and water droplets laced with the chemical as well as dust that is released into the […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 30, 2012) Healthy Communities: the 30th National Pesticide Forum begins today, March 30, at Yale University in New Haven, CT and will continue through tomorrow evening. Walk-in registration starts at $35 ($15 for students) and includes all sessions, conference materials, and organic food and drink. There will be numerous speakers and workshops throughout the next two days focusing on issues such as the protection of Connecticut’s historic pesticide ban on school grounds, ensuring the health of pollinators in the face of toxic pesticides, and keeping the organic food and farming movement strong. Featured speakers include: Sandra Steingraber, PhD — Tonight’s keynote speaker (6:30-10:30pm) — An acclaimed ecologist and author, Dr. Steingraber explores the links between human rights and the environment, with a focus on chemical contamination. She takes a personal and scientific look at these issues and offers insights into how we can protect our environment and ourselves. She brings a clear, lyrical voice to the complex evidence of biology. The author of several books, including her latest Raising Elijah, Dr. Steingraber has been called “a poet with a knife” by Sojourner magazine, and received many honors for her work as a science writer. Her highly acclaimed […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 27, 2012) On March 21, Beyond Pesticides joined beekeepers and environmental groups, Center for Food Safety and Pesticide Action Network North America in filing an emergency legal petition that calls on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to suspend registration of Bayer’s controversial bee-killing pesticide, clothianidin. Because Congress has the authority to exercise oversight over federal agencies like EPA, the organizations are now calling on the public to ask Congress to protect honey bees and wild pollinators from clothianidin and other pesticides known to be toxic to bees. Bees and other pollinators are still dying off at catastrophic rates —commercial beekeepers lost an average of 36% of their hives last year, according to USDA. Honey bees pollinate one in every three bites of our food and, as indicator species, they serve as sentinels whom we ignore at our peril. As the public debate over causes of Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) —a syndrome in which bees seemingly abandon their hives— carries on in the media, more and more new science has shown that neonicotinoid pesticides are indeed a critical piece of the puzzle. Neonicotinoids like clothianidin may not be the sole cause of CCD, but they are making our […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 23, 2012) In a victory for environmentalists and farmworkers, manufacturers of the controversial and highly toxic fumigant methyl iodide announced it will cease selling its products containing the chemical in the U.S. market earlier this week. Representatives from the Tokyo-based company, Arysta LifeScience say that the decision was made as a part of an internal review and based on its economic viability in the U.S.; however, the company will still continue to sell methyl iodide products in other countries. “Today I’m really happy. It feels like someone finally listened to us about something really important.” Gabriela Rincon, told the Los Angeles Times. Ms. Rincon is the daughter of farmworkers who pick strawberries in the Salinas area in California. Methyl iodide causes late term miscarriages, contaminates groundwater and is so reliably carcinogenic that it’s used to create cancer cells in laboratories. It is on California’s official list of known carcinogenic chemicals and has been linked to serious risks in reproductive and neurological health. The pesticide poses the most direct risks to farmworkers and those in the surrounding communities because of the volume that would need to be applied to fields and its tendency to drift off site through […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 22, 2012) Yesterday, commercial beekeepers and environmental organizations filed an emergency legal petition with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to suspend use of a pesticide that is linked to honey bee deaths, urging the agency to adopt safeguards. The legal petition, which specifies the pesticide clothianidin, is supported by over one million citizen petition signatures, targets the pesticide for its harmful impacts on honey bees. “EPA has an obligation to protect pollinators from the threat of pesticides,” said Jeff Anderson of California Minnesota Honey Farms, a co-petitioner. “The Agency has failed to adequately regulate pesticides harmful to pollinators despite scientific and on-the-ground evidence presented by academics and beekeepers.” Over two dozen beekeepers and beekeeper organizations from across the country, from California and Minnesota to Kansas and New York, filed the legal petition with the EPA today. Many of these family-owned beekeeping operations are migratory, with beekeepers traveling the country from state-to-state, during different months of the year to providing pollination services and harvesting honey and wax. And they are concerned about the continued impacts on bees and their beekeeping operations, which are already in jeopardy. “The future of beekeeping faces numerous