Book Reviews - Pesticides News No. 22

Long-term exposure to pesticides 

This review of epidemiological studies on long-term health effects of pesticides in humans over the last 20 years is part of the activities of the International Programme on Chemical Safety. It is funded by the Italian Government, and the industry body European Crop Protection Association (ECPA). The authors submitted the text to a panel of international scientists, and the preface states that “Most of them ... expressed their general agreement with the conclusions..., while some scientists expressed their personal reservations on the text.” Further, “several criticisms conflicted with each other, thus making it impossible to devise a text that would meet the consensus of every expert.”
    The review looks at mortality studies of subjects exposed to pesticides; and examines studies linking pesticides with specific cancers including soft-tissue sarcomas, myelolymphoproliferative disorders, brain cancers, cancer of the lung, gonads, digestive tract, cancer and urinary tract. It reviews links with cytogenic effects, reproductive effects, and non-cancer morbidity. Few of the conclusions will be surprising:

• high risk groups such as manufacturers or formulators have higher exposure than most other

• population groups and should be “sentinels of potential toxicity";

• the existing data base on pesticide-exposed workers should be made available to the scientific community for study;

• there is a need for properly designed studies, especially in agriculture;

• there is a need for research on other effects than cancer;

• reproductive effects need more attention;

• more attention should be given to methodological issues, such as bias, control groups, and measurement of exposure;

• registers of applicators could provide details for study for comparative purposes;

• information is needed about the effects of multiple or combined exposures.

The review panel referred to “excessive conservatism in accepting the results of positive studies and an excessive confidence in results of studies showing no effects.” The authors have tried to heed this criticism, which reflects the weakness of epidemiology as well as the caution needed in establishing a relationship between pesticides and health. Finally, of the 440 studies reviewed, most are of pesticides that have been in use for many years, such as organochlorines, organophosphates, pyrethroids.

Health Effects in Man from Long-Term Exposure to Pesticides, A review of the 1975-91 literature, Marco Moroni and Antonella Fait, International Centre for Pesticide Safety, Italy, Elsevier Scientific Publications Ireland, Ltd., Shannon, Ireland, 1993, 180pp.

Cleaner water
This short report reviews the problem of agricultural pesticides in water. It points to inadequacies in the regulatory and monitoring systems, and in particular the agricultural bias of pesticide regulation is seen as contributing to failure to protect the environment. That failure results in:

• consumers rather than polluters having to foot the estimated £800 million capital cost and £80 million per year running costs for treating polluted water;

• the use of treatment, an expensive remedy for pollution, instead of controlling the use of pesticides at source.

The majority of the report contains familiar material—not all of which is up to date (see below). The most original part is the survey on pesticide advice. An overwhelming 57% of farmers turned to agrochemical merchants as their first choice of advisor on which product to use, and 56% also asked his advice on how best it should be used. In comparison, only 19% relied on their own skill and experience first in choosing a product, and 16% relied on their own judgement first in how it should be used. Some concern is expressed about the current limitations of ADAS advice, and what are seen as the vested interests of commercial advisors. The report recommends the setting up of a “crop doctor scheme” independent of manufacturers or merchants, who would administer pesticides on prescription.

    The report also considers responses to the problems. Isoproturon is a pre-emergent cereal herbicide, and if use continues to increase it will soon be breaching EC drinking water levels as regularly as atrazine and simazine now do. The costs of different isoproturon regulatory options were worked out—for a total ban on autumn spraying of all herbicides, for a total ban on isoproturon use, and for an autumn ban on isoproturon only.

    Some up to date sources have not been consulted. There is no reference to the National River Authority’s (NRA) publication Policy and Practice for the Protection of Groundwater which may try over the next three years to prepare maps indicating areas where water supplies are vulnerable, and proposed protection zones. It is likely that the NRA may object to the use of “chemical sprays for weed, fungal, or insect control” and “chemical or microbiological agents for pest control” in the areas at greatest risk. The NRA’s report The Influence of Agriculture on the Quality of Natural Waters  in England and Wales (1992) suggests a long-term reduction in pesticide use, and the payments of grants to farmers for this purpose. The work on farm-level advice, and the economic consequences of regulation is basic and needs expanding. It echoes another recent farmers’ advice survey, which concluded: “a communications network which is rapidly becoming dominated by the agricultural supply industry is unlikely to be in the longer-term interests of the farming community as a whole.” (A.P. Fearne, Communications in Agriculture: Results of a Farmer Survey, Journal of Agricultural Economics, 17:371-380, 1991.)

