Summer Battle Plans for Aquatic Plant

Now that spring is here, aquatic plants are beginning to flourish. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Ashley McGovern has an update on the battle against the Eurasian watermilfoil:

Transcript

Now that spring is here, aquatic plants are beginning to flourish. The
Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Ashley McGovern has an update on the battle against the
Eurasian watermilfoil:


The Eurasian watermilfoil originated in Europe and Asia and has been found in the US for more
than 80 years. Watermilfoil can be transferred from lake to lake by boaters. The plant can hinder
recreational activities, like swimming and fishing, and can harm native ecosystems.


Lake associations and ecologists are trying to find ways to stop the spread of this invasive plant.
Bernd Blossey is an ecologist with Cornell University. He says people use different tactics to try to
get rid of watermilfoil.


“Some people promote using aquatic herbicides but that’s never a long-term solution—the plant
simply comes back.”


Another technique used is called biological control. That’s introducing natural enemies, such as
insects, that feed on the plant.


“Biological control doesn’t try to eradicate a plant, it just tries to reduce it’s population level.”


Blossey says it’s important to increase awareness of invasive species like watermilfoil and to keep
in mind that using herbicides is just a temporary solution to a tough problem.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Ashley McGovern.

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Enviro Group Sues Epa Over Farm Chemical

One of the nation’s largest environmental groups is suing the Environmental Protection Agency in an attempt to get the agency to ban a pesticide widely used by farmers. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports:

Transcript

One of the nation’s largest environmental groups is suing the Environmental Protection Agency
in an attempt to get the agency to ban a pesticide widely used by farmers. The Great Lakes Radio
Consortium’s Lester Graham reports:


The Natural Resources Defense Council is suing the EPA because it says the agency has not done
enough to determine whether the herbicide Atrazine is linked to some forms of cancer. The
environmental group has been on a campaign for some time now, trying to get the herbicide
banned in the U.S.


Atrazine is found in many water sources and has even been found in rain water at rates above the
EPA standards. But, Atrazine is a very popular herbicide, often used by corn farmers.


Erik Olson is an attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council. He says farmers can use
something else.


“There are alternative practices, methods that you can use to grow corn where you don’t have to
use as many herbicides or in some cases, really, any herbicides simply by changing your
practices.”


But other herbicides are more expensive and other practices might mean not as much corn
harvested on each acre.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, this is Lester Graham.

City Passes Controversial Pesticide Law

At least one city in the region has passed a controversial law that would ban or severely restrict the use of pesticides. Environmental activists are calling the move a great victory. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Dan Karpenchuk reports:

Transcript

At least one city in the Great Lakes region has passed a
controversial law that would ban or severely restrict the use of pesticides.
Environmental activists are calling the move a great victory. The Great
Lakes Radio Consortium’s Dan Karpenchuk reports:


For years, environmentalists have warned of the dangers associated with the overuse of
pesticides and herbicides, claiming that those chemicals are poisoning the land and
waters.


Now Toronto’s city council has passed a bylaw aimed at reducing pesticide use.


Katrina Miller of the Toronto Environmental Alliance says it’s an amazing win.


“We have a bylaw that’s going to protect children, it’s going to protect the environment.
We saw a city council that has decided to listen to the citizens of Toronto and the doctors
and nurses instead of falling under pressure from the industry lobby.”


The debate leading up to the vote was bitter and emotionally charged. One
representative of a lawn care company was ejected.


Lorne Hepworth is a spokesman for the pesticide manufacturers. He says the ones to
suffer from the new bylaw will be homeowners.


“At the end of the day what this amounts to is a deterioration in their property values,
you know, score one for bugs and dandelions and zero for the property owner.”


Under the bylaw anyone wanting to use pesticides will have to make a case to an advisory
board. It will be made up of representatives from the city, environmental groups and
lawn care companies.


The new bylaw will not be enforced until 2006.


For The Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Dan Karpenchuk.

Farm Buffer Strips a Lasting Solution?

  • Tom Miller's farm in Central Illinois includes buffer strips that provide habitat and food for wildlife and keep chemicals and soil out of a nearby river. Photo by Jonathan Ahl.

Each spring, the seasonal rains and melting snow lead to millions of gallons of water entering rivers and streams around the Midwest. While that water is important for the rivers’ health, it brings with it soil, herbicides, and insecticides from farms. Programs designed to help keep soil and chemicals on the farm and out of the watershed are growing in popularity around the region. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Jonathan Ahl has more:

Transcript

Each spring, the seasonal rains and melting snow lead to millions of gallons of water entering
rivers and streams around the Midwest. While that water is important for the rivers’ health, it
brings with it soil, herbicides, and insecticides from farms. Programs designed to help keep soil
and chemicals on the farm and out of the watershed are growing in popularity around region. The
Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Jonathan Ahl reports:


It’s a cold Spring day on Tom Springer’s Farm. But the strong winds and light rain do not
dampen the spirit of Springer. He’s showing off strips of land that contain tall grasses that would
normally be farmland waiting for the Spring planting:


“What we’re doing, we’re trying to create shelter belts up against these food plots for the birds
and the wildlife to have shelter in the winter.”


