PesticideSmart News
April 30, 2021
  Greetings!  
 

Hope you are all enjoying the beauty of Spring's burst of green trees, shrubs and flowers and you are finding time to be outdoors and partake in this season of planting and growing. If so, you might find some of this month's articles of interest.

And mosquito season has arrived!
Last month we alerted our readers to our finding that the pesticide, used by Md. Dept. of Agriculture (MDA) for mosquito control in over 2,000 communities and by some private Md mosquito management services, Permanone 30-30 contains high levels of toxic PFAS, aka "forever chemicals."  The Maryland Pesticide Education Network, in collaboration with the national organization Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, ordered the lab test after a similar pesticide used for mosquito control in Massachusetts was found to be contaminated with PFAS. Read more about it here.

As a result of our efforts in alerting EPA, MDA and the public to the Permanone testing findings, MDA has been asked by EPA to stop using Permanone.

MDA has decided to replace Permanone with BioMist 30-30 this season, while EPA investigates Permanone, however the product BioMist 30-30 is untested for PFAS. BioMist 30-30's active ingredients are the same as Permanone 30-30.

Nationally, EPA paused the use of the Massachusetts mosquito control product after the pesticide was found to be contaminated with PFAS. EPA is now assessing whether Permanone was contaminated with PFAS from its container or if PFAS was added to the pesticide as an inert ingredient. 

You can opt out of the State's spraying. If your community has opted into the state's mosquito control program, consider sharing this information with your HOA and neighbors. Your community has a choice as to its exposure to the endocrine disrupting BioMist 30-30 pesticide, which may also contain PFAS. Here's how your community can opt out of the State program. There are effective non-toxic ways to manage mosquitoes

Dr. Ichniowski, Md Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, alerts us in this Baltimore Sun opinion piece about the life-long dangers from exposure to PFAS forever chemicals (especially for children) and his concern about our exposure to Permanone 30-30 during mosquito season. Read here.

There are safer ways to protect yourself and your family from mosquitoes! Don't let mosquitoes spoil your fun! Download the 2021 fact sheetEnjoy!

Please help support our work to protect our babies, bees, and the Bay!

 
  A GREAT UPCOMING EVENT  
 

Our friends at Beyond Pesticides are hosting their virtual 2021 National Pesticide Forum in late May and early June.

Hear Rodale Institute's Jeff Moyer and 50+ amazing speakers in 30+ sessions at this virtual conference "Cultivating Healthy Communities: Confronting Health Threats, Climate Disasters, and Biodiversity Collapse with a Toxic-Free Future." There are registration options for all budgets! Read more and register here

 
   
 








 

 

As consumer demand for organic grows, along with recognition that healthy soil is a solution for storing carbon, our friends at the Rodale Institute announce this great new initiative with Bell & Evans and Cargill to transform 50,000 farm acres to organic. Read more here 

 

 

Create an organic outdoor oasis. As warming temperatures herald Spring, now is the perfect time to re-imagine how we use and beautify the outdoor spaces around our homes by going organic. Read how here

Check out these sources for beneficial insects, organic fertilizers, pest and weed management products, supplies and more. Arbico Organics and Gardens Alive!
 



Join us in voting with our wallets and forks. Take the pledge to avoid pesticides in what you buy and use!  Take the Pledge here

 

 

 

We're taking a survey... What are your favorite organic cleaning and laundry products? Please let us know here and we'll share the results in June!

 

 
  NEWS and VIEWS  
 

Pesticide breakdown products are just as pervasive as their parent compounds in urban streams in the US, says the U.S. Geological Survey. Recent findings spotlight long-term impacts of pesticides on health and the environment. The EPA needs to rethink how the agency approves pesticide products, and we need strategies to protect local waterways. Read more here
 

Concerns for pregnant women ...

A new study finds over 100 chemicals present in U.S. pregnant women's blood and umbilical cord samples, igniting concerns over prenatal exposure to chemicals widely used in consumer and industrial products. Read more here


Study shows pregnant women living within 2.5 miles of agricultural pesticide applications have an increased risk that their child will develop central nervous system tumors. View study here

 
  POLLINATOR / BEE BUZZ  
 

 

This study finds that RoundUp formulations with certain inert ingredients kill exposed bumblebees at high rates. The undisclosed inert ingredients are the primary culprit. Bayer has been quietly reformulating its flagship product with different herbicides in a rebranding effort, as lawsuits drag down the company's performance. View study here

 

15 buzzworthy bumblebee facts. They are some of the most efficient pollinators out there. Did you know that... this type of bee boasts fast-beating wings that help vibrate blossoms until they release large amounts of pollen, a method called "buzz pollination"? This helps flowers be more productive. Read more here

 
  LET'S GET SERIOUS ABOUT SOIL, food security & climate change - yes they're related!  
 

 

The truth about the toxic #pesticides and other chemicals that keep your lawn green, and how to create a healthy oasis without them. Read how here

 

 

 

Regenerative #organic agricultural practices sequester CO2 and store it in the soil and above ground as organic matter. Perennial polycultures, agroforestry and reforestation can sustain and increase both above ground and below ground carbon. Read more here
 

 

 

Can agricultural soils sequester more than 100% of CO2 emissions? If all cropland and pastureland were converted to regenerative ag practices, they could sequester more than 100% of global annual CO2 emissions, according to an important research by the Rodale Institute. Read more here

 

 

Landowners are driving organic production as they want to use their land to support certified organic and regenerative organic agriculture. Some landowners understand the environmental impacts that conventional farming can have on the environment and human health, and they do not want to be a part of it any longer. Read more here

                             


If you eat, you should care about farm workers. For too long, the essential workers in Maryland's agricultural sector have labored under substandard conditions, lacking the critical workplace protections and benefits afforded workers in other industries. Read more here

 

 

 

Please help support our work to protect our babies, bees, and the Bay!