PEP-Talk, May, 2002

PEP-Talk, May, 2002

Pesticide Education Program
Ohio State University Extension
Joanne Kick-Raack, State Coordinator
Cindy Folck, Communications
Vol. 6, Issue 5

In This Issue

Pesticide Education Program Website is Searchable

Harsh Criticism of Label Language

EPA Clarifies Aquatic Herbicide Permit Requirements

Lady Beetles Being Released to Save Hemlocks

Ohio Begins Gypsy Moth Program

Mexico Launches Pesticide Safety Training

Reminders for Pesticide Security

National Data Tracking Bill Introduced

Pesticide Crop Watch

Pesticide Education Program Website is Searchable

The Pesticide Education Program website is searchable. The search is located at the left of the screen, under the navigation buttons. You can now search through past issues of PEP Talk and other pages on the website for specific information. The search was designed and set up by Harry Laufman, Communications and Technology for Ohio State University Extension. Thanks Harry!!

Harsh Criticism of Label Language

EPA has received numerous letters of opposition to the proposed spray-drift labeling on pesticide products. Currently, the proposed labeling will prohibit pesticide applications when wind speed exceeds 10 miles per hour, limit boom widths and heights and prohibit any drift. Growers and crop consultant companies have weighed in that zero drift would be impossible for applicators to achieve and still provide protection for their crops. They are in favor of the growers being responsible for determining ideal wind speeds instead of the label mandating no spraying if winds exceed 10 miles per hour.

The president of the Association of American Pesticide Control Officials (AAPCO), which includes state lead agencies such as the Ohio Department of Agriculture, sent an official letter to EPA regarding the labeling. While AAPCO agrees with the flexibility, scope and intent of the labeling, they have strong reservations about the agency using the 1999 AAPCO Pesticide Drift Enforcement Survey to support the need for improved labeling. AAPCO contends that the survey simply referenced the number of drift complaints received by states without quantifying the applications that have been made with no complaint or off target adverse effects.

CropLife America also sent comments to EPA regarding the drift labeling. In summary, they echoed other stakeholder comments that argued against the wind-speed limits and "zero drift" language. CropLife contends that drift should be handled on a local level rather than a single national approach. They also contend the proposed buffer zones will eliminate almost 7 million acres of farmland from production.

In an unrelated story, the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) has filed suit with the U.S. EPA alleging that pesticide drift poses a threat to the red-legged frog, an endangered species. CBD contends that EPA has violated the Endangered Species Act which requires federal agencies to consult the Fish and Wildlife Service and/or the National Marine Fisheries Service before implementing decisions that could adversely affect endangered species. CBD says EPA has violated this by allowing the use of pesticides when wind is present. (Source: Pesticide & Toxic Chemical News, Vol. 30, No. 22 & No. 25)

EPA Clarifies Aquatic Herbicide Permit Requirements

Aquatic herbicides, if applied in accordance with an EPA-approved label, could be used in irrigation canals without a permit, according to a statement released by the EPA. The announcement was in response to the confusion created by a federal court ruling that an irrigation district in southern Oregon needed a Clean Water Act permit to apply a herbicide to irrigation canals.

EPA's statement addresses the issue of how a Clean Water Act exemption applies in situations where an aquatic herbicide has been used in accordance with the law. In other circumstances where discharges are made into waters of the U.S., FIFRA and the Clean Water Act may both be applicable and will be enforced, said EPA. The full text of the Agency's policy statement is available on the EPA website. (Source: Pesticide & Toxic Chemical News, Vol. 30, No. 23)

Lady Beetles Being Released to Save Hemlocks

Hemlock trees in the northeastern U.S. and along the east coast are being threatened by the hemlock woolly adelgid, an exotic insect from Japan. As a biological control, the New Jersey and West Virginia Departments of Agriculture and the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station have released the lady beetle, Pseudoscymnus tsugae, a natural predator of the hemlock wooly adelgid. P. tsuage are in the same family Coccinellidae as the multicolored Asian lady beetle, but have a distinctively different appearance. P. tsuage are shiny black lady beetles, with no noticeable spots. Press reports indicate that lady beetles will also be released in South Carolina to thwart attacks of the hemlock woolly adelgid in that state also. For more information, visit the hemlock woolly adelgid website. (Sources: Hemlock Woolly Adelgid Newsletter, Issue No. 5, USDA Forest Service, Northeastern Area State & Private Forestry Forest Health Protection and Pesticide & Toxic Chemical News, Vol. 30, No. 23)

