HomeMy WebLinkAboutStaff Report 06/04/2012 (8) (5)w . St, d / 'emu_
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Open Letter to Grape Growers On;Forc.e_'d`Pesticide-Spraying iii � ' ?'�
Dear Sonoma County Grape Grower-- MAR 19 2001 a
■
Spring is arriving. With it the-glassy-winged sharpshooter may
hitch-hike here on landscaping plants and threaten grapevines. We
write you as farmers, mainlyorganic and sustainable, and as people
who do not want to be sprayed without our permission. Preventing
this invasive insect from establishing itself is m all of our best
interests. Growers' fears of the damage that invasive species can do
is legitimate.
Sonoma County''s•workplan to combat.the sharpshooter includes
the forced spraying of',chemical pesticides on people's yards, even
against their will The growing No Spray movement has a single non-
negotiable;;demand=-no spraying of toxic pesticides without the
permission of residents. We want to revise the plan to include a line
from the Santa Cruz County Pierce's Disease workplan--"No pesticide
applications will be Made on private propertywithoutthe consent of
the residents."
• Forced spraying would be a damaging wound.to Sonoma County's
wine industry, and it would also harm our entire agricultural
community and prestige. Grape growers' credibility would be deeply
eroded by forced spraying:; All growers could be hurt as agriculture's
image would worsen in our expanding urban environment.
Your recent pamphlet"'How Do Winegrowers Earn Our
Community's Support? affirms the need to "listen and respond to
our neighbors: Please listen to the thousands who do not want their
homes and yards:sprayed without their permission. When you
support, through silence, chemical trespass,on the properties of
neighbors, you cross a line. How much "community support" do you
expect when forced spraying produces public outrage?
Consider the following facts and questions:
1) The pesticides to be used are proven,health hazards to
humans and would kill or harm beneficial insects, bees, butterflies,
pets, and other wildlife. The former head of the State of California
• Hazards Assessment Program, toxieoiogist Dr. Marc Lappe, writes,
"Nobody's;going to die from the sharpshooter. But somebody may
die, particularly•the:most vulnerable, if exposed to pesticides." Are
such health risks worth it?
2) Forced spraying would be a fundamental violation of •
property and,.civil rights and liberties. How would you feel if the
police invaded your property to benefit another industry and in the
process damaged or destroyed your crop?
3) Non-toxic solutions may be as effective as toxic ones.
According to the California Certified Organic Farmers, "History has
shown that wholesale application of broad-spectrum pesticides to
control pests is not,successful. A pest such as the GWSS can only be
controlled with the use of a wide range of environmentally sound
practices that provide for a diversity of predatory insects,diverse
cropping patterns, habitat diversity,`physical controls, disease
resistant varieties, and naturally derived least-risk toxic pest control
methods." What do you think of such solutions to protect
yourselves?
4) Any organic farm•sprayed would.no longer be organic
Organic farming is a process that includes:carefully building soil, a
chemical-free business, and a reputation. Does protection of your
crop Warrant destruction of organic farms? Is it fair to use our tax
dollars to protect your industry and destroy our livelihoods?
5) City councils in Sonoma and Sebastopol have
unanimously passed resolutions against forced spraying; Windsor's
vote was 3-1 and Santa Rosa's 3-3. This creates'jurisdictional
conflicts in any attempts to enforce:spraying within these cities,
which is where sharpshooters are most likely to arrive first, on .
landscaping plants. For example, Sonoma City Council member Larry
Barnett wrote in ian editorial, "Don't plan to spray my organic tomato
garden without my permission, because you will have to arrest me to
do it How useful will city police be when mayors and city council
members resist?
6) Thousands of people have signed No Spray petitions
against forced spraying, hundreds have attended public,meetings,
and dozens are working on committees, including health, legal,
education, direct action,_media, art, and research. Instead of many
organizing against forted spraying, how can we cooperate together to
deal with this invasive species non-toxically?
7) Forced spraying against"the fire ant on Long Island
stimulated Rachel Carson to protest, write the book Silent Spring, and •
lead to the banning of the insecticide DDT during the early 1960s.
Are you willing to risk the creation of a mass movement against
pesticides and the wine industry?
