V • • ™ x opinion Herald & Lantern 25 July '84 rh - • • ~M< rx s* s*m 1 iro

Pesticides: Sufficient Regulations Already Exist

ARTHUR R. BROWN JR. N.J. Secretary of Agriculture It's another Garden State summer, and the farm fields are ripe with disagreement. In addition to the harvest of » fruits, vegetables and field crops, farmers are reaping some criticism on the uses of pesticides to protect crops. Despite the efforts of farmers to use pesticides safely and discriminantly, the agricultural community is, at times, portrayed as being either cavalier or ignorant on the inherent risks of the use of chemicals to control insects. Nothing could be further from the truth. Farmers have as much at stake in the limited and careful use of pesticides as any other citizen. Whereas workers are on the farm during harvest when pesticide residues are low, farmers themselves are engaged in mixing and applying the chemicals, and must be well-versed in application and storage procedures to safeguard their own safety as well a£ the health and safety of others. They are &ware of the problems caused by misusing pesticides, and take the necessary precautions to avoid mishaps. But they also know the problems produced by over-regulation and needless public anxiety. The Department of Agriculture and the farm community maintain that sufficient regulations already exist to protect the farm workers and the public and current . legislative efforts to further restrict pesticide usage could severely cripple the state's multi-million agricultural industry — an industry that fuels the state economy, provides a local source of food and offers acres of taxpaying open spaces to one of the most urban states in the nation. The state Department of Environmental Protection <DEP> and the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which license and regulate pesticides, currently administer several clearcut regulations onthe application and storage of farm chemicals While EPA approves and classifies products, DEP licenses and regulates uses and methods of application. Failure to comply carries stiff fines and a possible license revocation of applicators by the state DEP. The laws not only forbid spraying when people are in the field, but they require farqiers to keep records on all restricted pesticides, and provide a mechanism for registering complaints with the state's Pesticide Advisory Council. This revised state pesticide code has withstood a legal challenge from environmentalists and others who claimed that the measure did not go far enough to protect the public health. The challenge was struck down by the appeals court, which ruled that the issue was raised without merit. V Farmers not only comply with the regulations, but many participate in research studies and projects that traok farm health issues and seek to reduce the use of pesticides. Not surprisingly, the results of health research conducted by a variety of government and public health agencies -have proved either inconclusive or insignificant with respect to the impact of pesticides on the health and safety of farm .workers and the general public. ONE RECENT STl'DY. conducted by the South Jerseybased SA Lantic, attempted to link pesticide exposure to the physical ailments of New Jersey farm workers. However, one of the state's largest opinion research » organizations criticized the study's strident conclusions, noting that it did not have a scientific random sampling, (only 54 farm workers of a possible 16.000 were interview- . ed) and that it failed to address degrees and levels of pesticide exposure and the time elapsed between alleged exposure and illness. A report of calls to the state Department of Health poison control center revealedthat only 12 of 588 reports in *• 1980 were agriculturally related, while the state pesticide council reports that only 20 of the 412 complaints logged during fiscal year 1982 were farm related. Subsequent investigation revealed that less than 10 of the 20 were legitimate.

Throughout, farmers have remained sincere in their support of reduced use of pesticides but level-headed in their grasp of the realities of pest control. Many participate in the Integrated Pest Management program managed by the Department of Agriculture and Rutgers University, which combines the use of chemical and biological controls to cut dowp on overall pesticide usage. By monitoring farm fields', IPM scientists can determine the severity of pest infestations and can advise farmers on when — or whether — to spray. The use of "biologicals" — parasitic insects reared in the Department laboratories and released into farm fields to feed on insect pests — is always preferred, but the number of parasites tested and proven effective is small. RESEARCH IN THIS area, however, is continuing and the department's new Beneficial Insect Rearing (Page 6 7 Please)

Mjg "Got A Question Here, Chief. If You Get Elected, Who'll The First Lady Be?"

Hrralil ) Published Evjgr Wednesday Bv P.O. Box 43* The .Seawav^rporalion Cape May Court-Moose. N.J, mil Joseph R. Zelnik / / Editor -• Bonnie Reina Gjnerpl Manager Siary L.Rudy Advertising Director ohn Dunwoody Special Promotions Director Parrel! Kopp \ Publisher ; Soowov* Corp. 1984. All rights rasarvad. All property rights lor tha antira contents ol this pubTicotioh shall be the property ol the ' Seawave Corp. No part hereof may be reproduced without prior written consent. * — DEADLINES 9 News & Photos Thursday Adverting Friday — 3 P.M. Classified^ Advertising Friday — 3 P.M. j 465-5055 For News or Advertising Information | Neither iMrtit-iiMlini! rulsi-rtrwr. tt.rr lit. pul.li.li.r- ..I lit.- Ill II V| I) l\|| I IN I f UN Hill In re.|N.t..ilrl. I,., I, I. f..r „,j.i„|, p., ts|Huir»|thiealrrr<ir». iisnns l h. . ,li|.,r r. -. . . the ritclt. I., .-.lit .ins letter »r artir le. .ul>niill. .i l.rr (.ul.lir;, | I Voscxrr ToDnahip LANTERN T I Published Erery Wednesday By P.O. Box 4M ' ^TSe Seawave Corpora tiou . Cape May Court House. N.J. m\% J

