The E&E news article was distributed by a beekeepers group. See below
If you Google Syngenta petitions epa you will get may hits to this type of
press release similar to the E&E article.
*Federal Register */Vol. 79, No. 172 / Friday, September 5, 2014 / Proposed
Rules
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2014-09-05/pdf/2014-21101.pdf
I did not read the full EPA petition but what is missing from the article
below is that Syngenta is also petitioning to removing tolerances for
residues of the insecticide, thiamethoxam in grain, cereal,...( I am
assuming that removing tolerances means no residue)
also Syngenta is not the only entity petitioning:
Interregional Research Project No. 4 (IR–4), 500 College Road East, Suite
201W, Princeton, NJ 08540, requests to establish a tolerance in 40 CFR part
180 for residues of streptomycin in or on grapefruit at 0.15 parts per
million (ppm);.
BASF Corporation on behalf of Whitmire Micro-Gen Research Laboratories,
Inc., 3568 Tree Court Industrial Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63122–6682, requests
to establish a tolerance in 40 CFR part 180 for residues of the
insecticide, Alpha-Cypermethrin, in or on food/feed handling establishments
at 0.05 parts per million (ppm). (not bee related)
Interregional Research Project No. 4 (IR–4), 500 College Road East, Suite
201W, Princeton, New Jersey 08540, on behalf of BetaTec Hop Products, Inc.,
5185 MacArthur Blvd. NW., Suite 300, Washington, DC 20016, requests to
establish an exemption from the requirement of a tolerance for residues of
the biochemical pesticide potassium salts of hop beta acids, in or on honey
and honeycomb. The petitioner believes no analytical method is needed
because it is not required for a tolerance exemption. (BPPD)
Loveland Products, Inc., 3005 Rocky Mountain Avenue, Loveland, CO 80538,
requests to establish an exemption from the requirement of a tolerance for
residues of the phenol, 2-(2H-benzotriazol-2-yl)-6-dodecyl-4-methyl- (CAS
No. 23328– 53–2) when used as a pesticide inert ingredient in pesticide
formulations as a ultra-violet (UV) stabilizer not to exceed 10%
weight/weight (w/w) in pesticide formulations under 40 CFR 180.920
(pre-harvest uses).
and more.
So the point I am making is that Syngenta is not the only entity
petitioning in the federal register yet they are singled out.
*E & E News: The** leader in energy & environmental policy news *
*PESTICIDES: *
*Syngenta asks EPA to raise tolerance level for 'bee-killing' chemical *
Tiffany Stecker, E&E reporter
Published: Friday, September 5, 2014
Seed and crop management company Syngenta Crop Protection LLC has
petitioned U.S. EPA to increase the legal tolerance for a neonicotinoid
pesticide residue in several crops -- in one case increasing the acceptable
level by 400 times, according to a notice
<http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2014-09-05/pdf/2014-21101.pdf> in
today's *Federal
Register*.
Syngenta, one of the biggest manufacturers of pesticides, wants to increase
the allowable threshold for residues of thiamethoxam, a pesticide that has
been linked to the decline of honeybees and other pollinators over the past
several decades.
The petition would apply to alfalfa, barley, corn and wheat, both the crop
itself and the straw and stover left over after cultivation. Syngenta is
seeking to increase the levels from as low as 1.5 times for stover from
sweet corn to as much as 400 times for hay from wheat.
Neonicotinoid pesticides are one of many factors that scientists say have
caused a dramatic decline in pollinators, insects and animals that help
crop production by carrying pollen from one plant to another. The United
States has lost more than half its managed honeybee colonies in the last 10
years, according to the Pollinator Partnership, a nonprofit dedicated to
the protection of pollinators and their ecosystems.
Scientists say neonicotinoids can suppress bees' immune systems, making
them more vulnerable to viruses and bacteria. The Fish and Wildlife Service
agreed to phase out neonicotinoids on wildlife refuges nationwide starting
in January 2016 (*Greenwire*
<http://www.eenews.net/greenwire/stories/1060003965>, Aug. 1).
Increases in neonicotinoids are especially concerning in forage crops like
alfalfa, as bees collect pollen from the blooms, said Aimee Simpson, policy
director and staff attorney for the advocacy group Beyond Pesticides.
"Instead of figuring ways to stop or reduce the use, it's significantly
increasing the amount on forage materials and other crops," Simpson said.
Syngenta is seeking to change the tolerance levels because the company
wants to use thiamethoxam as a leaf spray -- rather than just a seed
treatment -- to treat late- to midseason insect pests, said Ann Bryan, a
spokeswoman for the company.
Seed treatments are systemic, meaning the insecticide travels through the
entire plant, including the pollen, where it can be toxic to bees. But
foliar treatments are more likely to stick to the leaf, where risk to
pollinators decreases.
"Growers depend on neonicotinoids and other crop protection products to
increase crop productivity," said Bryan in an email. "Syngenta is committed
to biodiversity, including thriving pollinators."
The increased residues could become a problem if farmers are spraying
thiamethoxam at a time when alfalfa is blooming, said Reed Johnson, a bee
toxicologist and an associate professor of entomology at Ohio State
University. But most commercial growers cut alfalfa before it makes flowers
and pollen.
Switching from a systemic pesticide to a leaf spray can be a relatively
good thing for bees, said Johnson, but if the spray drifts to other flowers
nearby, pollinators could be exposed anyway.
"You always have to ask, what else is blooming out there at the time?" said
Johnson. "If there's any flowering at all, you're going to have an impact."
EPA is accepting comments on the proposed changes, as well as amended
tolerances for several other pesticides, until Oct. 6.
Twitter: @TiffanyStecker <https://twitter.com/TiffanyStecker> | Email:
[log in to unmask]
Dennis
western NY, US
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