Insecticides

The Environmental Audit Committee held its first and second public evidence hearings of its inquiry, Insects and Insecticides. In the morning evidence session, the Committee identified the key issues in relation to insects and insecticides with campaigners and farmers’ representatives. Topics for discussion included the current regulatory regime for pesticides, the decline of insect pollinators in the UK, organic alternatives to pesticides and the practical consequences of a hypothetical ban on the use of neonicotinoid insecticides. In the afternoon session, the Committee explored the latest scientific research on insects and insecticides with a panel of scientists who are currently active in the field. This session focused on the latest research on the effect of neonicotinoid insecticides on bees.
Transcripts :
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmselect/cmenvaud/c66…
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmselect/cmenvaud/c66…
http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201213/cmselect/cmenvaud/c66…

Written evidence:
http://t.co/R6QiY40E

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This year marks the 50th anniversary of the publication of Rachel Carson's Silent Spring, the book responsible for the onset of the environmental movement, which led to the banning of the pesticide DDT a decade later. What many people don't realise is that in 2012 we are exposed to more toxic chemicals than ever before, in spite of legislation enacted to control it. In the US, chemicals like PCBs, solvents and adhesives are regulated under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) of 1976. But rather than "control" which chemicals are released into the air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we eat, TSCA really just follows them after the fact. When TSCA was enacted, more than 60,000 untested chemicals were present in our environment, and an estimated 8,000-12,000 chemicals continue to be introduced annually, with no requirement that human toxicity or exposure data be provided before the chemical is used. Essentially, we the consumers and citizens are the experimental animals on which these chemicals are tested.

The Center for Food Safety last week asked EPA in a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to release all agency memos, emails, incident reports and other documentation on bee kills and other incidents allegedly linked to exposure to the neonicotinoid pesticide imidacloprid. The Washington, D.C.-based advocacy group, in a FOIA request dated Nov. 1, asks for internal EPA correspondence and documentation regarding "bee mortality, beneficial insect mortality, threatened or endangered species mortality, hive loss, excess disease or other incidents" that are related to chronic or acute exposure to imidacloprid, which is primarily manufactured by Bayer CropScience.

GE food should have been regulated in the same way as drugs. As it is, GE crop consumption is a vast, uncontrolled experiment, with no oversight, no monitoring for adverse reactions, and no real way to assess liability. Gene flow and genetic pollution can be tracked only after it occurs. If we remember the problems with Starlink corn, the whole industry is one catastrophe away from total meltdown. If we overlook safety and environmental issues, GE crops have not been used wisely. Monolithic plantings of one cultivar increase the potential for total crop failure. Relying almost entirely on glyphosate and BT for pest management has increased pest resistance, and current GE crops may become ineffective. Seed monopolies are also causing farmers to lose their independence. We should learn from the pesticide treadmills of the past. GE crops that tolerate several herbicides are not the answer to resistant weeds. The result will be massive applications of herbicides that are more toxic than glyphosate. Weeds will become resistant to multiple herbicides. The answer is a return to IPM principles that allow both sustainable crop production and environmental protection. For now, the only sure way to avoid eating GE food is to buy organic products. Maybe if more people vote in the marketplace, producers will make some changes.

Since the mid-1960s, environmental toxicology focussed on the effects of bioaccumulation of organochlorine insecticides in organisms, and their consequences for populations of species in the wild. Prompted by the release of Silent Spring, scientists sifted focus to the ecological effects of pesticides, thus expanding the narrow field of pesticide toxicology that had been restricted to its effects on pests, weeds and pathogenic fungi since its beginnings. The ensuing decades will witness a tremendous gathering of data related to the toxic impacts that insecticides, herbicides and fungicides have on organisms and ecosystems. Despite these efforts, our understanding of the mechanisms of toxicity at different levels of biological organisation has not kept abreast with the overwhelming progress experienced in the development of new pesticides. While chemical companies introduced new plant protection products in the market at a staggering pace, environmental toxicology has trailed behind.

Retailers have clarified their stance on pesticide use after new research revealed a combination of two commonly used products harmed bumblebee populations. The Co-operative Group said imidacloprid was a neonicotinoid that was on its “prohibited list”, which applied to fresh and frozen produce sold in store and grown on its farms. Morrisons said it understood the importance of encouraging healthy bee populations in the UK and screened all pesticides used by its suppliers to ensure they did not have an adverse effect on bees. Tesco, meanwhile, said it did not use the two pesticides in combination on any “flowering crops” such as apples or pears in the UK. Sainsbury’s did not respond to specific questions over whether its suppliers were permitted to use the two pesticides mentioned in the study. A spokeswoman, however, said: “Our pesticide policy requires our suppliers to minimise their use of pesticides and employ Integrated Crop Management techniques.”

The purpose of the current study was to investigate the immunological impacts of chronic imidacloprid insecticide toxicity in broiler chickens and the protective effects of vitamin E and selenium. Broiler chicks (n=90) aged day old were randomly segregated into three groups of 30 chicks each and were kept in separate pens. Newcastle disease (ND) vaccine was given on day 7 and 28 of age. On day 8, chicks in group I were administered 5 mg/kg bw (1/20 LD50) imidacloprid orally. Chicks in group II were given imidacloprid 5 mg/kg bw orally plus a mixture of vitamin E and selenium ≅ 200 mg/kg diet, while group III was given distilled water (DW) orally and served as a control. The treatments were given daily based on weekly body weight till day 45. Antibody titration, serum total immunoglobulins, circulating immune complexes, cell-mediated immunity and histopathology of bursa of Fabricius and spleen were examined. Imidacloprid produced significant decline in the titer of antibodies against ND vaccine, total immunoglobulins and circulating immune complexes in imidacloprid treated group on day 45 as compared to control group. There were no significant changes in the skin thickness between treated chickens and chickens of control group. Histopathology of the bursa of Fabricius revealed edema, lymphocytic depletion in the medulla and cortex and mild interfollicular fibrosis in imidacloprid treated group. The spleen showed mild haemorrhages and lymphocytic depletion.