Ohio Begins Gypsy Moth Program

The Ohio Department of Agriculture is preparing to launch the 2002 Suppression Spray Program the first week in May. Gypsy moth larvae were confirmed hatching on April 15th in Licking County and are expected to disperse and begin feeding in the near term. This year's program includes spray sites in 23 Ohio counties ranging from Ross and Washington Counties in the south to Williams and Trumbull counties in the north. A total of 16,000 acres are targeted for treatment.

The intensity of gypsy moth pressure later this spring on Ohio's woodland areas will depend largely on the weather during the last half of May and early June. A natural fungus, preferring cool and damp conditions, is becoming more prevalent in Ohio and significantly reduces the gypsy moth populations when conditions favoring this fungus development are present. Hot, dry conditions limit the development of the fungus and under those conditions the gypsy moth populations flourish and the tree defoliation is most likely to occur.(Written by William Pound, Ph.D., Director of Gypsy Moth Program, Ohio Department of Agriculture)

Mexico Launches Pesticide Safety Training

With collaboration from U.S. federal and state governments, Mexico has begun a national pesticide safety training program to help protect the health and safety of the agricultural workforce in Mexico and the workers who migrate to the U.S. for work. In February and March, Mexican officials conducted workshops to teach local outreach, public health and agricultural specialists how to train agricultural workers about pesticide risks. (Source: EPA Pesticide Program Update, April 10, 2002)

Reminders for Pesticide Security

With spring and planting in full swing, applicators still need to be concerned with pesticide security. Making sure pesticides are in secure, locked areas can reduce theft and vandalism with the chemical products. Some reminders for the application season:

If possible, have pesticides delivered to the farm or other secure area. Pesticides delivered to field locations could be tempting for theft if no one is in the field at the time of delivery.

Never leave a full sprayer in the field overnight. This could be a target for vandals to empty and cause environmental and possibly crop damage.

Always remove keys from ignition of trucks and tractors. Even the quietest community can have people passing through looking for something easy to drive away.

Keep pesticides in secure areas, away from children and pets. When the season starts in full swing and applicators are busy, it's easy to forget to put everything away. Pesticides need to be kept where access is limited for the most vulnerable.

Limit access to farm chemicals to only trained applicators. A farm vulnerable to vandals and theft will have the chemicals easily accessible during the day or night. Ideally, these products should be kept in a locked area.

National Data Tracking Bill Introduced

The Nationwide Health Tracking Act of 2002 was introduced into the Senate in late March. The bill seeks to create a framework to collect, analyze and report data on illness rates and the presence of relevant environmental factors and exposures. The bill was introduced in the Senate by Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) along with a companion bill in the House by Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). Groups such as the Trust for America's Health that support the bill point to the success of the infectious disease tracking which is done currently. They say that tracking illnesses caused by environmental factors could add 25 additional, healthy years to the life of the average American. The price tag is estimated to be $10 billion over 10 years. (Source: Pesticide & Toxic Chemical News, Vol. 30, No. 23 & No. 25)

Pesticide Crop Watch

Insecticides

Assail (acetamiprid) EPA received an application from Aventis to register this new active ingredient for use on leafy vegetables, cole crops, fruiting vegetables, grapes and pome fruits.

Ethion - EPA has published a cancellation order for all ethion pesticide products. Ethion was used on cattle and citrus. The insecticide will no longer be manufactured after October 1, 2003. Sales of the product will end October 1, 2004 and all uses of these products will be prohibited as of December 31, 2004.

Leverage (imidacloprid/cyfluthrin) Bayer added to their label the control of Colorado potato beetle and leafminers on potatoes.

Tristart 70 (acetamiprid) EPA received an application from Aventis to register this new active ingredient to use on commercial and flowering plants grown outdoors and in greenhouses to control various insects.

