Pesticides and You News from Beyond Pesticides: Protecting Health and the Environment with Science, Policy & Action Volume 30, Number 4 Winter 2010-11 Got Bed Bugs? Don’t Panic. Bed bugs do not transmit disease and can be controlled without toxic pesticides See inside for a series of articles on bed bugs: Got Bed Bugs Factsheet; Bed Bug Policy; Pesticide Resistance; ChemWatch Factsheet: Propoxur Also in this issue: Keeping Organic Strong: How you can influence organic standards, Beyond Pesticides launches a new webpage to engage the public in decisions to keep organic strong; Teaming with Microbes: The organic gardener’s guide to the soil food web Letter from Washington Managing Bed Bugs. .The Challenge Continues ed bugs are the hot topic of conversation these days. When I In fact, EPA’s charge to protect health and the environment from discussed this in our last issue, we dubbed the situation the “unreasonable adverse effects” under federal pesticide lawFederal ( BBed Bug Frenzy. The frenzy continues, so we devote most of Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act, FIFRA) would be best this issue of Pesticides and You to bed bug management that utilizes advanced by rejecting the “reasonableness” of the hazardous preventive practices by keeping the insect out of the places where we effect (even a risk below its current threshold of acceptable risk) live, work and recreate, utilizing heat treatment when necessary. In if there were a method that effectively eliminated that hazard and this context, we draw attention to bed bug resistance to pesticides, a the uncertainties associated with untested effects and chemical biological process that results from the typical pesticide-dependent mixtures. Now is a good time to ask EPA officials to use their statutory strategies that conventional pest control relies on. authority to fully integrate in their determination of “acceptable risk” (under the “unreasonable adverse effects” standard) an Regulating with alternatives in the forefront analysis of the reasonableness of the risk, in light of the availability of less or non-toxic alternatives. Many people try to do this in the EPA has stepped up to educate the public on bed bugs and explains marketplace, when they choose products that do not contain, for on its website that chemical treatment “alone” will not eliminate the example, the hazardous antibacterial triclosan (see p5 in this issue), insect problem. It is something of a milestone for EPA to suggest that hazardous cleaners and other products, or buy organic. Until this the most effective program incorporates monitoring, inspecting, reform is made, EPA will allow the unreasonable release of toxicants cleaning, and non-chemical treatments. Still, chemical treatments that promote insect resistance, creating a pesticide treadmill effect are mixed in among their suggested tactics, with the important that requires more toxic pesticides to treat an escalating problem caveat that only an integrated approach works. Meanwhile, EPA that requires more pesticides, and so on. acknowledges the fact that pesticides may not even work, stating, “[B]ed bugs populations in different geographic areas of the country Organic webpage have developed resistance to many pesticidal modes of action. If you’re dealing with a resistant population, some products and With organic being the solution to pesticide pollution, we need to fully application methods may only serve to make the problem worse.” engage the public in the decisions of the National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) in regulating organic and protecting its integrity. In Here’s where we differ with EPA. Because of the hazards, pesticides this issue, we launch our Keeping Organic Strong webpage to track should only be used as a last resort and then only least-toxic ongoing issues and encourage the public to weigh in. pesticides (which we define on our website as not linked to cancer, birth defects, genetic damage, neurological and respiratory impacts, Here is the challenge we face. Issues of importance continually emerge and environment effects) should be used. EPA always urges people before the NOSB that go to central questions, such as allowable to read the pesticide label, which does not disclose the full range products in organic production, the classification of materials as of hazards and uncertainties associated with a pesticide’s use. synthetic or nonsynthetic, sulfites in organic wine, animal welfare Comprehensive information on pesticide hazards and uncertainties and stocking rates, to name a few. Sometimes an issue arrives is not transparent to the consumer, farmer or pesticide applicator before the board as a petition from a group or manufacturer that who chooses to use a product. And the myth of safety (it’s registered wants to allow a new method or material. Other times, the board’s by EPA, it must be safe) is still commonplace in the market. At the review is a function of a five-year sunset evaluation to consider same time, an increasing number of consumers (like you the readers new developments and science. Regardless, the process, to work of