Springer is referring to buffer strips. The long, narrow pieces of land that take up about one acre for
every 30 acres of this farm in Central Illinois. The strips provide food and habitat for wildlife
such as quail and pheasants. They also provide a “catch” for some of the soil and chemicals that
would otherwise end up in the nearby Mackinaw River. That’s why some groups call them filter
strips. Springer is taking part in several state and federal programs that pay him to take the land
out of production and convert it to these buffer strips. Springer says he likes having the wildlife
around and wants to help the environment. But he says the financial incentives are the essential
ingredient that makes his buffer strips a reality:


“It was getting to the point that us small-time farmers we’re going to get pushed out because of
the economics of it. So I went ahead and did this, and it’s really worked out good. It’s a different
way of farming. It really is. What I’m doing, I’m farming the wildlife. I’m farming the
conservation program.”


Depressed crop prices and growing expenses are making the buffers strips a more popular
alternative for farmers. Adding to the financial advantage are not for profit groups such as Trees
Forever and Pheasants Forever. They make contributions of time, materials, and expertise to
farmers like Springer. That makes it easier to build the strips that comply with the state and
federal subsidy programs.


Tom Miller is with Trees Forever. He says the government payments get farmers to consider the
program. But he says they stay in because they know what they’re doing is right for the
environment. Miller says farmers are learning the dangers of plowing their land right up to the
banks of rivers and streams:


“Typically in the past, it’s been whatever farmland was there they would farm up to the edge.
But I think increased awareness and education over the last ten years from local and state
agencies and non-profits helped farmers realize you can’t do that.”


Miller says his group’s Buffer Initiative and others around the Midwest are gaining momentum
and making a difference in cutting down on pollution in waterways. But not everyone believes
these buffer strips are the magic bullet to fight erosion and chemicals in the watershed:


“I would say they are necessary but they’re not sufficient.”


Terry Kohlbuss is the director of the Tri-County Regional Planning Commission, a central Illinois
governmental group that has pushed for numerous water clean-up programs. He says buffer
initiatives are good programs. But he says it is only a drop in the bucket in the fight to help
bodies of water:


“But the other important source of that accelerated flow of water through the natural drainage
system is from developed areas. The solution set here is that there are probably 15 to 20 or 30
different types of programs that need to be in place to really get after this problem successfully.”


Kohlbuss says land management plans that cover all types of land will be necessary if there is
ever going to be meaningful progress in keeping soil and chemicals out of the rivers. Other
critics of the Buffer Strip program say there’s no guarantee the program will last because farmers
are reacting to the subsidies. Tom Springer says he has heard the criticism that if crop prices go
up or the payments run out, farmers will give up on conservation programs:


“I think a lot of them, if the program burns out in fifteen years, they’re talking about tearing a lot
of these out. We’ll I’m not, I’m going to leave mine in. They are on sand hills that were always
burnt up in the fall, you know. Most of the time it wouldn’t make much of a crop anyway, so we
are going to use it for conservation measures.”


Organizers of the buffer strip programs hope all of their participants will have the same point of
view as Tom Springer. Meanwhile, they continue working on finding more farmers to sign up for
the program.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Jonathan Ahl.

New Herbicide Raises Safety Questions

Corn growers in Michigan and Minnesota are waiting to find out whether they can use a new herbicide this spring. “Balance Pro” is used in 17 states, including several in the Great Lakes region (Indiana, Illinois, Ohio). But it’s not used in Minnesota, Michigan, or Wisconsin. Critics say Balance Pro gets into rivers and lakes too easily, and it could harm wildlife or even people. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Stephanie Hemphill reports:

Transcript

Corn growers in Michigan and Minnesota are waiting to find out whether they can use a new
herbicide this spring. “Balance Pro” is used in 17 states, including several in the Great Lakes
region (Indiana, Illinois, Ohio). But it’s not used in Minnesota, Michigan, or Wisconsin. Critics say
Balance Pro gets into rivers and lakes too easily, and it could harm wildlife or even people. The
Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Stephanie Hemphill reports:


Four years ago, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency gave conditional approval for a new
weed-killer called Balance Pro. It’s made by a division of Bayer, the same company that makes
aspirin. But the EPA still had some worries.