threats, including from clothianidin, and […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 9, 2012) With Members of Congress attempting to gut pesticide protections from the Clean Water Act and state legislators threatening to repeal Connecticut’s historic pesticide ban on school grounds, environmentalists from the Northeast and beyond are joining with researchers, authors, beekeepers, organic business leaders, elected officials, and others to discuss strategies for protecting health and the environment. Healthy Communities: the 30th National Pesticide Forum will take place March 30-31 at Yale University in New Haven, CT. Register online. Fees start at $35 ($15 for students) and include all sessions, conference materials, and organic food and drink. A limited number of partial scholarships are available, contact Beyond Pesticides for details. Conference Highlights: Pesticide-Free Lawns and Landscapes With the Connecticut General Assembly’s considering legislation that would repeal the state’s ban on toxic pesticide use on school grounds by replacing it with a weak “integrated pest management” (IPM) system, this issue will be a central theme at the conference. Speakers on this topic include: Warren Porter, PhD, professor of Zoology and Environmental Toxicology at the University of Wisconsin at Madison with expertise in lawn chemicals, especially low doses and mixtures; Chip Osborne, national organic turf expert and president of Osborne […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 8, 2012) Researchers at Montana State University-Bozeman (MSU) have discovered a bacterium that could control a variety of plant diseases caused by funghi, bacteria and viruses, and are working with Certis USA, a global biological pesticide company, to develop and commercialize it by early 2013. The product will be based on Bacillus mycoides isolate J, (BmJ), which itself is a naturally occurring, nonpathogenic bacterium that triggers a plant’s immune response to pathogenic funghi, bacteria and viruses resulting in systemic acquired resistance to diseases. BmJ belongs to the Bacillus cereus complex, which also includes Bacillus Thuringiensis (Bt), a soil bacterium that is used as biological pesticide by organic farmers, but also widely incorporated into some genetically engineered crops. MSU scientist Barry Jacobsen, Ph.D. first discovered the bacterium in 1994 when a field of sugar beet crops in Sidney, MT had been devastated and nearly wiped out due to the Cercospora leaf spot. Area farmers were spending millions of dollars on aerial applications of fungicides to fight the disease, but were losing the battle due to resistance. Dr. Jacobsen and his team of researchers looked to the few surviving plants to find out what enabled them to ward off […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 2, 2012) A U.S. District Court Judge on February 24 dismissed the case of Organic Seed Growers and Trade Association et al v. Monsanto and organic farmers, seed growers, and agricultural organizations vowed to fight on. The plaintiffs filed this lawsuit to shield farmers from being sued for patent infringement by Monsanto should they become contaminated by drift of the company’s genetically engineered seed, a legal strategy Monsanto has been pursuing for years. The case, Organic Seed Growers & Trade Association, et al. v. Monsanto, challenges Monsanto’s patents on genetically modified seed. The suit was originally filed on behalf of 60 plaintiffs on March 29, 2011, with 23 new plaintiffs, including Beyond Pesticides joining on June 1. The 83 plaintiffs involved in the suit represent a combined membership in excess of 300,000 people. Daniel Ravicher, lead attorney for the 81 plaintiffs represented in the lawsuit, said, “While I have great respect for Judge [Naomi] Buchwald, her decision to deny farmers the right to seek legal protection from one of the world’s foremost patent bullies is gravely disappointing.” “Her belief,” added Mr. Ravicher, “that farmers are acting unreasonably when they stop growing certain crops to avoid being sued […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 29, 2012) Bees are in trouble –in large part because of pesticides– and policymakers just aren’t acting quickly enough to help them. But backyard gardeners, sideline beekeepers, and ordinary people all over the country have been stepping up. Beyond Pesticides and Pesticide Action Network North America have launched HoneyBeeHaven.org, a site where individuals who are taking matters into their own hands can add their pesticide-free pollinator habitat to the map, while we continue to pressure EPA to protect honey bees and wild pollinators from pesticides. On the website, visitors are encouraged to take the pledge to go pesticide-free and protect bees, and then put your yard, park, or school grounds on the map. It’s easy to do, and will demonstrate the groundswell of citizen support to protect pollinators from pesticides now. Display a Pesticide Free Zone sign to show your neighbors that pesticide-free spaces are important for health and the environment. You don’t need to be a beekeeper or avid gardener to create a safe haven –tucking a few containers of bee-friendly plants on a balcony or front stoop will get you started. Like any other living organism, bees need food, water, and shelter in order to […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 28, 2012) A study by researchers at