In another example of how corporate bottom line trumps public health concern, the FMC Corporation- the leading manufacturer of carbofuran- and a group of powerful agribusiness lobbyists including the National Corn Growers Association, challenged, yet again, the ban on the pesticide, despite its reputation for being a deadly poison. In 2006, the EPA announced that all uses of carbofuran should be cancelled b ...

UMaryland To Evaluate SafeLawns Organic Program [caption id="attachment_3528" align="alignleft" width="740" caption="Glenstone, a modern art museum in Potomac, Md., will fund a long-term study focused on organic lawn care."][/caption] POTOMAC, MD. — In what will be a long-term effort to evaluate natural lawn maintenance, a dynamic three-way partnership will launch later this year to research the application ...

Bed bug populations seemed to disappear around the time of World War II, when DDT nearly wiped them out completely. Nearly. Scientists now theorize that the few who survived developed a resistance to DDT and similar pyrethroid substances that are used in traditional bed bug pesticides. Because of this, the EPA now recommends that homeowners avoid the chemical approach when treating for bed bugs, for fear th ...

In 2007, glyphosate-resistant waterhemp was confirmed in southern Minnesota. It has now spread to west-central Minnesota and continues to increase in frequency due to the continued planting of Monsanto's Round-up Ready crops and exclusive use of glyphosate. http://www.sleepyeyenews.com/news/agriculture/x1739184427/Take-control-of-waterhemp In 2010, glyphosate-resistant giant ragweed was first confirmed on O ...

We're not making this up. In a study at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, researchers found that glyphosate is making it hard for male wolf spiders to sniff out willing mates. Males are also less likely to hook up with a female if she's in a glyphosate-treated field. So is this the one instance in the animal kingdom where the male is actually smarter than the female? We'll leave that open for debate. Read W ...

IN 2009, researchers at UCLA linked Parkinson's Disease (PD) to two chemicals commonly sprayed on crops to fight pests. The study didn't examine farmers, but rather focused on people living near the farm fields where the chemicals maneb and paraquat were sprayed. They found that, for those residents, the risk for PD increased 75%. A follow-up study adds two new twists. Funded by the National Institutes of E ...

May 23, 2011 BLR Green Team: Creating a Sustainable Workplace at BLR Are You Falling Into The "More-On" Approach? by Amanda Czepiel I attended the NEIWPCC conference in Saratoga Springs, New York, last week. Although I have known of the dangers and environmental effects of pesticide use on lawns for years, the keynote speaker, Paul Tukey, really drove the message home loud and clear: Lawn chemicals are most ...

Like the towns of Sedgwick, Penobscot, and Blue Hill, in Maine, the country of El Salvador has now declared "food sovereignty" from the hegemony of international market dictates, particularly those of agricultural giants like Monsanto. President Mauricio Funes is inaugurating a new plan aimed at reactivating the country’s historically ignored rural economy and reversing El Salvador’s growing dependence on i ...

[caption id="attachment_3499" align="alignleft" width="485" caption="Agastache 'Acapulco Orange' is among the many drought-tolerant perennials recommended by High Country Gardens of New Mexico."][/caption] Although it's been wetter than usual along the northeastern seaboard so far this spring, many areas of the nation are beginning to get fidgety about water use and lawn reduction. Understanding the princip ...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Doctor, Environmentalists to Talk Lawn Care on June 14 in Potomac, Md. [caption id="attachment_3492" align="alignleft" width="533" caption="Dr. Alan Vinitsky will be among the panelists at the June 14 event in Maryland."][/caption] POTOMAC, MD. — As May turns toward June the dandelions go to seed and the clover begins to flower on lawns across the Chesapeake Bay region. That inevitable ...