|
|
Home Mosquito Information |
Special ProjectsPESP - Pesticide Environmental Stewardship Programhttp://www.epa.gov/oppbppd1/pesp  Pesticide Environmental Stewardship ProgramPESP OverviewAMCA PESP StrategyAMCA 2008 PESP Activities---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- NPDES (National Pollution Discharge Elimination System) AMCA's Best Management Practices for Mosquito Control 6/3/2010 - AMCA Legislative Update EPA has posted its proposed NPDES Federal Register Notice, Fact Sheet, and Draft Pesticide General Permit at the EPA website at http://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/home.cfm?program_id=410. EPA has scheduled a Webcast to provide information on this draft permit and to answer questions for interested parties that are unable to attend the public meetings or hearing. The webcast will be broadcast on June 17, 2010, from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST). For information on how to register and attend the webcast, see EPA's website (http://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/courseinfo.cfm?program_id=0&outreach_id=506&schedule_id=1089). EPA Draft Pesticide General Permit Pesticide General Permit Fact Sheet 8/16/10 - AMCA Legislative Update Recently, two companion bills were introduced in the US House of Representatives and the Senate that aim to clarify that additional permits are not required for pesticide application in accordance with the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA). The Senate bill, named S. 3735, was introduced jointly by Senator Blanche Lincoln (D-Ark.), Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, and committee Ranking Member Saxby Chambliss (R-Ga.). The companion bill in the House, H.R. 6087, http://agriculture.house.gov/republicans/pr100810a.shtml, was introduced by Rep. Frank Lucas (R-Okla.), ranking member of the House Agriculture Committee. It is hoped that these pieces of legislation will be given due deliberation by Congress after the August/Labor Day recess ends on the 13th of September. To this end, AMCA is asking you to contact you congressman and senators to ask their support for these bills. Although the legislation specifically mentions the concerns of agriculture and forestry industry regarding pesticide applications being affected by redundant and burdensome regulatory overlay to FIFRA being imposed by the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit process, it would have profoundly positive impact on mosquito control, as well. In fact, AMCA has testified before Congress on 3 occasions with regard to the very issue the legislation is seeking to address. Although the NPDES general permit is scheduled to be released in December, 2010 and implemented in April of next year, it is extremely important that a dialogue be established with and among our elected legislators on this critical issue. Even if they oppose the legislation, it would be of worth to identify the opposition and lay the groundwork for possible visits during the next AMCA Legislative Conference. Sowing the seeds of legislative relief to the NPDES problem is certainly in our long-term interest and may provide the only means through which the mosquito control profession can continue to fully provide protection to the public from vector-borne diseases without the undue burdens of excessive and unnecessary regulation and costs.
In Rep. Lucas' words, "Since the passage of the Clean Water Act, the EPA had interpreted the act to exclude lawful pesticide applications. Under the Bush administration, the EPA issued a final regulation codifying this long-standing practice. The current political leadership of the EPA has chosen a different path. It is one that on a daily basis adds more and more regulatory burdens on our agricultural producers.
"It is now up to the Congress to fix this problem before the EPA imposes this new bureaucracy on American agriculture. I urge all of my colleagues to join me in this effort."
Please contact your legislator as soon as possible to have them contact the bill sponsors and offer their support for these bills - it's that important.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Special Notice In many towns in South GA, the Public Works Dept is using a 2.5% Malathion product, usually named "Mosquito Fogging Concentrate" or "Mosquito K", for control of mosquitoes. Usually, the public works director or whoever manages mosquito spraying says that they want to buy "locally" and they are normally directed to do so by the mayor or city council, etc. While the desire to buy from local vendors is admirably, it is important to be aware of just what you are buying. The application rate for the "Mosquito Fogging Concentrate" is 48 gallons per hour and there is the implication that you should use the product in a thermal fogger. The majority of towns have ULV sprayers. ULV application of this product is not likely to be effective and is a serious waste of money, besides the risk of creating resistance to one of the few actives available for mosquito control by mis-application of this product. It is also important that the sprayer be calibrated and drop sized, and it is unlikely that this service will be available where the product is being sold. The products are being made by companies in Atlanta, Georgia, and Wetumpka, Alabama. Please make this information available to local county agents and towns and inform them that labeling now requires drop sizing and calibration once a year and they should be buying from someone who is in the mosquito control business. Feed stores, where this product is being sold, are generally not very knowledgeable about mosquitoes and they likely do not have the equipment to drop size equipment for towns who buy their products. Reputable dealers selling mosquito control products in Georgia can be found listed on the Georgia Mosquito Control Association website at http://www.gamosquito.org/sustmemb.htm. These companies offer support, training, and machine calibration as well as selling regulated and licensed pesticides for mosquito control.
|
 |
 |