the University of Padova in Italy and published in the journal Environmental Science and Technology has confirmed the findings of previous research showing that honey bees are exposed to toxic neonicotinoid insecticides during spring seed planting. Neonicotinoids are known to be highly toxic to honey bees and, yet, are used on millions of acres through North America every year. These findings lend even greater urgency to the need to take these chemicals off the market and ensure the continued survival of honey bees and the essential pollination services that they provide for our food system. Neonicotinoids, including clothianidin, imidacloprid, and thiamethoxam, are most commonly applied by coating crop seeds with the chemical. When these treated seeds are planted, the chemical becomes part of the plants vascular system and stays in the plant for the duration of its lifetime, expressing itself in the pollen. Previously, it had been thought that bees were only exposed to these chemicals through pollen and water droplets from treated plants, which would occur later in the season once the plants had grown and bloomed. However, the Italian study shows that bees are actually exposed to high […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 24, 2012) On Wednesday, February 22, the Connecticut General Assembly’s Planning and Development Committee held a hearing to consider a bill that would repeal the state’s ban on toxic pesticide use on school grounds by allowing their use as part of a so-called “integrated pest management” (IPM) system. If you live in Connecticut, you can take action to fight this bill and preserve the health of school children. Current state law, adopted in 2005 and amended in 2007 and 2009 to cover facilities from day care centers up through grade 8, prohibits pesticides on playgrounds and playing fields at schools (except under emergency situations), allowing instead for non-toxic pest and fertility management. The bill currently under consideration, HB 5155, would repeal the ban, making pesticide use allowable as part of an IPM program as defined by any number of a range of bureaucratic offices. Although IPM can be a helpful tool in the transition from a pesticide-intensive to a non-toxic management system, it makes no sense to weaken an already strong standard aimed at protecting the health of children. The effort to adopt such a system through passage of HB 5155 is being led by public works […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 23, 2012) A new study finds organic farming practices in strawberry production result in much greater pollination success than chemical-intensive methods. Researchers also determined that this effect was apparent within just two to four years of conversion to organic, suggesting that there is not a significant lag time before pollination benefits are seen after adopting organic farming practices. The study, led by Georg Andersson of Lund University in Sweden, adds to a growing body of research that highlights the necessity of switching to organic agriculture. Pollination of insect pollinated crops is correlated with pollinator abundance and diversity. Since organic farming has the potential to mitigate negative effects of agricultural intensification on biodiversity, it may also benefit crop pollination, but direct evidence of this has so far been lacking. Researchers speculate that this effect may be due to an increase in insect pollinator abundance and/or diversity. The researchers evaluated the effect of organic farming on pollination of strawberry plants focusing on whether (1) pollination success was higher on organic farms compared to conventional farms, and (2) there was a time lag from conversion to organic farming until an effect was manifested. The results “suggest that organic farming could […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 17, 2011) Beyond Pesticides is urging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), during a public comment period (closing February 23) on its review of the neonicotinoid pesticide, clothianidin, to take swift action to cancel the chemical’s registration. Groups are joining together with comments to EPA, citing the extensive science that shows clothianidin’s toxic effects on honey bees. Beyond Pesticides has drafted comments that it will submit to EPA outlining serious concerns regarding clothianidin. The agency is accepting public comments through February 21, 2012. Tell EPA that because this pesticide is toxic to honey bees and wild pollinators, and has not been properly evaluated in field studies as required it should be banned. Submit comments directly to the EPA docket or sign-on to Beyond Pesticides’ comments. Clothianidin is in the neonicotinoid family of systemic pesticides, which are taken up by a plant’s vascular system and expressed through pollen, nectar and gutation droplets from which bees forage and drink. Scientists are concerned about the mix and cumulative effects of the multiple pesticides bees are exposed to in these ways. Neonicotinoids are of particular concern because they have cumulative, sublethal effects on insect pollinators that correspond to symptoms of honey […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 15, 2012) California mosquito control agencies are charging that new NPDES permitting regulations would eliminate West Nile virus fogging and jeopardize public health. In response, the state of