PAY) and companies are taking a safer path. effectively, requires public involvement through the public comment period, with written submissions before the meetings or in person at Instead of alerting people to the potential dangers and uncertainties the meeting. With this webpage, we seek to bring larger numbers of associated with pesticides and urging people to try the non-chemical consumers and farmers into the decision making process to represent approach first (sealing cracks, crevices and entryways, use of mattress their interests and perspectives on the core values associated with encasements, etc.), EPA embraces those who say that toxic pesticides the organic production process. are just another tool in the toolbox. In this context, pesticides are given equal standing with cultural practices and non-chemical A huge thank you to all those who methods. Creating a prioritized approach would go a long way in supported Beyond Pesticides during out helping to prevent the bed bug situation and others like it, brought year-end appeal! Best wishes for the new on, in part, by a regulatory system that promotes pesticides among year. the preferred solutions alongside other approaches that are known to work without pesticides. This orientation in itself promotes insect, Jay Feldman is executive director of Beyond rodent and weed resistance because of extraordinary amounts of Pesticides. unnecessary pesticide use. Contents Pesticides and You © 2011 (ISSN 0896-7253) is published 4 times a year by Beyond Pesti- cides. Beyond Pesticides, founded in 1981 as the National Coalition Against the Misuse of Pesticides (NCAMP), is a voice for health and the environment, promoting protection from pesticides and safe alternatives; dona- tions are tax-deductible. National Headquarters: 701 E Street, SE Washington DC 20003 ph: 202-543-5450 fx: 202-543-4791 email: [email protected] website: www.beyondpesticides.org Articles in this newsletter may be repro- duced without Beyond Pesticides’ permission unless otherwise noted. Please credit Beyond Pesticides for reproduced material. BEYOND PESTICIDES STAFF Jay Feldman, Executive Director page 9 John Kepner, Project Director Nichelle Harriott, Research Associate Stephanie Davio, Public Education Associate Sharon Fried, IPM and Health Care Facility Project Director Terry Shistar, Ph.D., Science Consultant 2 Mail Chris Ryan, Adelia Bles, Interns Mice are driving me mad!; Beyond Pesticides Daily News Blog PESTICIDES AND YOU 4 Washington, DC Jay Feldman, Publisher, Editor Jay Feldman, John Kepner, USDA Organic Program Says Oversight Improved under Obama Stephanie Davio, Nichelle Harriott, Administration; Members of Congress Urge FDA to Ban Triclosan; Tell EPA Chris Ryan, Adelia Bles, Contributors to Ban Triclosan, Petition Allows for Public Comment on Hazardous John Kepner, Layout Antibacterial Pesticide; Groups Call for Full Ban of Pesticide, Once Widely BOARD OF DIRECTORS Used in Homes Routt Riegart, M.D., president, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, SC 6 Around the Country Lani Malmberg, vice-president, Ecological USDA Deregulates GE Alfalfa and Groups Pledge To Sue; Genetically Services, Cheyenne, WY Altered Corn Contaminates Midwest Streams; Industry Groups Quit Terry Shistar, Ph.D., secretary, Lawrence, KS Caroline Cox, treasurer, Center for “Sustainable Agriculture” Standard Process; Two Culprits Linked to Bee Environmental Health, Oakland, CA Decline, More Research Needed; Group Sues California County Agency Chip Osborne, at-large, Orborne Organics, over Polluted Runoff; “Organic” Factory Farms Create Unfair Competition, Marblehead, MA says Report Ruth Berlin, LCSW-C, Maryland Pesticide Network, Annapolis, MD 9 Keeping Organic Strong Paula Dinerstein, Public Employees for En- vironmental Responsibility, Washington, DC How you can influence organic standards Lorna Donaldson, Donaldson Family Farm, Tiptonville, TN 13 Got Bed Bugs? Don’t Panic. Jay Feldman, Beyond Pesticides, Bed bugs do not transmit disease and can be controlled without toxic Washington, DC pesticides Warren Porter, Ph.D., University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 18 Bed Bug Policy Brett Ramey, Native Movement, Flagstaff, AZ Regulatory decisions, Congressional intervention and the rise of bed bugs Tom Smith, National Senior Citizens Law Center, Washington, DC 20 Pesticide Resistance Allen Spalt, Toxic Free North Carolina, Carrboro, NC 21 ChemWatch Factsheet: Propoxur Robina Suwol, California Safe Schools, Van Nuys, CA 24 Resource: Teaming with Microbes Andrea Kidd Taylor, DrPH, Morgan State University, Baltimore, MD The Organic Gardener’s Guide to the Soil Food Web Affiliations shown for informational purposes only. Printed on 100% post consumer waste with soy inks. Mail Mice are driving me nant and have a toddler, so I’d like to know if there is a risk of me being exposed to the mad! mice poison while it’s in the roof (i.e. from it vaporizing)? Could the mice track it into Can you please give me advice? We seem the house; will they carry it with them or to have a rodent problem in the roof of our will it come out in there feces or urine? house.