Herbicides

Outlook (dimethenamid-p) BASF added to their label the control of mayweed.

Velpar (hexozinone) DuPont added to their label chemigation on dormant alfalfa and to impregnate on dry bulb fertilizers for use on forestry sites.

Wow Plus (corn gluten meal) Gardens Alive has proposed to EPA to register this new active ingredient for pre-emergence weed control in lawns.

Fungicides

Abound (azoxystrobin) Syngenta has added to their label the usage on blueberries, currants, elderberries, gooseberries, huckleberries, ligonberries and juneberries.

Auxigro (GABA/glutamic acid) Emerald BioAg added to their label for this fungicide/growth regulator to control brown rot and the suppression of shot hole on stone fruits.

Cygnus (kresoxim-methyl) BASF has added to their label usage on ornamentals.

Flint (trifloxystrobin) Bayer added to their label the control of blossom blight and powdery mildew on almonds and botrytis bunch rot on grapes.

Medallion (fludioxonil) Syngenta has added to their label the control of pink and grey snow mold on turf and the control of rhizoctonia, cylindrocladium, fusarium and sclerotium diseases on ornamentals.

Microthiol (sulfur) Cerexagri added to their label the control of leaf spot and powdery mildew on pears.

Triton (triticonazole) EPA has received an application from Aventis to register this new active ingredient to control diseases on commercial turfgrass, golf courses and sod farms.

Misc.

DuPont and its subsidiary, Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc., and Monsanto Co. and its affiliates announced an agreement that gives both companies cross-licenses to enabling technologies that enhance the performance of corn, canola and soybean crops and improve farmers' productivity and efficiency. Highlights include: Pioneer receives a royalty-bearing license to Monsanto's newest Roundup Ready corn technology and Pioneer receives a new royalty-bearing license to Monsanto's Roundup Ready soybean technology. (Source for Pesticide Crop Watch: Agricultural Chemical News, Volume 271; Volume 270, EPA Pesticide Program Update, April 9, 2002, Pesticide & Toxic Chemical News, Vol. 30, No. 24)