8) PBS-TV will air Bill,Moyers' special on "Trade Secrets," an
410 expose of the chemical industry, on March 26. This program will
include research on.pesticides. Will you join us and millions of
others to watch this program and discuss it?
We sincerely welcome your responses to these questions.
The No Spray movement has deliberately not targeted the grape
growers as the problem or as an enemy:, Your fears of the
sharpshooter are legitimate. No Spray's target has been the State of
California and its demand for a forced spraying component in the
county's workplan. When most reasonableepeople outside the wine
industry weigh the economic threat of the;sharpshooter against the
=violation of property and civil.rights and health;impacts, the choice is
clear. As the matter extends beyond "the wine country mystique,"
the choice will be even clearer and the prestige of the wine industry
will worsen.
If the Agriculture Commissioner attempts;forced spraying, please
consider the following:
1) Over a hundred.people have attended non-violent direct
•; action trainings and.are ready to engage in civil disobedience to
defend their homes and health and those of friends and neighbors.
They will be joined by many other people who are not yet aware of
what spraying would involve.
2) The primarily local news coverage of the No Spray
movement expanded in February to the San.Francisco Chronicle and
in March to the Los Angeles Times and to National Public Radio.
Spraying would create a-,national and international story with photos
of organic farmers, gardeners and others being dragged to jail,
resulting in a public relations disaster for the Sonoma.County wine
industry.
3) In addition to the moderate No Spray Action Network's
non-violent resistance, forced.spraying might produce other
responses by individuals and,groups;not associated with this group.
Given various potential unintended consequences, we implore
you as individuals and as an industry to cooperate with the No Spray
movement. Together we could implement non-toxic controls.
S Though the state could use its police power to attempt to enforce
spraying, the wine industry would lose in such a confrontation, even
if some spraying did occur. Please consider that the social, political,
environmental, and health costs of forced spraying would be far
greater than any damage the sharpshooter might do.
Sebastopol Mayor Larry Robinson proposes the following in a
letter to the Sonoma County Grape Growers Association, "An •
amendment to the work plan eliminating the forced spraying option
would,demonstrate the kind of flexibility that would invite great
cooperation from yo_ur natural allies." If we could agree to eliminate
forced spraying, let me sketch some of the initial ways we could
work together to build a foundation for further collaboration:
1) Allow traps on our properties to strengthen inspections and
trainrpeople to identify and report:sharpshooters.
2) Teach people how to self-abate, if they chose, which could
then be verified by post-abatementinspections.
3) Work to quarantine plants coming from outside--such as has
' been done to combat many pests--thus also strengthening the local
. nursery industry.
By working together on these initial efforts, we could build
cooperative relations to sustain us in the future to combat this and
other invasive animal and plant-species.
If forced,spraying does occur, the silence of individual grape •
growers against that chemical assault will make them complicitous:
We appeal to your consciences to speak up individually as soon as
you can against what could be a major tragedy in our community and
for the wine industry. We thank those grape growers who have
already, had the courage to Oppose forced ispraying. -
Grape growers maybe walking the unpopular path of'the tobacco
industry that attempted to ignore health hazards. By coming out
against forced spraying and in support of public health you could
fortify the wine industry's environmental image and prevent
tarnishing your reputation.
So let's be reasonable and work together on a solution that does.
not involve forced spraying and the vigorous resistance that it would
produce. We welcomeyour responses, ideas, and thoughts.
Your farming and other neighbors,
(Partial list, begun'circulating-March,13' p.m., this update as of March
15 a.m., 80 signers)
Shepherd Bliss, Kokopelli Farm, Sebastopol
Dr. Julian;Blair,Steve Farms, Santa Rosa
Janet and Michael Costello, Costello's Farm, Bodega
Tommy Tolson,Red Road Farm, Santa Rosa
Claire Hope Ctiinings, Hope Glen Farm, Marin County
•
Hope Finkelstein, Growing Power, Milwaukee, WI.
