All too commonly, these chemicals are put on the market without complete understanding of their effects, leading to years later discovery of dangers to human health and the environment. Even modest amounts of exposure can impair human health, according to scientists, and children are especially susceptible. Alternative pest management strategies are becoming more widely accepted in homes, schools, and agricultural areas across the nation as public concern about the issue keeps rising.
 |
Pesticides include insecticides (which kill bugs),
herbicides (which kill weeds), and fungicides (which kill fungi). They also
include rodenticides and antibiotics. Spray cans, crop dusters, household cleansers,
hand soaps, and swimming pools are all common places to find pesticides.
The majority of pesticides are acutely (immediately)
harmful. Many are created to assault the brain and neurological system of an
insect, which means they may also have neurotoxic effects on people. Herbicides
are used more often and have long-term dangers (RoundUp and atrazine are the
two pesticides that are most commonly used worldwide). Accordingly, prolonged,
low-level exposures can raise the likelihood of developing conditions including
cancer, Parkinson's disease, infertility, and other damages to the reproductive
system. Large volumes of fungicides are also utilised; some are more benign
than others.
Additionally, the chemical classifications and mechanisms of
action of pesticides are sometimes broken down. For instance, systemic
pesticides enter a plant's tissue after being absorbed at the root, while
fumigants are pesticides sprayed as gases to "sterilize" soil.
Carbamates, organochlorines, organophosphates (several of which were invented
more than 70 years ago for use in chemical warfare), and triazines are among
the major chemical classes. Pyrethroids and neonicotinoids are two more recent
families that were created to replicate nature's defences against pests.
Farmers become trapped in what is known as the
"pesticide trap" as they are compelled to apply more and more
hazardous chemicals to manage weeds and insects that become resistant to
pesticides.
A farmer must apply more pesticides every year merely to
maintain normal crop losses as "superbugs" and "superweeds"
emerge in reaction to the extensive and ongoing usage of chemicals.
The pesticide treadmill is well demonstrated by the recent
introduction of crops that have been genetically modified to be used with the
herbicide 2,4-D. Weeds become resistant to RoundUp as a result of the
widespread planting of RoundUp Ready crops and the subsequent applications of
the herbicide. For example, resistant forms of "Pigweed" are
apparently already growing in southern cotton fields with such vigour that they
are able to "halt a combine in its tracks." Farmers are compelled to
apply 2,4-D once again, a dated chemical that is known to cause cancer and
reproductive problems.
Pesticide resistance is rising generally. Pests caused American farmers to lose 7% of their harvests in the 1940s. Despite the usage of additional insecticides since the 1980s, loss has climbed to 13%. Since 1945, between 500 and 1,000 types of weeds and insects have become resistant to pesticides.
The treadmill craze was foreseen by Rachel Carson in her
1962 book Silent Spring. Another option exists. The science of sustainable
farming is called agroecology. This effective method combines scientific
research with local expertise and experience, with an emphasis on methods that
are knowledge-intensive, affordable, environmentally responsible, and useful.
Pesticide usage at home puts households in North America at unneeded danger
since it outpaces agriculture use per acre by a factor of ten to one. Without
using harmful pesticides, there are alternatives to manage pests in the home,
garden, and yard. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the US is
primarily responsible for registering and regulating pesticides. The following
federal statutes permit the agency to oversee pesticides:
The EPA may register pesticides using risk/benefit criteria
(how much danger is balanced by how much benefit) under the Federal
Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act; In order to better safeguard
children and babies, the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act establishes
tolerances (maximum residues on food); In order to improve the protection of
children from cumulative exposures (dietary, water, and residential), the Food
Quality Protection Act of 1996 (FQPA) changes earlier regulations by creating a
single safety standard for tolerances; and
According to the 1973 Endangered Species Act, pesticides that would endanger these species cannot be registered. Some states have extra, tighter regulations limiting the use of pesticides, and in a few states, local towns and counties have the authority to enact even stricter regulations.
PAN
was instrumental in the development of two international accords that govern
pesticides:
- The Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs treaty) addresses persistent, transient, and bio-accumulative pollutants (such as DDT),
- and the Rotterdam Convention on Prior Informed Consent (PIC treaty) grants nations the option to forbid the import of particularly dangerous pollutants.
The PIC pact aims to stop the dumping of out-of-date or
illegal pesticides on poor nations. Only 25% of pesticides are used globally,
while 999% of acute pesticide-related deaths take occurring in underdeveloped
nations.
In the United States, farms, woods, lawns, and golf courses get an estimated one billion pounds of pesticide application annually. Currently, there are more than 17,000 pesticide products available on the market, many of which have received "conditional registration," a legal loophole that permits goods to be put on the market swiftly without undergoing a complete assessment.
Although studies by the Centers for Disease Control reveal
that all of us carry pesticides in our systems, those who apply pesticides,
farmers and farmworkers, and communities close to farms are frequently those
who are most at risk. Golf courses, several schools, and parks all make heavy
use of pesticides. Pesticide exposure for consumers also comes via food and
water residues. For instance, the USDA's testing of U.S. drinking water
revealed that 94% of samples contained the pesticide atrazine.
Pest and plant resistance, environmental damage, and a drop
in honey bee populations are all results of this extensive, long-term usage of
pesticides.
Pesticides are now understood to have a variety of negative
consequences on human health, including an increased risk of cancer,
Parkinson's disease, and neurodevelopmental issues including autism and ADHD.
As we emphasise in our paper, "A Generation in Jeopardy," evidence
indicates that young children and babies are particularly at danger.