An excellent article by Laurel Hopwood, chair of the national Sierra Club Genetic Engineering Committee.--Tom M.



-----Original Message-----
From: Laurel Hopwood <[log in to unmask]>
To: CONS-SPST-BIOTECH-FORUM <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Mon, Apr 2, 2018 4:50 pm
Subject: My Op Ed was finally published!


    http://buffalonews.com/2018/04/01/another-voice-an-insecticide-threatens-the-next-silent-spring/
          
Another Voice: An        insecticide threatens the next silent spring
      
By Another              Voice | Published April            1, 2018
        
      
        
By Laurel            Hopwood
        
A          groundbreaking new study exposes a huge threat to the Great          Lakes. Neonicotinoid insecticides (neonics) have been found          year-round in major tributaries to the Great Lakes. Of great          concern in New York is the Genesee River.
        
Neonics          came on the market with great expectation that it caused less          toxicity than previously used classes of insecticides.          Unfortunately, there’s a dark side.
        
Neonics          have already been been linked with bee die-offs and bird          population decline. Why should we care? Losing these          pollinators can have a tremendous impact on our food supply.          Birds are natural predators of insects carrying disease. The          entire ecosystem may be at risk.
        
Consider          water fleas. Not something to chat about at the dinner table.          Yet these small aquatic creatures are at risk from neonic          exposure and they are an important part of the aquatic food          chain.
        
Neonics are          the most widely used class of insecticides in the world. They          are slow to break down and therefore persist in the          environment. They have been found in dust, soil, wetlands,          groundwater and foods common to the American diet. The USDA          found neonics in 12 of 19 different fruits and vegetables          sampled. Unlike most other pesticides, neonics cannot be          washed off of food prior to consumption. Open your window in          the summer and dust particles carrying the toxin will most          probably enter your living space.
        
Neonics          have been detected in human urine, serum and hair. A distinct          concern of human neonic toxicity is a questionable exposure          link with Alzheimer's disease and autism. Yet studies are          scant linking neonic exposure to human health dysfunction.          Meanwhile, the widespread use of neonics in agriculture and          urban lawns and gardens is increasing like a runaway train          without brakes.
        
The          ecological reviews of neonics are inadequate. EPA registration          is based primarily on the data submitted by the companies          manufacturing their proprietary pesticides. That's not all.          The EPA has failed to assess cumulative, synergistic, and          repetitive long-term effects.
        
Colorado          beekeeper Tom Theobald exclaimed, “Neonic seed coatings are          exempt from regulation by the EPA, yet the primary neonic          applications are used as seed coatings for corn and soybeans.          The EPA has excluded this use under the Treated Articles          Exclusion – which says that seed treatment is not a pesticide          use. It’s outrageous that this has gone unchallenged.”
        
Dust off          your history books. Fifty-six years ago, Rachel Carson          authored “Silent Spring” not only to expose the ill effects of          DDT, but also to expose how chemistry can disrupt the natural          systems.
        
Many          scientists claim neonics are leading to the next silent          spring. Will we pay attention now, before it’s too late?
        
Michelle          Hladik, Ph. D., lead author of this new study has raised a red          flag. Now it’s our turn. We can continue to follow the status          quo, or we can move forward in a win-win situation for          farmers, the ecosystem and the American public. Legislatures          can provide economic and educational incentives for farmers to          plant organically. Each person can assume personal          responsibility by choosing organic lawns, gardens and          sustainably grown food.
        
Laurel Hopwood is a member            of the Sierra Club Pollinator Protection Team in Cleveland.
      
    
    
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