Water Pollution from Agricultural Pesticides, Neil Ward, Professor Philip Lowe, Judy Clark, and Susanne Seymour. Centre for Rural Economy, University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne NE1 7RU, 1993, 79pp.

Old questions and new answers about pesticides
The Pesticide Question, while not explicitly posed, is that asked by Rachel Carson: how can the damage caused by the intensive use of chemical pesticides be reduced, or avoided altogether. The thoughtful collection of 18 essays presented here covers some of the newer ways to answer an old question. The book is divided into sections. There are familiar arguments in the social and environmental effects section including assessing the impacts of pesticides use (Pimentel et al.), and the problems of “cosmetic standards” for foods, and natural toxicants in foods. The second, and more forward-looking section looks at some of the consequences of reducing pesticide use. 
    There are descriptions of the Swedish policy for pesticide reduction (Petterson), reduction progress in Ontario, Canada (Surgeoner and Roberts), and different perspectives on reduction prospects in the US (Buttel, and Pimentel et al.) The section on government policies and pesticide use presents three views of US policy, including a criticism of EPA’s handling of the Alar case (Hathaway). A sweepingly-titled section on “History, public attitudes and ethics in regard to pesticide use” includes two original essays. Lehman deals with a neglected topic—scientific values, evidence, and inferences from evidence—in his paper on Values, Ethics, and the Use of Synthetic Pesticides in Agriculture; and Perkins and Holochuck in Historical Changes Demand Ethical Choices examine the role of that new profession, the pest control entomologist or crop advisor. Two viewpoints, one from the agrochemical industry and one from an IPM advocate conclude the collection. There are many such collections of papers, but this one has been a year in preparation and the result is more interesting and less predictable than most.

The Pesticide Question: Environment, Economics and Ethics, David Pimentel and Hugh Lehman (Eds), Chapman and Hall, New York and London, 1993, 440pp.

Farmworker protection

This booklet is designed to accompany a video of the same title, produced by the  California-based Pesticide Education Center. It is part of a series on worker health and safety issues during mixing, loading and applying pesticides, as a training tools for farm workers. In the video, farm workers and their families tell of pesticide-related health problems. The way in which pesticides enter the body, the symptoms of poisoning and ways to minimise exposure are detailed.

Harvest of Sorrow: Farm Workers and Pesticides, part 1, Marion Moses, Pesticide Education Center, PO Box 420870, San Francisco 94142, US, 1993, $10, 71pp, (video of same title is available at the same price) [English and Spanish].

International food residue standards

The Joint FAO/WHO Meeting on Pesticides Residues meets each year to consider residue limits to recommend to the Codex Committee and to review the toxicology of certain pesticides. This volume reviews the toxicology of 18 active ingredients at length, including references to material some of which is not published. Its companion volume, Part I—Residues—is also published each year.

Pesticide Residues in Food—1992: Evaluations 1992—Part II—Toxicology, International Programme on Chemical Safety (UNEP/FAO/WHO), WHO, Geneva, 1993, 50 Swiss Francs, 422pp.

Residue limits on disk

The Joint FAO/WHO Meeting on Pesticides Residues reports to the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex). Codex sets Maximum Residue Limits on pesticides in food. MRLs are now available on disks, distributed by Microinfo Ltd. The disks can be installed on an IBM-compatible machine with DOS version 3.0 or above, and with 15 Mb free memory on hard disk. The disks provide an indexed reference to the 172 pesticides for which Codex MRLs have been set, or the hundreds of pesticide/food commodity MRLs. It comes with a straight forward manual.  (English, French, Spanish)

Maximum Residue Limits for Pesticides in Foods, Computerized Information Series, Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Programme, Codex Alimentarius Commission, Rome, 1993, £120 (Available from Microinfo Ltd., PO Box 3 Omega Park, Alton, Hants, GU34 2PG, UK).

Pesticides in the UK

The UK Pesticide Guide is the latest up-date of pesticides used in UK agriculture, horticulture and forestry. It profiles active ingredients (including health and environmental concerns) and the crop guide lists which pesticides are likely to be used for each pest problem.

The UK Pesticide Guide 1994, CAB International and BCPC, £16.25.