EPA researchers thought the ingredients in Balance might accumulate in irrigation water. Some
people say, if it turns up in irrigation water, it could turn up in drinking water.


“Missouri has had drinking water reservoirs contaminated with this, and contaminated within the
first year of its use.”


Jannette Brimmer is with Minnesota Citizens for Environmental Advocacy. She worries that
Balance could turn into another environmental problem like atrazine. Atrazine is a commonly
used herbicide. It shows up in drinking water in many parts of the country, at very low levels.
Some studies show, even at those low levels, it’s causing deformities in the sexual organs of
frogs, which might be responsible for reductions in frog populations. And Brimmer wonders if
it might be affecting people too.


“In other words, small dosages at the wrong time in fetal development, pregnancy, in a kid, can
have significant impacts. So we have an opportunity to do the right thing before it gets into our
water, before it poses a health threat, before it’s a problem.”


The EPA doesn’t do any tests to find out whether herbicides affect the hormones of frogs or
people. The agency did conduct tests on the reproduction rates of aquatic animals, and found no
effects.


But the EPA does have one major concern — the effect Balance might have on other crops.
Officials worry if farmers use water polluted with Balance to irrigate crops like cabbage or
lettuce, the herbicide could hurt crop yields.


Both Michigan and Minnesota are trying to figure out how big a threat that might be. Dan
Stoddard, at the Minnesota Department of Agriculture, has been watching the field studies from
other states. He says the results are mixed.


Some of the studies looked at how much Balance got into water supplies. They found lower
concentrations than scientists originally predicted.


But some regions are more vulnerable than others, depending on the type of soil. Dan Stoddard
says areas with coarse or sandy soil, or shallow bedrock, are especially vulnerable.


“What has been considered is some requirements that would restrict use of the product in those
areas. But nonetheless it does have the potential to get into groundwater. What we would
require is additional monitoring to see whether that is in fact happening.”


Stoddard says he’s weighing the risk of polluted water against the benefits Balance might offer.
He’s hearing from companies that have been applying Balance in other states. They say, by
adding the new product to their arsenal, they can cut down on their use of other herbicides.


“If somebody uses the same type of pesticide or herbicide over a few years, weeds can become
resistant and what they wind up having to do is increase the concentration of that product. So
having a new chemistry allows lower application rates of the product.”


Wisconsin recently approved the use of Balance. But the Wisconsin Agriculture Department
there imposed so many restrictions, the company decided not to market it in the state. Bob
Olson is a farmer, active in the Wisconsin Corn Growers Association. He says his state is
putting him at a disadvantage compared to other farmers.


“It’s been registered in 17 other corn states. It’s just not been able to be registered here in
Wisconsin because of what we think are undue concerns. And the fact that we can find it in
increasingly smaller quantities. Simply because you can find something, doesn’t mean that level
is ever going to affect anyone.”


Michigan and Minnesota are planning to decide in time for spring planting whether to let
farmers use Balance in their states.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Stephanie Hemphill.

Popular Herbicide Breeds Resistance

Some weeds are developing a resistance to one of the most popular crop herbicides. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Shawn Johnson reports:

Transcript

Some weeds are developing a resistance to one of the most popular crop herbicides. The
Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Shawn Johnson reports:


Farmers like the Monsanto Company herbicide “Roundup” because it kills a wide variety of weeds
without harming crops genetically engineered to resist it. But in the past few years, crop
scientists say Roundup’s popularity has created some problems. Through survival of the fittest, a
very small number of weeds that were always resistant to Roundup have reproduced, and in some
areas now flourish. Mark van Gessel is a weed specialist at the University of Delaware. He says
it’s a situation some farmers are stuck with:


“I really don’t have a lot of hope that we are going to be able to reverse this trend. We just have to learn to live with it.”


van Gessel says that means farmers will need to get away from exclusive use of Roundup and
other less common herbicides that contain its active ingredient. So far, weeds resistant to
Roundup have popped up in Delaware, Maryland, and California as well as in Tennessee, Ohio,
and Indiana.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Shawn Johnson.