California has proposed to scale-back pesticide regulations, easing rules on fumigating adult mosquitoes. This is in spite of the high risk for further degradation of already contaminated surface waters in the state, and contrary to the stipulations and protections set out in the Clean Water Act. The current federal National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit, which recently went into effect after much resistance from the pesticide and agriculture industry and intensive lobbying efforts in Congress, does not authorize the discharge of biological and residual pesticides or their degradation by-products to waters of the U.S. that are impaired by the same pesticide active ingredients or any pesticide in the same chemical family. ”˜Impaired waters’ are polluted waters, i.e. those waters not meeting water quality standards pursuant to section 303(d) of the Clean Water Act (CWA). The NPDES permit is authorized under the CWA to require pesticide applicators to apply for permits before applying pesticides on or near surface waters. This process involves keeping records of pesticides used and monitoring […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 13, 2012) Acclaimed ecologist and Living Downstream author, Sandra Steingraber, will be speaking at the 30th National Pesticide Forum. With Connecticut and communities throughout the country facing threats to existing environmental laws, as well as opportunities for greater protection and increased local control, this conference will have a strong focus on organic land management and protective policies. Join Dr. Steingraber and other researchers, authors, beekeepers, organic business leaders, elected officials, activists, and others to discuss the latest science, policy solutions, and grassroots action. Registration Register online. Fees start at $35 ($15 for students) and include all sessions, conference materials, and organic food and drink. Speaker Highlights Sandra Steingraber, PhD – An acclaimed ecologist and author, Dr. Steingraber explores the links between human rights and the environment, with a focus on chemical contamination. She takes a personal and scientific look at these issues and offers insights into how we can protect our environment and ourselves. She brings a clear, lyrical voice to the complex evidence of biology. The author of several books, including her latest, Raising Elijah, Dr. Steingraber has been called “a poet with a knife” by Sojourner magazine, and received many honors for her work as […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 7, 2012) The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Organic Program (NOP) is accepting public comments until April 6, 2012 on a National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) proposal to begin phasing out the use of the synthetic methionine, with a reduction in the current allowable level. Methionine is required for proper cell development and feathering in poultry and has been added in synthetic form to organic poultry feed since the inception of the National Organic Standards under the Organic Foods Production Act (OFPA). Synthetic methionine was officially added to the National List of Allowable Synthetic substances in 2003. Beyond Pesticides and others believe that synthetic methionine should not be used in organic poultry operations and support the NOSB use reduction and phase-out. Naturally-occurring methionine is found in plants and insects that poultry once consumed on the farm (and still do in some operations). Conventional and medium to large scale organic agricultural practices, which raise poultry primarily indoors, have limited the amount of natural methionine available in the birds’ diets. However, the new organic livestock standards adopted at the Fall 2011 NOSB meeting will improve outdoor access for poultry and other livestock, at least partially addressing this issue. […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 6, 2012) The Clif Bar Family Foundation announced that it has awarded the first fellowships in organic plant breeding ever granted in the United States. Funded through its organic seed initiative, known as Seed Matters, the foundation provided $375,000 to fund three Ph.D. fellowship students for five years in organic plant breeding. The first fellowship recipient has begun working at the Washington State University Mount Vernon Campus and the two other recipients will begin in fall 2012 at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Washington State University Pullman. As with every agricultural production system, seed is of fundamental importance to organic farmers. However, seed issues in organic agriculture remain especially challenging because of the extremely limited resources that have been dedicated to research and commercial distribution of seeds appropriate for certified operations. For example, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) organic certification standard s require that farmers select seed varieties adapted to site-specific conditions including resistance to prevalent pests, weeds, and diseases. However, publicly funded plant breeding programs to develop such locally adapted varieties has decreased dramatically over the past several decades and until very recently none of the funding was dedicated to organic systems. Additionally, the […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 3, 2012) A new study recently published