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	PEP-Talk, May, 2002 Pesticide Education Program Ohio State University Extension Joanne Kick-Raack, State Coordinator Cindy Folck, Communications Vol. 6, Issue 5 In This Issue Pesticide Education Program Website is Searchable Harsh Criticism of Label Language EPA Clarifies Aquatic Herbicide Permit Requirements Lady Beetles Being Released to Save Hemlocks Ohio Begins Gypsy Moth Program Mexico Launches Pesticide Safety Training Reminders for Pesticide Security National Data Tracking Bill Introduced Pesticide Crop Watch Pesticide Education Program Website is Searchable The Pesticide Education Program website is searchable. The search is located at the left of the screen, under the navigation buttons. You can now search through past issues of PEP Talk and other pages on the website for specific information. The search was designed and set up by Harry Laufman, Communications and Technology for Ohio State University Extension. Thanks Harry!! Harsh Criticism of Label Language EPA has received numerous letters of opposition to the proposed spray-drift labeling on pesticide products. Currently, the proposed labeling will prohibit pesticide applications when wind speed exceeds 10 miles per hour, limit boom widths and heights and prohibit any drift. Growers and crop consultant companies have weighed in that zero drift would be impossible for applicators to achieve and still provide protection for their crops. They are in favor of the growers being responsible for determining ideal wind speeds instead of the label mandating no spraying if winds exceed 10 miles per hour. The president of the Association of American Pesticide Control Officials (AAPCO), which includes state lead agencies such as the Ohio Department of Agriculture, sent an official letter to EPA regarding the labeling. While AAPCO agrees with the flexibility, scope and intent of the labeling, they have strong reservations about the agency using the 1999 AAPCO Pesticide Drift Enforcement Survey to support the need for improved labeling. AAPCO contends that the survey simply referenced the number of drift complaints received by states without quantifying the applications that have been made with no complaint or off target adverse effects. CropLife America also sent comments to EPA regarding the drift labeling. In summary, they echoed other stakeholder comments that argued against the wind-speed limits and "zero drift" language. CropLife contends that drift should be handled on a local level rather than a single national approach. They also contend the proposed buffer zones will eliminate almost 7 million acres of farmland from production. In an unrelated story, the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) has filed suit with the U.S. EPA alleging that pesticide drift poses a threat to the red-legged frog, an endangered species. CBD contends that EPA has violated the Endangered Species Act which requires federal agencies to consult the Fish and Wildlife Service and/or the National Marine Fisheries Service before implementing decisions that could adversely affect endangered species. CBD says EPA has violated this by allowing the use of pesticides when wind is present. (Source: Pesticide & Toxic Chemical News, Vol. 30, No. 22 & No. 25) EPA Clarifies Aquatic Herbicide Permit Requirements Aquatic herbicides, if applied in accordance with an EPA-approved label, could be used in irrigation canals without a permit, according to a statement released by the EPA. The announcement was in response to the confusion created by a federal court ruling that an irrigation district in southern Oregon needed a Clean Water Act permit to apply a herbicide to irrigation canals. EPA's statement addresses the issue of how a Clean Water Act exemption applies in situations where an aquatic herbicide has been used in accordance with the law. In other circumstances where discharges are made into waters of the U.S., FIFRA and the Clean Water Act may both be applicable and will be enforced, said EPA. The full text of the Agency's policy statement is available on the EPA website. (Source: Pesticide & Toxic Chemical News, Vol. 30, No. 23) Lady Beetles Being Released to Save Hemlocks Hemlock trees in the northeastern U.S. and along the east coast are being threatened by the hemlock woolly adelgid, an exotic insect from Japan. As a biological control, the New Jersey and West Virginia Departments of Agriculture and the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station have released the lady beetle, Pseudoscymnus tsugae, a natural predator of the hemlock wooly adelgid. P. tsuage are in the same family Coccinellidae as the multicolored Asian lady beetle, but have a distinctively different appearance. P. tsuage are shiny black lady beetles, with no noticeable spots. Press reports indicate that lady beetles will also be released in South Carolina to thwart attacks of the hemlock woolly adelgid in that state also. For more information, visit the hemlock woolly adelgid website. (Sources: Hemlock Woolly Adelgid Newsletter, Issue No. 5, USDA Forest Service, Northeastern Area State & Private Forestry Forest Health Protection and Pesticide & Toxic Chemical News, Vol. 30, No. 23) Ohio Begins Gypsy Moth Program The Ohio Department of Agriculture is preparing to launch the 2002 Suppression Spray Program the first week in May. Gypsy moth larvae were confirmed hatching on April 15th in Licking County and are expected to disperse and begin feeding in the near term. This year's program includes spray sites in 23 Ohio counties ranging from Ross and Washington Counties in the south to Williams and Trumbull counties in the north. A total of 16,000 acres are targeted for treatment. The intensity of gypsy moth pressure later this spring on Ohio's woodland areas will depend largely on the weather during the last half of May and early June. A natural fungus, preferring cool and damp conditions, is becoming more prevalent in Ohio and significantly reduces the gypsy moth populations when conditions favoring this fungus development are present. Hot, dry conditions limit the development of the fungus and under those conditions the gypsy moth populations flourish and the tree defoliation is most likely to occur.