Thanks, Steve! Your information is extremely interesting.
In light of what you said about talc and graphite, the link below is also
interesting, especially the boxed paragraph titled "Requirement." I take
it there is no such requirement in the U.S.?
I remember reading somewhere that there are recommendations for rowcrop
farmers in the U.S. that are supposed, if followed, to reduce the neonic fog
that you described. I wonder how many Iowa farmers know about those
recommendations, let alone follow them.
I came across one study that indicated that the neonic dust from corn and
soybean planting can drift fifty meters. In Iowa, where so much
pollinator habitat is in small areas and where rowcrops dominate the landscape,
that's a significant edge impact.
Some papers on neonics recommend that neonic-treated seed be used only
where there is demonstrated need (pest populations that are high enough to
justify the use of neonic seed treatments). Is that recommendation being
followed in Iowa? I don't know.
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/cps-spc/pubs/pest/_fact-fiche/pollinator-protection-p
ollinisateurs/treated_seed-semences_traitees-eng.php
Cindy
Cindy Hildebrand
[log in to unmask]
Ames, IA 50010
"...White winter, on its knees,
Observes everything with reverent attention.”
(Anna Akhmatova)
In a message dated 12/3/2015 5:49:18 P.M. Central Standard Time,
[log in to unmask] writes:
Hi,
There is one huge factor that is totally being overlooked in the
neonicotinoid issue which is the seed metering method on planters. Traditionally
and still to this date planters used either plates, brush meters (for
soybeans), or _finger pickup units_
(http://www.kinze.com/feature.aspx?id=266&Finger+Pickup+Seed+Meters) to take the seed from a hopper on the row unit and
drop it in the ground. The recent trend has been to have a bulk fill tank
on the center of the planter that blows the seeds to a small hopper on the
row units. At that point another blower blows the seeds against rotating
plastic discs. The main advantage of this system is that the farmer does
not have to handle bags but on our farm the disadvantages of the extra
$30,000 for the planter system, the $30,000 dollar precision seed tender needed
to deliver the seed to the planter, and the $45,000 ¾ ton pickup to pull the
seed tender made the economics of handling a few hundred bags of seed corn
seem very appealing.
Back to the bees; while the seed corn has been highly cleaned, in addition
to the various seed treatments including neonicotinoids, there is still
some dust in the bags and the farmer is also required to add some form of
talc or graphite as a seed flow lubricant that comes in contact with the seed
and insecticides. As the seeds are blown from the bulk tanks to the row
units and then metered in the row units with air pressure, the planter is
continuously exhaling a neonicotinoid fog across the entire landscape.
Compare this system to one in which the seed corn bag is dumped into a box and
the seed is physically picked up and dropped in the ground. While I have not
done any research, my instincts would tell me that the amount of
insecticide reaching off target sites would drop by 95% with the non-air delivery
system.
These older systems are readily available and if not already an option in
the manufacturers planter lines could easily be added. The cost of the
systems is usually less than the more sophisticated air delivery systems with
the only trade off being a slight inconvenience to farmers.
This to me would be a no brainer first step to help solve this serious
problem.
Steve Swan
From: Iowa Discussion, Alerts and Announcements
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of l
Sent: Monday, November 23, 2015 6:12 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Fwd: Pesticide makers point to other culprits in bee die-offs
-----Original Message-----
From: Laurel Hopwood <[log in to unmask]
(mailto:[log in to unmask]) >
To: CONS-SPST-BIOTECH-FORUM <[log in to unmask]
CLUB.ORG_ (mailto:[log in to unmask]) >
Sent: Mon, Nov 23, 2015 8:26 am
Subject: Pesticide makers point to other culprits in bee die-offs
Here's what we're up against: Multinational agribusiness control with big
money to spend on PR, legal efforts, pro-neonic research and political
influence.
http://bigstory.ap.org/article/1df4c6fbcef443d8a59f867f962ae3cb/pesticide-ma
kers-point-other-culprits-bee-die-offs
Pesticide makers point to other culprits in bee die-offs
(EDITED)
Bayer and Syngenta are fighting pressure from regulators in the U.S. and
Europe with publicity campaigns and lobbying aimed at telling people that
neonics are beneficial and safe when used correctly, and that bees face
greater peril from parasites, pathogens and poor diets as wild flowering plants
diminish.
Representatives for Bayer, Syngenta and Monsanto — which coats its seeds
with neonics — are speaking at beekeepers' conferences and visiting
agricultural research universities. Bayer invites visitors, teachers and students
to its bee centers on its corporate campuses and offers teachers a
downloadable digital science lesson about bees.
Critics say that is propaganda.
Bayer produces three of the world's top five neonic pesticides in a
worldwide market estimated to be worth about $3 billion, with Bayer's two
top-selling products taking about half the market. Syngenta's best-selling neonic
is worth about $1 billion in annual sales.
Bee losses in the U.S. the past five years have been especially acute,
with reported annual losses of 30 percent to 45 percent, according to a study
authored by researchers including the University of Maryland's Dennis van
Engelsdorp . The heavy death toll continues through the spring and summer,
when bee populations are collecting pollen and should be their healthiest,
the study said.
Across Europe and nearby countries like Algeria, beekeepers reported 17
percent of colonies lost last winter, twice that of the previous year.
That has regulators and retailers zeroing in on neonics. The EPA is
working on new risk assessments, and the European Union is reviewing a 2 year old
ban on the biggest-selling neonics from crops during their flowering stage.
"We're going to push with every ounce of our energy to get this thing
reversed," former Syngenta Chief Executive Officer Michael Mack told stock
analysts in February.
Here is Sierra Club's piece on the honeybee crisis:
https://content.sierraclub.org/grassrootsnetwork/team-news/2014/08/deepening
-honeybee-crisis-and-our-food-supply
Laurel Hopwood, Coordinator, Sierra Club Pollinator Protection Campaign
Email: [log in to unmask] (mailto:[log in to unmask])
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