Co-Signers:
City Council member Sam Spooner, Amy Austensen, David & Edie Bacci,
Lorraine Bazan, Emile Canning, Pete Cartwright, Diana Cushing, Edmee Danan,
M.D., Juliana Doms, Robin Dwan, Jeff Edelheit, Marccia Gabriel, Seasun Homm,
Marsha Sue Lustig, Marlena.Macho!, R. Miles, Mendenhall, Kathy & Bill Rueve,
Paul-Andre Schabracq, Sebastopol Nospray Action Affinity Group, Portia
Sinnott, Eric Spillman, Carol}iie Sta}ton, Chris Stoner, Russell, Leslie & Owen
Sutter, Pat Thurston, Daniel Voight, Christiiie••Walker, Alyce Weeks--
Sebastopol.
• City Council member Nlarsha Vas Dupre, Robin Birdfeather, Gail Dubinskv,
hI.D., Jack Dupre, Blake Forrest, AnnMarie Ginella, Debra Giusti-Rose, Helen
Kochehderfer, Richard Rose, Monica Schwalbenberg-Pena, R.N.--Santa Rosa.
Barry Bussewitz, Scott Hess;, P!arry'Modell--Petaluma.
Don Frank, April Gibson, Laura Goldman, Lynn Hamilton—Occidental
Will Shonbrun, Anthony Solis, Tara Treasurefield--Sonoma.
Nehora Lockhart, Jacob Martin--Healdsburg.
Scott Hunter, Ph.D., Philip &.Rhonda Smyser--Graton..
•
Sarah, Aaron, and Paul O'Connell--Monte.Rio.
Lucy Kenyon--Rohnert Park. Saliv'Tomlinson--Cotati.
Todd Gorman, Rosemarie MacDowell, Wendy Nicholson--Forestville.
Kurt Erickson--Bodega. Armando Bejarano--Guerneville.
Jeanie Wagenknecht--Cazadero. Lowell Downey--Napa.
Soula Culver--Richiitond. Allen Kanner, Ph.D., Sue Supriano--Berkeley.
Melanie Undem, Pesticide Watch=-San Francisco. Linda Riebel, Ph.D.--El Cerrito
Ram Sudhakar Moningi, Jayant Bondale, Ravi Chopade, Ravi Kuruganti, Sudhir
Vaishnava, Manish Koshal, Vijay Chalasani--Wheaton, Ilinois.
Rick and Linden Kirschner--Ashland, Oregon:
Heather Crocke--Saratoga Springs, New York. •
Brett Sculthorp-==Frenchtown, New Jersey. Teresa Crew--Kansas City, Missouri.
• P.O. Box 1040, Sebastopol, Ca. 95473,
sb3 @pon.net.
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MAR 1 6 20011
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it.m • 7-3 CLOSE TO :TOME • ,
•Forced spray greater teat :: E <d pest
• .. , By SHEPHERD BLISS • The oovcrnmen t eliminate diversity and the bal-
ance of natural predators,hungry.
recent editorial con- should not spray insects will come and thrive.
. ' Ai& eludes, 'It's tiine•to,slow G Y As to the impact of.Pierce's dis-
's down the anti spray residents Wlth. 0[5011. ease on Sonoma County,it is a na-
'h. •andwagon before it's ' tive bacterium and has been here '
out of control." Something is out destroying. g or anic for a century. It will not destroy
of control" — the wine°industry; our vibrant wine industry.It may
Its .monoculture' expansion in- Q-arde,s and farms, • .prune it back, which may be
vites the glassy-winged sharp- 7 - healthy. This could release land
d
shooter to dinner and threatens to. defend a sin le for, food crops again. The grape
us with forced spraying against J growers following best•practices -
the will of residents. The pesti;. , indust ry' will continue to thrive.
cides used to combat this tiny in The editorial's choices of"limit-
' sect—chlorpyrifos;carbaryl,.per- ed. spraying by government or •-
methrin—would harm people,an- nahadvises and cites the fire ant, massive spraying by growers"
'imals and nature. describing it as an insect capable pose a false dilemma. Sonoma .