Pesticides Are Poisons

By RUTH FISHER President Citizens' Association for the Protection of the Environment (CAPE) In response to N.J. Secretary of Agriculture Arthur R. Brown's sttement on farmers and agriculture: This summer, as in many past summers, we will all be exposed to a multitude of chemical poisons recommended by the Department of Agriculture and often paid for with ' our taxes. But who is Brown trying to fool? Of course the farmers are not the problem. The multibillion dollar chemical industry controls the propaganda which tries to frighten us into believing we will all starve or be diseased if preen* policies are not perpetuated. In fact, we've come to the edge of a dliff. we must try to retreat from. Leaders of the farm community should be guiding us in an orderlyjretreat from policies which may have already caused mt^ch of the sterility, birth defects, and cancer amongst us.i FARMERS HAVE even more at stake in the "limited and careful uses of pesticides" than other citizens. True, the farmer ( or more often someone working for him ) does the spraying. But he does have a chance, to read the very fine print on the warning label, to put on his mask, gloves and rubber suit, even to take a shower afterward unless he's like so many who say, "It hasn't killed me yet." On the other hand, those who work around the farm or in the field often do not know what was sprayed, have little chance fb learn the warnings on labels, to know what symptoms to expect, and are often in the field for 10-12 hours daily. IT IS IMPOSSIBLE for anyone to judge exposure, but why not give the public and the farm worker a chance to know what he is exposed to?

This is all that new legislation, already being attacked, is proposing. It is a Farm Right to Knoto Act^/ For those are poisons we are talkmg--a"66ut. Sadly enough, the burden of proof continues to be the wrong way around. A pesticide is considered safe until it is proven guilty. This may take generations with the sacrifice of millions of animals and dollars along the way, just to \ establish LD/50 rates. ) The vast majority of pesticides now on the market have not been tested adequately to determine whether they cause cancer in humans, their potential to cause birth defects or genetic mutations. THE NEW JERSEY State Pesticide Council, which meets only every two months at best (the July meeting cancelled the night before), offers little hope for it is heavily stacked with chemical industry representation. Who would know how to reach them'' Complaints often go unrecorded, because the complaint did not say, "This is an official complaint." There are few inspectors and no surprise checks. Visible violations are everywhere, but who wants to be fired first for noticing themTI Even when a major case Occurs — a child sprayed in playpen — the lawyers for thfe Farm Bureau help out the farmers and whereatjotfts^bf the child becomes unknown. SEN. RAYMOND LESNuMUS new legislation needs Secretary of Agriculture BroWs support, not attacks on behalf of the chemicalmdusfry A. Already many senators are singing agriculture' busings slogans; ...paid lob- ' byists have had time Jo woVk^hem over. There is little research confine from Rutgers on how to proceed without chemical poteorts. research on crop diversity, crop rotation, cbtQgajMdrhplanting. effects of these poisons on all of us. \ ? We challenge Secretary Browr) toTspmpile a list of the grants Rutgers receives from the chetnical industry. Our letters on this go unanswered \

-But We Know What You're Doing — Journalists Get No Respect By JOE ZELNIK |

I'm not bothered by attacks in the mail, but they upset my father. He was hurt last week, for example, when S.S. from Nummy Island called me "smart aleck." Dad, it's like I told you when you were paying for my college education. I want to be a journalist even though this business gets no respect. Circus passes, yes; respect, no. | That mean-spirited remark from Nummy Island was\ understandable because anyone vacationing in that resort, which is infested with poison ivy, mosquitos, alligators, etc. can't be blamed for being in a bad mood. Much of my critical mail comes from up-tight tourists who have backaches from standing in line$o they can pay $24.50 for surf and turf or $3.25 for eight California strawberries. The balance of the complaints usually comes from newcomers who have not yet achieved that laid-back attitude that is the key to survival in Cape May County. THOSE OF US who have been here awhile know, from observing the effect of the tides on the beach, that nothing lasts, nothing matters, what won't get done today probably won't get done tomorrow either, and none of it really matters. The message permanent residents soon learn is to be cool, relax, don't sweat it, have a nice day and the repairman who said he'd be here in 1983 will certainly be here next year. i, * We at this newspaper take more guff than most because people think our small size means we have less knowledge than, say, the New York Times. TRUE, WE DON'T HAVE our own Eyewitness News helicoper, but we have worked out an arrangement with the banner airplanes and one of our reporters is usually on with a pa>r of binoculars. Second, we're linked to the county Prosecutor's new "Voice Scrambled, Satellite Receiver Mobile, Portable

VConttmunications System." When the county got the $79,804 price&g, it decided to rent time on the unit. I hope no one considers this a threat, but we can pick up the sound of a beer/can being opened a mile away. Let me-assOre you that the Herald and Lantern know what you're doing. Only the fact that thisisS^family newspaper keeps us from reporting it. / THE NEWS MEDIA is blamed for everything because \ \U's "the messenger" that brings the bad news. I thought * Pd gotten used to this, but I was shocked the other day whehjwmfeone/accused me of being responsible for the cold oceaiTWater. That made me so angry that I investigated Die real cause. Guess who is at fault? The Freeholders^ • As you mw know, the county's Canadian tourism promoter, PierrA Payette, was disappointed with his '84 pay hike. So, whert Canadians stopped in his Montreal office to get Cape Ma;y County literature, Pierre was giving them brochures for Hawaii. This got back to the Freeholders who, instead of just disciplining him, overreacted. They mailed him, in a box with birthday wrapping, several dozen greenheads. This infuriated Pierre who then arranged for a huge mass of cold Canadian water to stagnate offshore between Great Egg Harbor and Cape May Point. THIS HAS HAD disastrous results, including dozens of lifeguard injuries. Lifiguards, who normally party until 4 or 5 a m to relieve tension, have enough difficulty staying awake when girls in bikinis are hanging around and people are being pulled to the Canary Islands by the undertow. 4 »• • But, with no one in the water, the guards are nodding off and falling off their stands, suffering breaks and sprains. The job has gotten so boring that I resigned my own weekend lifeguard job. Of course, there were other reasons: I didn't want to get my hair wet, and they wouldn't let me wear my flesh-colored bathing suit. i/