in the Journal of Integrated Pest Management (JIPM) shows that from 2003 to 2008 the use of insecticide active ingredients was reduced by about 90% in University of Florida (UF) housing buildings after an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program was implemented. The results of the study show that pest pressure was effectively managed throughout this period as well. These findings demonstrate that IPM can be an effective management tool for institutional pest problems, confronting pests while reducing human exposure to dangerous chemicals. IPM is a systematic approach to managing pests based on long-term prevention or suppression by a variety of methods that are cost effective and minimize risks to human health and the environment. The goal of urban IPM is to manage pests primarily by prevention and elimination of their access to food, water and harborages, exclusion techniques that seal entryways, as well as changes in human behavior. Low-toxicity insecticides were used only when necessary. In their article “Advancement of Integrated Pest Management in University Housing,” the JIPM authors find that the IPM program helps to virtually eliminate the use of hydramethylnon, borate, desiccants, organophosphates, fipronil, and pyrethroids, and they […]

(Beyond Pesticides, February 2, 2011) Beyond Pesticides has partnered with the Just Label It (JLI) campaign, which is made up of a broad-based coalition of 460 partner organizations demanding that consumers have the right to know what is in our food. The campaign has already generated over a half-million consumer comments in support of a petition which calls for food that is produced with genetically engineered (GE) ingredients to disclose this information on the label. The petition was filed with U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and written by attorneys at the Center for Food Safety. Sign the petition and submit your comments at www.justlabelit.org/takeaction. Beyond Pesticides’ goal is to push for labeling as a means of identifying products containing GE ingredients in an effort to sway consumer demand. The European Union, Japan, Australia, Brazil, Russia, and China, require labeling for GE foods. Recently, the German corporation BASF announced that it would stop developing genetically engineered products targeting the European market, in part due to low consumer demand. Given that a that 93% of Americans support mandatory labeling of genetically engineered (GE) foods, Beyond Pesticides believes that we can have the same impact here as in Europe. In addition, the […]

(Beyond Pesticides, January 30, 2012) The Rodale Institute has published a new technical bulletin containing information and resources to assist farmers in transitioning to diversified organic no-till cropping systems. No-till practices are highly effective for preventing soil erosion and can also decrease labor requirements and fuel use, but they typically depend on heavy pesticide applications to manage weeds in lieu of physical cultivation. This increased dependence on herbicides is unsustainable, contributing to herbicide resistance in certain weeds and increased leaching of pesticides into groundwater due to higher infiltration rates. The technical bulletin outlines the practices that organic farmers can use to capture the benefits of no-till and for conventional farmers to decrease or eliminate the need for herbicides. The technical bulletin contains guidance on using the specialized equipment that enables farmers to move beyond either routine tillage or pesticide applications. The key piece of equipment is a roller-crimper that knocks down the residues from annual crops and crimps them at a standard interval to create a thick vegetative mat into which the next crop is directly planted. The roller-crimper can knock down residues from a cereal crop, such as wheat and oats, or leguminous cover crops including red clover and […]

(Beyond Pesticides, January 24, 2012) Research published this month in the online edition of the Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology finds that the neonicotinoid pesticide imidacloprid contaminates surface waters in agricultural regions. Imidacloprid is a systemic pesticide, meaning it is taken up by a plant’s vascular system and expressed through pollen, nectar, and gutation droplets, and is highly toxic to bees, birds and aquatic organisms. The study, “Detections of the Neonicotinoid Insecticide Imidacloprid in Surface Waters of Three Agricultural Regions of California, USA, 2010—2011,” concludes that imidacloprid commonly moves offsite and contaminates surface waters at concentrations that could harm aquatic organisms following use under irrigated agriculture conditions. Researchers at the California Department of Pesticide Regulation collected 75 surface water samples from three agricultural regions of California and analyzed them for contamination with imidacloprid. Samples were collected during California’s relatively dry-weather irrigation seasons in 2010 and 2011. Imidacloprid was detected in 67 samples (89%); concentrations exceeded the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) chronic invertebrate Aquatic Life Benchmark of 1.05 μg/L (micrograms per liter) in 14 samples (19%). Concentrations were also frequently greater than similar toxicity guidelines developed for use in Europe and Canada. A benchmark is a chemical concentration, specific […]