Park Service Combats Exotic Plants

There’s a silent danger creeping through national parks across the
country. The parks – like many other wild areas – are being invaded by
alien species. Officials say these exotic plants are the most
significant threat to the parks’ natural resources. And now, the
National Park Service is taking action. The Great Lakes Radio
Consortium’s Wendy Nelson reports:

Commentary – The Grass Is Always Greener

With warm weather comes America’s annual lawn competition.
Homeowners spend time and money in an effort to achieve a thick, green
carpet of grass, sometimes hiring professionals to apply herbicides,
pesticides, and fertilizers to their yards. Great Lakes Radio
Consortium
commentator, Julia King, is opting out of what she considers an
unhealthy
practice. For this, she hopes to be rewarded:

Agri-Chemical Merger Stirs GMO Debate

A corporate merger between two large agri-chemical companies
will create the world’s largest pesticide manufacturer. The Great Lakes
Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports… some environmentalists are
concerned the new company’s approach will mean more pesticide use:

Transcript

A corporate merger between two large agri-chemical companies will create the world’s largest

pesticide manufacturer. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports some

environmentalists are concerned the new company’s approach will mean pore pesticide use:


The chemical and agriculture companies Novartis and Astra-Zeneca are in the process of merging

their agriculture divisions. The new company, Syngenta, will go its own way sometime in 2000.

Syngenta will be the world’s largest pesticide producer, and the third largest producer of

genetically modified seeds. Some environmentalists are concerned about the merger. Lori Mott is

with the Natural Resources Defense Council.


“Well, it’s a potentially dangerous mix because one of the areas where genetically modified

organisms are being developed is to make them pesticide resistant. So, you could have the largest

seller of pesticides also making the seeds that are resistant to the very pesticides that they

sell and the end result would be excessive use of pesticides – as if we don’t already have that –

out in the environment with severe environmental consequences.”


Mott says the new company will likely focus on creating herbicides and design genes to make crops

resistant to them. She says that will encourage farmers to use pesticides even more because they

know it won’t harm their crops. Astra-Zeneca already has a pesticide and pesticide-resistant crop

seed package. Novartis is working on one. Both of those product packages will now be part of the

Syngenta line. Other companies such as Monsanto and DuPont also have genetically modified crops

resistant to their respective pesticides.


A financial analyst says it’s possible the merger might mean less use of certain pesticides. One

of the companies involved in the merger, Novartis, manufactures atrazine. It’s the herbicide most

used on crops in the Midwest. Atrazine has developed negative reputation because drinking water in

some lakes and wells has been contaminated by the herbicide.


Alexander Hittle is an analyst with A.G. Edwards and Sons. Hittle says if Syngenta pushes an

herbicide and genetically-altered crop package, it might mean atrazine is used less.


“Atrazine sales are actually really being in part driven by resistance to genetically modified

crops. Either way, the farmers are going to be using pesticides, herbicides. Is the herbicide

being used in one of these seed combinations more or less benign than an herbicide that would be

used under so-called conventional farming. And, I think that’s the way, in terms of the

environment, the question needs to be posed.”


Because some of the new generation herbicides break down faster, they don’t have the same

reputation for contamination problems atrazine does.


Pesticides aren’t the only thing about the merger worrying environmentalists and others. Until

recently, genetically modified crops were more or less ignored by the American public. But,

because of food safety and environmental concerns, some people are becoming wary of the

bio-engineered plants. Public opinion might shift again in the near future. Hittle says so far,

the traits of the genetically engineered crops have only benefited farmers and the ag-chemical

companies. If consumers see a direct benefit, he thinks they’ll be more accepting.


“Down the road what’s coming are crops that have improved nutritional profiles, so that you’ll

begin to see benefits to consumers and that’s probably where the tide will turn. And, Novartis,

Astra-Zeneca both have pretty strong research capabilities and that should play into those sorts

of products.”


Farmers will be watching for the new products and the whims of the market as public opinion about

genetically modified food evolves. Don Parrish is with the American Farm Bureau. He agrees that

people eventually will accept the new technology.


“But, I guess as consumers see the benefits of what it could mean more lean, tender products, more

nutritious products, you know, I just have a hard time believing that people won’t believe in

good, sound science and won’t ultimately allow that to dictate what is safe for the marketplace.”


The Farm Bureau adds… genetically altered crops will be necessary to feed the world’s growing

population.


Environmentalists say advances in food production should not come at the expense of environmental

damage. The NRDC’s Lori Mott says the Astra-Zeneca and Novartis ag divisions’ merger rushes

headlong into a genetically-altered future that might have serious consequences.


“I think the whole issue of genetically modified organisms is a dicey one. We are changing the

scale of evolution…”


One interesting twist of the Syngenta merger: Novartis will be keeping its baby food line, Gerber

Foods. This past year, Gerber declared it would not allow genetically modified crops into its baby

food – something of a contradiction inside a corporation that has touted the safety of genetically

modified foods. Novartis will keep Gerber, and spin off its genetically modified foods section to

the new company, Syngenta.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, this is Lester Graham.

NASA Technology Helps Farmers

Years ago, farmers could keep track of their crops just by touring the
fields. But as farms grow larger, it becomes increasingly difficult for
farmers to assess the condition of their crops. Now, NASA technology
may offer some help. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Wendy Nelson
has more: