Illegal Pesticides Research Articles

Effects of a Television Drama about Environmental Exposure to Toxic Substances

This study assessed short-term outcomes of viewing an episode of a prime-time television drama in which a child developed cancer after environmental exposure to an illegal pesticide. The study explored the effects among viewers of feeling transported into a narrative world. Respondents (n = 2,139) to a post-episode Internet panel survey were asked if they had seen the show and asked questions about their demographic information, their frequency of viewing the television show, the degree to which they had felt transported into a narrative world created by the drama, and their knowledge and beliefs about the health effects of environmental exposure. Conversations with key informants from federal agencies and advocacy groups were also held. Episode viewing and narrative transportation were positively associated with knowledge of toxic exposure effects, and transported viewers reported being more likely to report an unusually high number of cancer cases to authorities. The show also appeared to have prompted a clarification of federal pesticide-testing policy. Entertainment Education is a promising strategy for disseminating key points of information about environmental health.

Scaling Up Political Ecology: The Case of Illegal Pesticides on Fresh Vegetables Imported into the United States, 1996–2006

Compliance with regulations on pesticide residues in food is a major health and safety issue, as well as a signal about the complex set of ecological, social, and regulatory relationships. This article presents a multiscale analysis of data from analytical chemistry tests of pesticide residues conducted by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration on fresh vegetables from 1996 to 2006. Empirical findings include: (1) domestic vegetables have lower adverse (illegal) residue rates than imported produce; (2) adverse rates vary greatly by country of export and do not correspond to a nation's relative wealth or region; (3) intensity of testing (tests per kilogram of vegetables imported) varies considerably by country; (4) vegetables with high adverse rates are generally minor crops or vegetables with above-ground edible portions, and (5) fourteen pesticides out of 476 account for two thirds of all violations. Based on this analysis, and primary and secondary data on farmers' pesticide use, I develop a political ecological framework to explain high violation rates and to create hypotheses about countries with high violation rates: Guatemala, Spain, Jamaica, and China. I propose two hypotheses for high levels of violative residues. First, farmers face a cost and price squeeze and, where there is little exporter control, respond by using more effective and more highly residual pesticides like the organophosphates. Second, in other commodity chains, continued residue problems in the U.S. market are a by-product of production aimed at compliance with other regions' regulations.

Global Increase in Counterfeit Pesticides

PI-174, an 8-page illustrated fact sheet by Frederick M. Fishel, describes the growing problem of illegal manufacture and trade of counterfeit pesticides, types of counterfeit and illegal pesticides, effects of illegal trade and counterfeit pesticides, challenges to fighting the problem, steps that need to be taken, and examples. Includes sources of additional information. Published by the UF Department of Agronomy, January 2009.

Determinants of cockroach and mouse exposure and associations with asthma in families and elderly individuals living in New York City public housing

Asthma prevalence is high in the inner city, and morbidity has been associated with cockroach and mouse allergens. To characterize the relationships among pests, allergens, pesticides, and asthma in New York City public housing. In 324 apartments, dust samples collected from beds and kitchens were analyzed for cockroach (Bla g 2) and mouse (mouse urinary protein [MUP]) allergens, pest populations were monitored, and residents were interviewed about home characteristics and asthma symptoms. Cockroaches were found in 77% of the apartments, and evidence of mice was found in 13%. Allergens and pesticide use were associated with pest infestation, and 15% of residents reported using illegal pesticides. The percentage of apartments with high allergen levels varied significantly by building (Bla g 2: P = .002; MUP: P = .03), as did the percentage of apartments with cockroaches (P = .002) and daily mouse sightings (P = .02). Thirty-seven percent of the apartments had at least 1 resident with physician-diagnosed asthma. In family buildings, apartments with high Bla g 2 levels had 1.7 times greater odds of having an asthmatic resident (95% confidence interval, 1.2-2.3). In senior citizen buildings, apartments with high MUP levels had 6.6 times greater odds of having an asthmatic resident (95% confidence interval, 1.4-31.7), controlling for smoking and other potential confounders. Previous studies have identified home characteristics associated with the presence of cockroaches and mice, but the present findings suggest that building-level characteristics can affect high pest exposure. Furthermore, the high asthma prevalence in residents and the use of illegal pesticides highlight the need for safe and effective building-wide pest control strategies.

Wildlife forensics and the veterinary practitioner

A wide variety of laws and regulations has been instituted at various levels of government to manage, conserve, and protect fish and wildlife resources from over-exploitation. Veterinarians may participate in the conservation of wildlife species in a number of ways, including providing expertise and services supporting law enforcement activities related to wildlife. An overview of the developing field of wildlife forensics (the application of scientific methods of investigation to legal issues) is given, with special emphasis on differentiation of gunshot wounds and illegal pesticide poisoning of wildlife species. Carbofuran, strychnine, avitrol, famphur, fenthion, and aldicarb are found in intentional and secondary poisonings in the United States because of inappropriate usage of these commonly available pesticides. Veterinarians trained in the medical sciences can assist in legal cases involving wildlife by determining the cause of death and assessing factors that contribute to an environment that may be unhealthy or lethal to protected species. The proper handling of evidence and the professional preparation of reports that may be used in a court case are important considerations for a veterinarian who participates in legal cases as an investigator and as an expert witness.

Pesticides in food may be higher than FDA says

Produce sold in the U.S. from both domestic and imported sources is almost twice as likely to be contaminated with pesticides at illegal levels than the Food & Drug Administration has reported. This is the charge of a report by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit policy and research group, which analyzed FDA's own data. EWG's study, Forbidden Fruit: Illegal Pesticides in the U.S. Food Supply, found records of residues of 66 pesticides on 42 fruit and vegetable crops sold in the U.S. during 1992 and 1993 at levels higher than legally allowed. In 13% of these violations, the pesticides could not even be applied legally to the crop on which they were found. In the other 87% of the violations, the pesticides could be applied legally, but residue levels exceeded legal limits. A disturbing number of fruit and vegetable growers routinely break the law, says Richard Wiles, EWG vice president and ...