OECD study

One of the problems of trade liberalisation is whether nations will accept each others health, safety, and environmental standards, and whether regulatory systems are comparable. This report looks at regulatory systems in a number of OECD countries—in particular, Germany, Greece, Italy, Spain, and Sweden. For some regulatory aspects, especially carcinogens, different standards were apparent in different countries, and the overall lack of written documentation in several OECD countries made it difficult to understand their registration processes and the rationales for pesticide decisions.

A Comparative Study of Industrialised Nations’ Regulatory Systems, Report to the Chairman, Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, US Senate, 1993, US General Accounting Office, (PO Box 6015, Gaithersburg, MD 20884-6015). Reference No, GAO/PEMD-93-17, Free per individual copy, 104pp.

Methyl parathion

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has assessed over 600 studies carried out on the highly toxic organophosphate insecticide methyl parathion, first used in 1949. Over exposure during manufacture and/or use, or unintentional ingestion will result in severe or fatal poisoning. Many cases of acute methyl parathion poisonings have occurred. WHO recommends that those handling or applying methyl parathion should be competently supervised, trained and must follow adequate safety measures.

Environmental Health Criteria 145, Methyl parathion, International Programme on Chemical Safety, World Health Organisation, US$25.20, 1993, 244pp.

1,3-Dichloropropene, 1,2-dichloropropane

These widely used pre-plant fumigants and their mixtures, applied by soil injection, have been evaluated by the WHO. Over 300 studies are assessed. For 1,3-dichloropropene, there is a risk of leaching to groundwater. For 1,2-dichloropropane, the report found evidence of slow decomposition in the atmosphere, persistence and leaching in soil and contamination of upper and lower groundwater under certain conditions of use.

Environmental Health Criteria 146, 1,3-Dichloropropene, 1,2-dichloroprane and mixtures, International Programme on Chemical Safety, World Health Organisation, US$27.90, 1993, 261pp.

EPA-speak

This glossary contains more than 3,500 of the terms you may ever to want to cite relating to the environment and the US Environmental Protection Agency. It  provides an extensive background to the massive collection of EPA regulation.

EPA-Speak: The Interpharm glossary of EPA acronyms and regulatory terms, Dean Snyder, Interpharm Press, 1358 Busch Parkway, BuffalGrove, Il 60089, 1993, US$141.00, 631pp.

Pacific pesticides

A new Greenpeace publication, Poisons in Paradise, addresses the lack of information on pesticides in the Pacific.  Even so, there is still a great deal we do not know. Often only a few reports or pieces of anecdotal evidence exist  to rely on. Very little is known about biodiversity, for example. A total of 57 particularly hazardous pesticides are listed as available in the Pacific region. These include active ingredients which have been widely banned such as aldrin, DDT, dieldrin and 2,4,5-T. The book will be of use to government regulators, international aid agencies and to local environmental organisations, wishing to assist sustainable development.

Poisons in Paradise, Greenpeace Pacific Campaign, Merial Watts, PO Box 90257, Wellesley St., Auckland, New Zealand, 1993, 160pp.

Australian Landcare

Farmers in Australia who have joined the Landcare scheme have recognised the need to move towards a more sustainable future with impressive resolve. Landcare could be an antidote to the sense of inertia, impotence and isolation that is preventing recovery and change in rural Europe. Farmers are facing debilitating uncertainty, but the taxpayer is prepared to support them. Supporting group initiatives such as Landcare, decentralising and encouraging co-operation between agencies involved in rural issues would be the first steps in creating a flexible system of benefit to people and the environment.

Lessons in Landcare, Australia’s Model for a Better Farming Future, Helen Alexander, SAFE, 38 Ebury St., London, SW1W 0LU, UK, 1993, 20pp.

Chinese chemical industry

This English-language reference book covers a background to the Chinese chemical industry and industrial statistics. The book encompasses major trade commodities, capital construction, scientific research and technical co-operation and exchange. Statistical data on production, sales, investment and construction are provided. It includes over 800 institutions and enterprises.

China Chemical Industry, 1993, Han Communications Inc, PO Box 71006, Wuhan, Hubei 430071, China, fax:+86 27 718343,  US $145.00, 525pp.

Directory of Chinese biotechnology

This English language directory provides an overview of government policy, bio-industry, technology transfer, information services, intellectual property and environmental regulation.  It lists government agencies, research institutes, university departments and biotechnology companies.

Chinese Biotechnology Directory 1993, Han Communications Inc. (as above), US$199.00, 256pp.

[This article first appeared in Pesticides News No. 22, December 1993, pages 22-23]