Environmentalist Kammie Holder, Advocacy Director of the Future Centre Trust (FCT) has lambasted government’s environmental policy in a 10 minute address released to the media today 28/08/2017.
NGO Future Centre Trust Criticizes Government’s Lack of Focus on the Environment
Environmentalist Kammie Holder, Advocacy Director of the Future Centre Trust (FCT) has lambasted government’s environmental policy in a 10 minute address released to the media today 28/08/2017.
42 responses to “NGO Future Centre Trust Criticizes Government’s Lack of Focus on the Environment”
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Kammie Holder shared a link.
David KingThey killing the ladybirds and bees that aid in pollination.When we have decreased agricultural yields we will have to import. Yet we call sheep stupid and animals dumb!
<p><img alt="" src="https://external-waw1-1.xx.fbcdn.net/safe_image.php?d=AQCjy4RtKv_oq6sd&w=476&h=249&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nationnews.com%2FIMG%2F763%2F64763%2Ffogging-in-sargeant-village.gif&cfs=1&upscale=1&_nc_hash=AQCEeKd1JaukyCKH" width="476" height="249" />Fogging schedule August 28 to September 1
THE VECTOR CONTROL UNIT of the Ministry of Health will continue its work to eradicate the Aedes aegypti mosquito next week.On Monday, August 28, areas to be sprayed…
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Every Great Leader has a Vision for their Country.Without a Vision, the People of Barbados will perish.
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Should the environment not be an investment that makes sense to everyone? Should there be a dollar value attached to the environment when neglecting it then becomes a major headache? After years of playing around with the way we dispose of garbage would it not be a sensible move to commit the necessary finances to tackle the way we approach waste.- Disposal and develop a workable model of change in the long term plan, outside of shitety ideas like Cahill? The future centre Trust should be governments best friend instead of members of government looking upon it as ‘trouble treats,’ and seeing Kammie Holder as someone to stay far from. Shite, the government of Barbados, this one and one before, know they have not paid much interest to the environment, and now we are paying dearly for that neglect. Only a jackass could ignore the environment for other important so called ventures and think that it would not come back to haunt us. Makes no sense looking to this shitety government though because all they would do is attack the messenger.
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Do you know minister Lowe does not entertain the Future Centre Trust at all? Imagine a minister of the environment ignoring the only major advocate on the environment in Barbados.
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US beekeepers fear for livelihoods as anti-Zika toxin kills 2.5m bees
‘It kills everything’: conservationist warns over threat to other animals
Regulators: ‘clear and public health crisis’ allows use of Naled chemical.Huddled around their hives, beekeepers around the south-eastern US fear a new threat to their livelihood: a fine mist beaded with neurotoxin, sprayed from the sky by officials at war with mosquitos that carry the Zika virus.
Miami fears Zika virus may hit $24bn tourism industry hard
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Earlier this week, South Carolina beekeepers found millions of dead honey bees carpeting their apiaries, killed by an insecticide. Video posted by a beekeeper to Facebook showed thousands of dead insects heaped around hives, while a few survivors struggled to move the bodies of fellow bees.“This is what’s left of Flowertown Bees,” a despondent keeper says in the video. Company co-owner Juanita Stanley told the Associated Press her farm looked “like it’s been nuked” and estimated 2.5 million bees were killed.
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“This is what’s left of Flowertown Bees”, where up to 2.5 million bees were killed by an aerial spray meant to combat the Zika virus. Video: So many bees dead after the aerial spray.
In another Facebook post, South Carolina hobbyist Andrew Macke wrote that he had lost “thousands upon thousands of bees” and that the spraying had devastated his business. “Have we lost our mind,” he wrote, “spraying poison from the sky?”Advertisement
Around the US, bees and other pollinators contribute an estimated $29bn to farm income. Clemson University’s department of pesticide regulation is investigating the incident.
The program head, Dr Mike Weyman, said that though South Carolina has strict rules about protecting pollinators, county officials were using the neurotoxin, Naled, under a clause exempting them in a “clear and public health crisis”.
More than three dozen people have tested positive for Zika in South Carolina, Weyman said, and officials have made it a priority to prevent local transmissions through the Aedes aegypti mosquito.
“We don’t want one of those mosquitos having a blood meal on an individual we’ve already determined was positive,” Weyman said. “We know beyond a shadow of a doubt that [Zika] is up and running in Florida. If it gets in the mosquito population … you’re playing catch-up.”
South Carolina’s protocol for Zika infections is to alert local officials of a carrier’s residence, which they “consider a ground zero”, Weyman said. Local authorities then target the local mosquitos in a 200-yard radius, in this case with spray.
