p.s., Kerry,
 
   Here's a personal comment on the E.P.A activity.  The U.S. policy is so
stringent that really dangerous chemicals can be used (having been approved
by the E.P.A), while the use of relatively harmless substances (oftentimes
more effective) is illegal.
 
   For instance, to kill yellow jacket wasps, one can legally use RAID,
which includes insecticides and (though not stated on the label) methyl
chloroform.  As far as I can tell, the famous "knock-down" power of RAID
stems from the inclusion of methyl chloroform as a "carrier" (hence not
subject to regulation), which anaethetizes the wasps or bee and causes them
to plummet to the ground.
 
   However, one cannot legally use soapy water (a tablespoon of kitchen
detergent in a spray bottle full of water), because that substance has not
been approved by the E.P.A.
 
   Thus, we have a backwards law; one cannot use any substance unless it
has gone through a testing procedure.  But, no company is going to "test"
(at great expense) a relatively inexpensive and readily available product.
Perhaps you can appreciate why I now sometimes privately refer to the
E.P.A. as the M.P.A. (monopoly protection agency).
 
   Fortunately, the E.P.A. does not have the resources to police all that
happens on the individual level and does not even bother to object when one
recommends an unapproved technique.  Hilary Dole Klein and I published a
book (TINY GAME HUNTING, Bantam) a few years ago with all sorts of
environmentally safe remedies for controlling pests in house and garden.
Despite the so-called illegality of most recipes, no one from the E.P.A.
came knocking at our door.
 
   The Australian/New Zealand edition of that book is now out, but the U.S.
version is out of print.
 
   Will you be going to Georgia in September for the ABRC meetings?
 
                                                        Adrian
 
 
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