(Written by William Pound, Ph.D., Director of Gypsy Moth Program, Ohio Department of Agriculture) Mexico Launches Pesticide Safety Training With collaboration from U.S. federal and state governments, Mexico has begun a national pesticide safety training program to help protect the health and safety of the agricultural workforce in Mexico and the workers who migrate to the U.S. for work. In February and March, Mexican officials conducted workshops to teach local outreach, public health and agricultural specialists how to train agricultural workers about pesticide risks. (Source: EPA Pesticide Program Update, April 10, 2002) Reminders for Pesticide Security With spring and planting in full swing, applicators still need to be concerned with pesticide security. Making sure pesticides are in secure, locked areas can reduce theft and vandalism with the chemical products. Some reminders for the application season: If possible, have pesticides delivered to the farm or other secure area. Pesticides delivered to field locations could be tempting for theft if no one is in the field at the time of delivery. Never leave a full sprayer in the field overnight. This could be a target for vandals to empty and cause environmental and possibly crop damage. Always remove keys from ignition of trucks and tractors. Even the quietest community can have people passing through looking for something easy to drive away. Keep pesticides in secure areas, away from children and pets. When the season starts in full swing and applicators are busy, it's easy to forget to put everything away. Pesticides need to be kept where access is limited for the most vulnerable. Limit access to farm chemicals to only trained applicators. A farm vulnerable to vandals and theft will have the chemicals easily accessible during the day or night. Ideally, these products should be kept in a locked area. National Data Tracking Bill Introduced The Nationwide Health Tracking Act of 2002 was introduced into the Senate in late March. The bill seeks to create a framework to collect, analyze and report data on illness rates and the presence of relevant environmental factors and exposures. The bill was introduced in the Senate by Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-N.Y.) along with a companion bill in the House by Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.). Groups such as the Trust for America's Health that support the bill point to the success of the infectious disease tracking which is done currently. They say that tracking illnesses caused by environmental factors could add 25 additional, healthy years to the life of the average American. The price tag is estimated to be $10 billion over 10 years. (Source: Pesticide & Toxic Chemical News, Vol. 30, No. 23 & No. 25) Pesticide Crop Watch Insecticides Assail (acetamiprid) EPA received an application from Aventis to register this new active ingredient for use on leafy vegetables, cole crops, fruiting vegetables, grapes and pome fruits. Ethion - EPA has published a cancellation order for all ethion pesticide products. Ethion was used on cattle and citrus. The insecticide will no longer be manufactured after October 1, 2003. Sales of the product will end October 1, 2004 and all uses of these products will be prohibited as of December 31, 2004. Leverage (imidacloprid/cyfluthrin) Bayer added to their label the control of Colorado potato beetle and leafminers on potatoes. Tristart 70 (acetamiprid) EPA received an application from Aventis to register this new active ingredient to use on commercial and flowering plants grown outdoors and in greenhouses to control various insects. Herbicides Outlook (dimethenamid-p) BASF added to their label the control of mayweed. Velpar (hexozinone) DuPont added to their label chemigation on dormant alfalfa and to impregnate on dry bulb fertilizers for use on forestry sites. Wow Plus (corn gluten meal) Gardens Alive has proposed to EPA to register this new active ingredient for pre-emergence weed control in lawns. Fungicides Abound (azoxystrobin) Syngenta has added to their label the usage on blueberries, currants, elderberries, gooseberries, huckleberries, ligonberries and juneberries. Auxigro (GABA/glutamic acid) Emerald BioAg added to their label for this fungicide/growth regulator to control brown rot and the suppression of shot hole on stone fruits. Cygnus (kresoxim-methyl) BASF has added to their label usage on ornamentals. Flint (trifloxystrobin) Bayer added to their label the control of blossom blight and powdery mildew on almonds and botrytis bunch rot on grapes. Medallion (fludioxonil) Syngenta has added to their label the control of pink and grey snow mold on turf and the control of rhizoctonia, cylindrocladium, fusarium and sclerotium diseases on ornamentals. Microthiol (sulfur) Cerexagri added to their label the control of leaf spot and powdery mildew on pears. Triton (triticonazole) EPA has received an application from Aventis to register this new active ingredient to control diseases on commercial turfgrass, golf courses and sod farms. Misc. DuPont and its subsidiary, Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc., and Monsanto Co. and its affiliates announced an agreement that gives both companies cross-licenses to enabling technologies that enhance the performance of corn, canola and soybean crops and improve farmers' productivity and efficiency. Highlights include: Pioneer receives a royalty-bearing license to Monsanto's newest Roundup Ready corn technology and Pioneer receives a new royalty-bearing license to Monsanto's Roundup Ready soybean technology. (Source for Pesticide Crop Watch: Agricultural Chemical News, Volume 271; Volume 270, EPA Pesticide Program Update, April 9, 2002, Pesticide & Toxic Chemical News, Vol. 30, No. 24) Top of Page Return to Home