Flowertown Bees was listed on local records but not in the state’s voluntary registry of pollinators, according to Weyman. “We know where the big ones are,” he said, “but as you can see this was a fairly large operation and almost right smack dab in the spray path.”
If regulation allowed some spraying that would kill half of your livestock overnight, how would you recover?
Jennifer Holmes, Florida State Beekeepers Association
Despite the investigation into what went wrong, the killing has beekeepers worried about what might happen next.“Everyone that I’ve spoken to has major concerns about the effect” of insecticides, said Jennifer Holmes, vice-president of the Florida State Beekeepers Association and the co-owner of a company with about 300 colonies north of West Palm Beach.
Comparing bees to cows or other pillars of agriculture, she said: “If there was a regulation that allowed some spraying that would kill half of your livestock overnight, how would recover your livelihood?”
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Holmes has spent the last week working with beekeepers and state and county officials. The keepers, she said, fear “not just the immediate die-offs, but possible genetic die-offs or sterility” for bees that survive the first sprays.
“We understand the serious threat of possible disease,” she said, “but we also have to maintain our agricultural livelihood.”
A Louisiana beekeeper, who requested anonymity because of work with county officials, added another set of concerns: careless mixture and application of chemicals, mismanagement and long-term imbalance in the ecosystem.
“In order to ‘fix’ the problem,” the keeper said, “it will all have to begin with re-establishing healthy soil that will nourish a healthy plant population that will nourish healthy populations, whether it be the honeybee or a deer.
“Chemical application of any sort creates an imbalance from the ground up, even if a simple mosquito is the target.”
‘We always have the environment in mind’
Zika spray
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Pesticide to kill mosquitos is sprayed in Miami Beach. Photograph: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and independent universities say Naled is far safer than other chemicals. It breaks down rapidly and, in the very low doses at which it is prescribed, should not pose a risk to humans.“In Louisiana, we use these products quite frequently to reduce mosquitos, but we don’t see many nontarget effects, because the doses are really small,” said Dr Kirsten Healy, a public health entomologist at Louisiana State University.
“A lot of people don’t realize that we always have the environment in mind. We try to have products that have the lowest possible impact.”
Even the mosquitos targeted “quickly bounce back”, she said. Healy recommended a multi-pronged approach: aerial and ground sprays along with removal of the trash cans, bird feeders and other containers where water pools and mosquitos breed.
Aerial sprays threaten other pollinators. Dennis Olle, director of conservation programs for the North American Butterfly Association, noted the effect of chaotic ocean winds near his office in Miami. “It’s aerial bombing without any sense of being able to lay the chemical down on the target,” he said.
It kills everything. There’s no question it is highly, highly deleterious to butterflies and other arthropods
Dennis Olle, North American Butterfly Association
Olle conceded that that he was not a scientist – he is an attorney – but described a 2015 Florida International University study that found Naled application was uneven and harmful to butterflies.“It kills everything,” he said. “There’s no question that it is highly, highly deleterious to butterflies and other arthropods, even mammals in high enough doses.”
He agreed that door-to-door removal of breeding objects and hand spraying were effective techniques against mosquitos, but worried about repeated low doses of chemicals to both pollinators and his children.
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“If they’re killing every mosquito, as they claim, everything else needs to be worried too,” he said. “That’s not rocket science, that’s common sense.”
Olle’s fears have sympathizers in Florida and Puerto Rico, where there have been, respectively, 35 and 13,791 mosquito infections of the Zika virus. Earlier this summer on Puerto Rico, doctors rallied against Naled when the CDC made a last-ditch plea to start spraying. Governor Alejandro García Padilla rejected the proposal in July, citing concerns over possible side effects on humans and other animals.
Puerto Rico was also the site of some of what limited Naled-mosquito research has been performed in the last 30 years. Dr Duane Gubler, a professor at Duke Medical School and an expert in infectious diseases, led that research and found that Naled had mixed results.
“It’s unpredictable,” Gubler said. “We did the whole city of San Juan and it appeared to be somewhat effective in some areas but not others.”
Zika virus scare is turning Miami’s hipster haven into a ghost town
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Aedes aegypti mosquitos, Gubler said, were especially difficult targets since they breed inside and under houses, in buckets, tires, puddles or any container with stagnant water.“There’s some data from Florida that suggests it can be effective where Aedes aegypti mosquitos are primarily outdoor breeders,” he said, “but from my data, it was spotty.”
Like Healy, Gubler recommended a mix of techniques – targeting adults and larvae through habitats and sprays and a partnership between citizens and agencies. “It’s near impossible for any government agency to control all of the mosquitos,” he said.