For some of us,like myself •of. decimating natural ecosys County's Pierce's disease work-
asthma and thyroid conditions teens:" Actually, the primary spe- plan defines an-"infestation" as
that pesticides would worsen, the cies.that decimates nature is,the ,only,five bugs within 300 yards,
fight against forced spraying is"a','.human' - which triggers spraying for a one-
matter of life or death. ; : Rachel Carson's 1962 book "Si- mile radius. '
r Toxicologist Dr. Marc Lappe,,.:lent Spring which led to the ham Since the sharpshooter is likely
- former %.head of the, State of ning,of the pesticide DDT notes, to arrive on landscaping plants in
California's Hazard Assessment "In 1957 the fire ant,suddenly residential areas, that means
• Program, observes, "Nobody's go ;"came the target of a barrage of got: spraying thousands of homes.
ing to die from the sharpshooter-: ernment'releases portrayingit as Some would include vulnerable
But someone may die, particular y a, despoiler of agriculture. A infants, elders, people on chemo-
11111 ly the most vulnerable,if exposed. mighty " campaign was ,an-
.. therapy,cancer survivors and peo-ple to pesticides." pounced.' ple with asthma.The government
I agree with the editorial's call Sound familiar? The govern- should not spray residents with
to "slow down,' which is why we ment is currently using $40 mil-. poison, destroying organic gar-
have organized the growing No `lion of our tax dollars to mount a dens and farms,to defend a single
Spray Action Movement.We want massive,campaign against`tne de- industry. The "unintended conse-
to slow down the government and monized sharpshooter. . • quences" to human and environ-
the wine industry from chemical-- Carson„ after whom a hall at mental health are not worth the
ly trespassing .on our :bodies, Sonoma - State University is small benefit to one industry. '
homes,properties,and schools. •,.:'named,continues;"It is an ill-con-, This demonizing' of a bug re-
The editorial contributes to an.`. ceived, badly executed and thor- calls the argument that banning
ongoing fear campaign to hype up oughly=detrjmental experiment:in DDT would destroy Midwestern
the threat of the sharpshooter in the mass control of insects:" A agriculture. It was morally car-
- order to fire upon it.Innocent"peo- Jqorida official adds There are rect to ban DDT, as it is morally
• pie,bees,butterflies,'birds,beget more; fire ants in Florida now correct to prohibit forced•spray-
Mal insects and many other crea- then there were when the pro- Mg.Sonoma County's wine Indus-
_
hires would be "collateral dam-- grain'started•" , try will remain' prosperous, un-
age" in such chemical warfar'e. The sharpshooter has become a less it continues its monocrop
Madness and chemical self-de-
The sharpshooter isharmless to convenient scapegoat. But it is a madness
humans. Pesticides-used to coin_ symptom of the poor land manage- n-
bat it are docurnenteddangers-As- +meet and agricultural practices The government should not ex-
ing them would be overkill, espe- that are the real.problems: Too pect freedom loving residents to
cially ' when non toxic options many vineyards haveebeen plant- be willing to be sprayed upon,
such as quarantine, protective ed and their vines are too close to once they learn how poisonous
clays and natural predators are one'=another. Shallow tap root these pesticides are Respect our
available.'The editorial over-val- stocks planted too close to over privacy to grow organic gardens
ues-the wine industry and tour- cut riparian areas and vines that and farms and leave our yards un-
ism and under values people are over-fertilized; over-irrigated- sprayed.The costs of forced spray-
. Pesticides'•have never eradicat- and force-fed nitrogen compound ing to;people, wildlife and nature
ed a single insect species. Bugs the problems.The soil is damaged would be far greater than any
• adapt when fired upon and be and the.vines are weakened,draw- damage the-glassy-winged sharp-
. .come super-bugs. "Chemicals just ing "Pests." Forced spraying will shooter could ever do to vines.No
don't work'in the long run,"'ac- worsen rather than improve such forced spraying.
cording to Doug Shafer of Napa problems.
`Valleys Hillside Select; recently This.sharpshooter will not be , Shepherd Bliss works with the No
quoted in the Wine News by con- the last insect;to come feed of the Spray Action Network and owns the
tributing editor-Jeff,Cox. wine industry's mono-crop meal. organic Kokopelli Farm in rural
"Learn from histgry;"the edito- If you plant such a.banquet and Sebastopol.0
W* rth v,Sc. riiviS Ut it? •
. Redwood Needles-February 1,2001 ,
BY SHEPHERD Buss - Those are the real issues here: What is human
"What's a human life worth" I used to ask my and animal life and clean water worth?Are they
Mom as a young boy. "More even than a million more valuable-than bottles of luxury wine? •
dollars," she would answer: "Wow!" I beamed. The nerve toxins and organophosphate
. "Human life is,pretty valuable."'' . ' pesticides used last year elsewhere in
My friend Deanna's belly swelled months. control, the •glassy-winged 'sharpshooter are
Now she carriesrherinfantin a sling,ofteneye-to poisons that are known tobehazardoustohumans,
• eye."What's the healthofa baby worth?"Iwonder, animals, and water:Yet they were used Why?
