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In This Issue
Wood Destroying Inspect Inspection Training - Feb. 22 February 22 will be the next training session for inspectors wanting to become licensed for wood-destroying insect inspections. Ohio regulation requires a license for anyone performing insect inspections as part of a real estate transaction. The license requires the inspectors to attend a mandatory five-hour training session and take a test. Anyone interested in attending the training can go to the Pesticide Education Program website at http://pested.osu.edu to register. If there are any questions, they can call the program at (614) 292-4070. The class will be held from 9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.. The registration, which includes lunch, is $90 if pre-registered and $100 at the door. Ohio State University Extension Educators who would like to learn more about inspecting structures for insect damage can attend the training at the discounted rate of $25. Call (614) 292-4070 for more information. Applying Pesticides to the Waters of the U.S. EPA released an interpretive statement on applying pesticides to the waters of the U.S. This statement is an effort to clear confusion on the role between FIFRA (Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, Rodenticide Act) and the Clean Water Act. The confusion is on the heels of two recent court cases that resulted in rulings saying applicators were required to obtain a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) to apply pesticides to waters, even though the pesticides were labeled for aquatic use and used according to the label. One of the cases involved the Talent Irrigation District, which applied an aquatic herbicide to control weeds, and the other case involved Amherst, a town that sprayed wetlands to control mosquitoes. EPA is maintaining the position that pesticides that are labeled for under FIFRA do not require a NPDES permit for application to water, if used according to the label. The official interpretive statement is: "The application of a pesticide to or over, including near, waters of the United States consistent with all relevant requirements under FIFRA does not constitute the discharge of a pollutant that requires a NPDES permit under the Clean Water Act in the following two circumstances:
It is the Agency's position that these types of applications do not require NPDES permits under the Clean Water Act if the pesticides are applied consistent with all relevant requirements under FIFRA (i.e., those relevant to protecting water quality). Applications of pesticides in violation of the relevant requirements under FIFRA would be subject to enforcement under any and all appropriate statutes including, but not limited to FIFRA and the Clean Water Act." A public comment period is now open for the interpretive statement until April 4, 2005. More information is available at: http://www.epa.gov/oppfod01/cb/csb_page/updates/npdespermit.htm (Source: EPA Office of Pesticide Programs) California Ban on Hand Weeding The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health banned hand weeding in farm fields last year. The emergency order was renewed this year for 120 years with a final decision expected in March on the ban. An exemption has been given to organic growers who contend that switching from hand weeding to hoeing would force them to space their plants farther apart. According to the growers, the increased space between plants would create increased weed problems and lower yields per acre. (Source: Sacramento Bee, Jan. 26, 2005) Are Children More Sensitive than Adults? A European study says childhood illnesses can not be linked to low-level, long-term environmental exposures. The study also determined that "broadly based statements indicating that children are generally more sensitive to chemical insults are not supported by existing scientific data." The only exposure that has documented effects at general environmental levels is lead and indoor air pollutants such as cigarette smoke and ambient air pollutants were linked to childhood asthma. The study was a review of major scientific publications and was sponsored by the European Centre for Ecotoxicology and Toxicology of Chemicals and was presented to a committee of the European Chemical Industry Council. (Source: Pesticide & Toxic Chemical News, Vol. 33, No. 6) In simple terms, an enantiomer is a mirror image; or the full definition is a pair of chemical compounds whose molecular structures have a mirror image to each other. Researchers at University California, Riverside, are looking at the enantiomers of insecticides such as organophosphates and synthetic pyrethroids to see if they persist in the environment. The findings were published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. For the chemicals studied, at least one of the enantiomers was consistently more toxic than the mixed isomer. The researchers are advocating the regulators look at the compound to determine if only single isomer products should be manufactured instead of mixed isomers. (Source: University of California, Riverside, via U.S. EPA) Pesticide Exposure and Sperm Quality Over 250 men from a Massachusetts infertility clinic were recruited for a study to look how exposure to pesticides affected sperm quality. The study noted that exposure to a metabolite of carbaryl and anphthalene resulted in lowered sperm counts and decreased motility. Less significant associations for low sperm count and decreased motility were documented with a metabolite of chlorpyrifos and chlorpyrifos methyl. The Harvard School of Public Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention did the study. The findings were published in the January edition of Environmental Health Perspectives. (Source: Pesticide & Toxic Chemical News, Vol. 33, No. 12) EPA Launches New Spanish Website EPA has compiled Spanish language materials and information from various areas to a single website: http://www.epa.gov/espanol . The website contains information on environmental health, recycling, proper management of pesticides, educational resources and EPA grants and business opportunities. (Source: EPA Office of Pesticide Programs Update) Insecticide
Misc.
(Source for Pesticide Crop Watch: Pesticide & Toxic Chemical News, Vol. 33, No. 12)
------------------------------------------------------------------------ OSU Extension embraces human diversity and is committed to ensuring that all educational programs conducted by Ohio State University Extension are available to clientele on a nondiscriminatory basis without regard to race, color, age, gender identity or expression, disability, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, or veteran status. Keith L. Smith, Associate Vice President for Agricultural Administration and Director, OSU Extension TDD No. 800-589-8292 (Ohio only) or 614-292-1868
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Pesticide Education Program • Ohio State University Extension |