“It’s a matter of weighing the benefits versus the risks,” he added, noting the critical place of bees, especially, in keeping crops growing.
“If you have to make a decision on whether it protects, say, your pregnant wife from being exposed versus killing a few butterflies, I suspect in most people’s minds it’s probably worth the risk.”
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… we have a small favour to ask. More people are reading the Guardian than ever but advertising revenues across the media are falling fast. And unlike many news organisations, we haven’t put up a paywall – we want to keep our journalism as open as we can. So you can see why we need to ask for your help. The Guardian’s independent, investigative journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce. But we do it because we believe our perspective matters – because it might well be your perspective, too.I appreciate there not being a paywall: it is more democratic for the media to be available for all and not a commodity to be purchased by a few. I’m happy to make a contribution so others with less means still have access to information.
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Mosquito Trap Reviews
What is the best mosquito trap you can buy?
When you buy a mosquito trap, you’re making an investment in the comfort and safety of your home. And, like any investment, you should give it careful consideration before making a decision on how to spend your money.
You will learn that not all mosquito traps are created equal. Most will attract and kill some mosquitoes. But only a few can do it consistently, for the right price, and on a scale that will help clear the biting insects from your yard. Fortunately scientists have performed tests on these machines to show which ones perform the best and under what circumstances. Noted entomologist, Dr Daniel Kline’s study: “Large Cage and Field Comparison Tests of Mega-Catch™ and Mosquito Magnet™ Traps“ revealed how these machines were capable of capturing and killing thousands of insects in a single night. And at those rates, it would only take about two months to collapse a local mosquito population.
But no matter how impressive the test results, there’s one thing you need to know about mosquito traps. Whatever the brand or how effective, a mosquito trap cannot solve all your mosquito problems. The best mosquito control program follows an integrated approach which means reducing mosquito breeding sites as well as using an effective trapping device.
Thanks to the global reach of the Internet, you’re able to see what customers from around the world have had to say about the mosquito traps they’ve purchased. We’re going to take a look at several of the top brands of mosquito traps commonly sold for home use, and compare those brands based on test results, reliability, and ease of use. But first, a quick overview of the way mosquito traps work to reduce mosquito populations and protect you and your family from bites.
How Mosquito Traps Work
When hunting for blood meals, female mosquitoes fly about 25 feet or less off the ground, using several types of sensing organs to find human prey. Among their equipment:
Antennae that detect the carbon dioxide released from a person’s lungs and are capable of picking up more than 340 chemical odors produced by human skin, including octenol, a substance also found in perspiration.
Compound eyes made up of hundreds of tiny lenses designed for spotting movement and distinguishing prey, particularly useful for day-biters that rely more on visual cues. Accompanied by two light-sensitive simple eyes.
Maxillary palpus located on the head and believed to be sensitive to heat, helping mosquitoes to locate warm-blooded prey and pinpoint capillaries that are closest to the skin and more easily reached.
Mosquito traps take advantage of mosquitoes’ sensory abilities by tricking them with features that mimic the smells and visual stimuli associated with people. Various brands produce CO2, octenol, heat, or light – or a combination of those – to lure mosquitoes in, then trap them in containers where they die.To be most effective, the traps need to be placed correctly, which means in shaded areas located between the source of the mosquitoes and where people gather in the yard. The best idea is to try it in different places until you find the right one. You’ll also need to experiment with a variety of attractants to see which ones appeal most to your local mosquitoes.
The major mosquito trap brands
When you start looking around for a mosquito trap, you’ll probably find that a handful of companies account for the majority of commercial traps available on the market.
Koolatron™ – (formerly Lentek™ International Inc.) In 2003, Koolatron purchased the business assets of Lentek International Inc., and took over the company. Made in Canada, the company currently produces four mosquito traps including the Bite Shield Guardian Pro (MK14), Bite Shield Guardian (MK12), Bite Shield Champion (MK05) and Bite Shield Protector (MK06). The Bite Shield Guardian Pro is cordless and requires batteries to initially power up the trap while the Bite Shield Guardian is corded. They both burn propane to produce CO2 and utilize other attractants including moisture, thermal imaging and optional Octenol cartridges. The Bite Shield Champion and Bite Shield Protector are both corded electric traps and use Octenol cartridges, heat and a lighting array. In addition to other attractants (Octenol, UV Light) the manufacturers claim the Bite Shield Protector produces CO2 to attract mosquitoes by way of a TiO2 coated UV tube which produces a photo-catalyst reaction.