• .Chickens abound on my farm, and I love to ' Here's what the former head of the'State of
watch many kinds of birds'flyby. "What's a flock California's Hazards Assessment Program, Dr.
of birds worth?',I wonder. Marc Lappe, a toxicologist,•writes, "Nobody's
I drink a lot ofwater,directly from the good well •going to die from the sharpshooter,but somebody
on my organic farm. With more water being may die, particularly the most vulnerable, by
contaminated by chemicals recently, I' wonder, exposure to pesticides.
"What's clean water worth?" Hundreds of birds were recently'killed. by
You're probably not going to believe this,but I ingesting the pesticide Nemacur in Sonoma
have heard that the'government is willing, to County's Alexander Valley, sprayed by the Klein
endanger the lives of infants, adults; birds, other Family Vintners. Nemacur bears a warning,label
• wildlife, and risk,the pollution of water. Must be with skull and crossbones and the words"Poison,
•because;of some huge threat:Well,actually, w
it has Danger, Peligro." The small print adds, "This
to do with a small insect that poses no danger to pesticide is toxic to fish and wildlife Birds feeding
humans but may hurt a few wine grapevines. I
know, it's really hard to believe: •
•
meeting of the No'.Spray Action Network.
These three citizens fear loss Of control dyer their
• bodies,health,and homes because of the threat of forced
spraying. Some of us eat and grow organically and
on treated areas-may be killed." And so:it happened, exercise our freedom of choice to avoid toxic chemicals
again:' "What's a flock of birds,worth?" How many and protect the health of our families.Yet the government
bottles of wine?_When would enough birds'' deaths is now threatening taking some of,the most deadly
warrant banning this poison? pesticides directly into our yards.Why?To defend a few
.I have asthma, adult onset, from living;.in the Bay vines..Is it worth it
Area,..where it has become epidemic. Pesticides can . When I bought myfarm ten years;ago lthoughtitwas
trigger asthma attacks,which can be fatal.I also have a • mine•to do with as I.chose,as long•as I followed the law
mild thyroid condition,which pesticides canworsen.So Now thegovernment threatens to come on my private
perhaps you can understand that my fight against the 'property and spray pesticides that would end my
forced spraying of-my organic farm and the homes and livelihood'and threaten my health.'Why?Because if they
lands of others against their will is a matter of life or discover a bug a mile away it might eventually spread
death for me. I'am one of a growing number of people Pierce's.Disease-to someone else's vines. So,basically, I
who have •been called "chemically sensitive" or lose,control of my land-because of some grapegrowers
"canaries." . .. fears. ..
"If a pesticide truck with masked men in moonsuits Something is very, very. wrong with.this picture. I
shows up at my home with poisons ready to spray, guess I'm back to my childhood question, "What's a
without my permission,what should I do?"'a concerned human life worth?" More-than-a few bottles of lux�
neighboring mother. recently asked. "I'm a cancer wine, I hope: Was my Mom wrong? Or have thin
survivor-Still on chemotherapy.Am I at risk?"wondered changed that much in 50 years?
another friend."Claiming'that these chemicals will not Shepherd Bliss, an organic farmer, works with.No Spray
hurtusislike the tobacco industry denying thatsmoking Action Network, www.freestone.com/nospray, and can.'be
is a health risk,"'declared another person at a recent' 'reached at shepherdb@ ail.coui.
l• /A-Ca-rifled
•
a al i -.1
. && A. California Certified Organic Farmers !C;- 2
ii
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• MAR 1.6 20.0.1
Ll i 3 1'i'a iVs
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CCOF Policy position regarding mandatory treatment for the control of the
Glassy-winged sharpshooter (GWSS) and control of Pierce's Disease (PD).
California Certified Organic Farms (CCOF) is opposed to the iandatory treatment of •
organic farms with synthetic pesticides that are prohibited'for use by CCOF Standards,the
California Organic Foods Act of 1990, and Federal law (the Organic Foods Production Act). . •
CCOF is opposed to the mandatory exposure of people to synthetic pesticides against their
free will. CCOF calls upon the California.Department of Food and Agriculture,County
- . Agricultural Commissioners,County Boards of Supervisors, and all other regulatory agencies
to respect our right to farm organically and to provide,for treatment of GWSS according to
•
organic production practices and the mandate of Senate,Bill 671. The Food and Agriculture
Code for the State of California supports the protection of organic farms under Section
•
6046(h)(4) (Senate Bill 671): ..
"The proposed treatment of Pierce's Disease and its vectors.
• :Treatment programs shall comply with all applicable laws and
regulations. and shall be conducted in an environmentally
responsible manner. "
131story has shown that wholesale application of broad-spectrum pesticides to control pests
is not successful. A pest such as the GWSS can only be controlled with the use of a wide
range of environmentally sound practices that provide for a diversity of predatory insects,
diverse cropping patterns, habitat diversity, physical controls;disease resistant varieties,and
naturally derived least-risk toxic pest control methods. Environmentally responsible control
.methods are addressed in the GWSS Taskforce reports and should be implemented by all
regulatory•agencies and pest control programs in order to protect our organic farms.
•
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aopt- ..1 bt\ -dam
oGkObes 2600 .
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1115 Mission Street•Santa Cruz - California • 95060-3526 • (831) 423-2263 • FAX (831) 423-4528
c2p2Dc i 10: 17 70 F: a1;F:4 , CEFOS PAGE 1
CEr
Center for Ethics and Toxics a ' •
A Project of the Tides Center �1 t.
39141 S. Highway One • PO. Box 673 '
Gualala, California 95445
Phone 707-884-1700 • FAX 707-884-1846 '
Web site: wwwcetos.org • e
mail: cetosQcetos:org-`
October 2, 2000
Mr John..Westoby Sonoma County Board of Supervisors
Agricultural Commissioner 575 Administration Drive„Room 100A
2605 Ventura,Avenue,Room 101 Santa Rosa, CA 95403-2813
Santa Rosa, California 95403
f
Dear Sirs,
Choosing to use any toxic substance for economic gain that can adversely affect •
someone°else raises powerful ethical issues. These issues are intensified when the
potential recipients of a given exposure have not participated in making the decisions
that impact on policy, By direct analogy, such a situation is comparable to non-
consensival'ezperimentatiQn in medicine.
I am concerned that affected citizens,have been isolated from policy making;regarding
the Pierce's Disease Control/ Glassy-Winged Sharpshooter Program. In this State, the
Food and Agriculture Department can determine, especially under a veil of emergency,
that rules for public notification can,be suspended and normal accountability can be
blocked- It is incompatible with democratic institutions that the Department of Food
and Agriculture can call out the police powers of the public health department to:
release a;toxic-substance.
My perspective is as a person who's deeply concerned about the,cumulative effects,of
pesticides:on vulnerable populations, whether they're children, the elderly, or people
with multiple chemical sensitivities. These are not imaginary differences between.
persons. For example; there are genetic differences that make some people more
vulnerable than others to prganophosphate and carbamate pesticides. Many of these
differences are just beginning to be charted.
Pierce's Disease was with us before the sharpshooter, it will be with us after the •:
sharpshooter. Until we understand the basic ecology of the sharpshooter and its
relationship to-thebacterium that causes Pierce's Disease, we will resort to'solutions
r
From;Tara Treasurefield To:Shepherd Bliss Date: 10102120(4 Time:4:01:22 PM Pace 2 of 4
1E0/02Y.2000 10: 17 70 =41846 CE TOR F'a1.1E 01
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that-are unhealthy for the environment and for people. By its nature, the bacterium is
very fastidious. It only grows in certain organisms,-certain hosts. It will not infect every
grape.plant, only some. It's;:notcarried,only by the sharpshooter. The sharpshooter is at
the wrong end of the barrel of a gun, some wouldsay. A toxicologist should ask, "Have
all reasonable, less intrusive, andless dangerous alternat ves.been evaluated? Is there a
less restrictive alternative available?" The answer is thatthere,are dozens of
alternatives that have.been put on the board but have not yet been evaluated. But
unfortunately, at present all the avenues and'arrows are pointed to chemical use.
In this war againstthe sharpshooter, both carbaryl (a carbamate),.and chlorpyrifos (an
organophosphate), have beemused. Carbamates and organophosphates.are near
relatives with the same nerve provoking effect that results from inhibiting the
breakdown of the neuro-transmitter acetyl cholinesterase. The U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency-places both car •atnates and organophbsphates among those
pesticides that pose the greatest risk to the public health. � •
Carbaryl is listed as moderately toxic. From a toxicologist's viewpoint; that means that
when given 50 milligrams per kilograni. half the animals keel over and die. It's not very
• toxic when it's compared to sarin, which can do the same thing at 1/1000th or less of the
dose, but carbaryl is still a nerve poison and a serious hazard to vulnerable populations.
In 1972, environmental.groups like the Sierra Club convinced State agencies and a panel •
of State judges to suspend the use of carbaryl for treating the gypsy moth,because it was
too toxic. It.has•much too broad a spectrum of toxicity. Carbaryl has great knockdown
•properties for insects across the board'and has:a-specific,toxic property for bees. Using
carbaryl is literally like using a shotgun in a Disney movie to get the fly in the corner of
the room. Everything-else in the-room'will be destroyed to get that one insect. Carbaryl
wasn't a good idea in 1972,it wasn't a good idea in 1998, and ifs not a good idea in the
• year 2000. How did it ever get back on the list as an emergency chemical?
Organophosphates were first used by the military, as neurotoxins. The pesticides that
evolved from theorganophosphates represent about 37% of all pesticides used in
California, making them the most commonly used pesticides in the state. Chlorpyrifos
will persist for-up to a year in acidic soils and it's very highly toxic to fish -- it causes
birth defects in•fish, in doses of one or two parts per billion in water..As little as 100th of
one pound spread over an acre will be toxic to fish and aquatic invertebrates. The
California Birth Defects Registry found that the chlorpyrifos group - the
Lorsban/Dursban group -- of pesticides, is the only group that's.associated with. birth '
defects. Of course, chlorpyrifos doesn't cause every birth defect, but there's a very
• strong association. In June of this year, the EPA permanently suspended residential and
commercial uses of chlorpyrifos, for its low safety margin. Yet, chlorpyrifos is being
used to control the sharpshooter. I find that, I must say, outrageous.
1:-1;'02..1000 10: 17 70 72 ;41:?4 :=Ti-r_
•
Permethrin, a.pyrethroid pesticide, has also been used in Sonoma County to combat the •
sharpshooter. Pyrethroids came in with the.hope that they could replace the more toxic
chemicals, like carbamates. These are pesticides that are originally derived from the
chrysanthemum plant and now are largely synthetically derived from the same
structural nucleus. The mistaken hope that you can count on nature td°prod"uce
something benign fueled a movement to replace all pesticides with pyrethrins.You can
find them in treatmentafor home use and.even in schools; yet many are allergenic and
not all are safe.
Another concern is the synergistic effects of the composite pesticide load,on.the whole
population of Sonoma County. Department of Pesticide Regulation data show that
3,734,768.79 pounds of agricultural pesticides were applied.in Sonoma County in 1999,
representing over 100 different pesticides varieties. Many of these chemicals become
ubiquitous environmental;contaminants,just as DDT did when it was introduced in
• 1945 and'until it was phased out in the 1960's. The cumulative effects of these pesticides
represent a serious public health hazard. In general, the types of cancer that can
consistently be-linked/to aggregate pesticide exposure include some of the most rapidly
increasing tuniors'in our population, such as:non-hodgkins lymphoma,!myeloma; and a
form of brain cancer.The carbamates are associated with several of these tumor types. •
Many studies suggest that exposure to pesticides during pregnancy presentsta cancer
risk for the kids. A recent study from Quebec asked "What kids.get leukemia?"rTlie
only exposure history of their parents that-contributed to leukemia was'iftheir moms
were exposed during pregnancy to any pesticide. ltt's unconscionable to do involuntary
spraying in a community having *omen of child-bearing age.
Nobody's going to die from the sharpshooter.But somebody MAY die; particularly the
most vutheiable, ii exposed to pesticides. Pierce's Disease is not an emergency health
situation. It's an emergency dollar situation. We do not have to bear the brunt of
someone else's economic risk taking. We have aright to say no to forced spraying of
pesticides.
Sincerely, .
•
�I L
Marc Lappe, Ph.D..
Director, Center for Ethics and Toxics i
(former had of the State of California Hazards Assessment Program) •
•
3.
Chemical Pesticides Exposed on TV Page 1 of 2
MFrom: Shepherd Bliss [sb3 @pon.n'et]
Sent Friday, March 16, 2001`7;38-AM •
To: leahgold@sonic.net;_jthomp44@pon.net mmaguire @crcnetworks.com; ptorliatt @aol.com;
jason @liles.net; citycouncil @ci.petaluma.ca.us mreilly @sonoma-county.org; mkerns @sonoma-
county.org
Subject: Chemical Pesticides Exposed on TV
From: Sue Carroll [mailto:scarroOI @mail.win.org]
Sent: Friday, March 16,20012:51 PM
To School IPM;NOAHSARC
Subject: [noahsarc] [4MOM] Watch Bill Moyers Report! (fwd)
On March 26th at 9:00 pm, PBS will air "Trade Secrets : A Moyers Report"
(be sure to check your local listings for. the exact air date and time
on your
PBS station) . Now any time Bill Movers looks• into something it 's worth
our
time.
In this case, it.'.s' something we have been waiting for years for a
journalist of his caliber to investigate: the chemical industry and its
hidden -
toxic legacy. It promises 'to be a ground breaking program, one that at
long -
last gives the chemical industry the glaring attention it so richly
deserves .
Even people who are already generally aware' of the deadly practices and
products .foisted upon us by ,chemical companies will be stunned by
Moyer's
revelations . This program is based on interviews With historians,
scientists and physicians, and on a massive uncovered archive of secret
industry documents that Movers and producer Sherry Jones say rivals the
now legendary "Tobacco Papers" for sheer, ,;appalling'shock value. What
those papers apparentlyTredeal is an industry that has put our health
and
safety at very dangerous risk and marshalled powerful forces in a
• largely
successful effort to hide the truth at any cost. I urge you to watch
this
program.
Many of .us are already ;aWare of the problem and its seriousness. But
that' s
not the case with the majority of Americans. Indeed, research shows that
•
most believe they're being quite adequately protected from chemical
hazards
by industry and government alike. That 's hardly the case, and it is
worth
everyeffort each of us can make to ensure that all our friends and
neighbors, no matter how politically uninvolved or environmentally '
unaware they might be,
tune in and watch this historic broadcast.
To that end, the Environmental Health Fund, the Environmental Working
Group, the. Center for Health, Environment and Justice, and Women's
Voices
• For the Earth are launching Coming Clean, an effort dedicated to
organizing
community viewings of the upcoming Moyers Report and doing whatever we
can to ensure that after March 26, there are more people in more
3/16/01
Chemical Pesticides Exposed on TV Pane 2 of 2 •
communities
working to stop the chemical contamination of our food, bodies and
environment .. I hope you' ll consider hosting a Coming Clean viewing
•
event.
(For more information about Coming Clean, contact Charlotte Brady at
<mailto:cbrody @chej .org>cbrody@ chej .<mailto:cbrody @chej .org>org or
Sharyle •
Patton at
<mailto:spatton @igc.org>spatton@ icc.<mailto:spatton @igc.org>ora,
or visit
<http: //www.comeclean.orq>http://www.comecle an.<htto: //www.comeclean.ora>org
or our own site at
<http: //www. seventhgen.com>h=ttp: //www.seventhgen.com) .
Whatever 'you do, make sure you're watching PBS on or- about March 26th.
And -
make sure everyone you know is watching with you. To be forewarned is
to
be forearmed. Thanks to Bill Moyers, we're about to get one of our
biggest
and best weapons yet in the fight against a poisoned planet.
Dr Malcolm Riley, Development Director
Program in Integrative Medicine
1650 E. Fort Lowell Ste 201, Tucson AZ 85719
ph - 520-626-5537
<http: //integrativemedicine.arizona.edu>http: //integrativemedicine.arizona.<ht
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3/16/01