Mega-Catch™ – Made by EnviroSafe Technologies International Ltd. A very popular line of traps that includes four models; the Alpha, Premier, Premier XC and Ultra. These traps combine multiple attractants, run off safe 12 Volt power and rely on an integrated lighting display, infrared heat and bait strips to attract mosquitoes. The Ultra and Premier XC models can also use Carbon Dioxide (CO2). The company’s flagship Ultra Trap is their CO2 ready Trap – it just needs to be hooked up to a CO2 cylinder. However, a nifty bit of DIY technology from the company, is an after market CO2 upgrade kit for the Premier XC trap. When installed it essentially converts the trap to the same specifications and capabilities as the Ultra Trap allowing it to be connected to a CO2 cylinder.
Mosquito Magnet® – This brand now consists of the Commander, Executive, Independence, and new for 2016, the Patriot Plus. Earlier models which included the Defender, Pro and Liberty, attracted a number of poor reviews from customers indicating problems with start up, and propane blockage/clogging issues. The traps use CO2 together with secondary attractants in the form of Octenol or Lurex cartridges. Although some models are battery powered or electric, they all burn propane to produce CO2. Created by American Biophysics Corp., when the company went into receivership in 2006, Woodstream Corporation purchased its assets.
Dragonfly II – Developed by BioSensory Inc. The company was established in 1996 to research better attractants for biting insects and is one of the leading manufacturers of biting insect lures. Mega-Catch and Koolatron both use BioSensory Octenol attractant lures in their mosquito traps. The Dragonfly II biting insect trap, is an electric trap that also uses CO2 from small canisters, along with infrared heat, a night light and attractant lures. The Dragonfly II is programmable with 8 operating modes and the CO2, which is optional, is released in pulses every 5 seconds. In 2009 the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) announced a voluntary recall of the Dragonfly II mosquito trap. The company and the CPSC said that the “carbon dioxide (CO2) pressure sensors inside these products can crack and leak or burst, causing the release of CO2. The Dragonfly II is currently unavailable however, according to the company’s website, the latest version is currently in design
Skeetervac® by Blue Rhino is part of Ferrellgas®. In addition to mosquito traps, the company designs and markets other outdoor appliances including BBQ grills and outdoor heaters. SkeeterVac traps are self powered i.e. they don’t require mains power. As with the Mosquito Magnet, the SkeeterVac traps combust propane to produce CO2. SkeeterVac also use “FineTune” Octenol bait chips or bait blocks as an additional attractant.
Obsolete Traps:The Mosquito Deleto by Coleman and the SonicWeb by Applica Consumer products – are no longer on the market. The SonicWeb performed poorly in many tests and the Coleman Mosquito Deleto, had serious trouble with its propane connection. In 2002 the company recalled 136,000 units because a regulator allowed leaks and overflows, causing a possible fire hazard.
Mosquito trap features
While different brands and models utilize different methods of attracting and killing mosquitoes, there are several common features found on mosquito traps. How well those features work, or whether they are available on all models, can vary.
Lighting arrays – The Mega-Catch has the most sophisticated of the light systems, with an array that flashes both visible and invisible spectrum’s at oscillating frequencies tested and proven to appeal to mosquitoes. The Dragonfly II has a night light and Koolatron traps use a blue light system. Mosquito Magnet traps don’t offer this feature.
Attractants – All traps offer some variety of bait strip or attractant lure as an accessory item. One of the most effective attractants, Octenol, was discovered by African researchers as a by product of their research into sleeping sickness in cattle. Since it is known that some mosquito species attack both cows and humans, USDA researchers in Florida (Kline et al. 1990) decided to try combinations of Octenol and Carbon Dioxide for pest mosquitoes. While Octenol does attract no-see-ums and mosquitoes, it greatly differs in its effectiveness of attracting different species of mosquitoes Kline et al (2007).
CO2 systems – Mosquito Magnet, Lentek/Koolatron and SkeeterVac burn tanks of propane for CO2. Mega-Catch offers a CO2 system as an additional component of its Ultra trap, although testing has shown it isn’t necessary to attract all mosquito species. The Mega-Catch system has five settings that allow the owner to program a slow, timed release of CO2 from cylinders like those used in soda fountains. The Koolatron Bite Shield Protector advertising material states a novel method of CO2 generation – “TiO2 coated (UV bulb) achieves photo-catalyst principle“.
Heat systems – All the brands use some form of heat emission to help attract mosquitoes once they are close. The heat source usually is located near the trap intake system.
Catch system – Mosquito Magnet uses a vacuum and a catch net, while Koolatron uses a capture cup. All SkeeterVac traps use a sticky paper “Tac Trap” capture method while some models also have a fan that sucks the mosquitoes into a catch net inside the trap. Mega-Catch offers two different capture methods – a mesh catch bag or the recommended liquid catch container holding a mixture of water, dish soap (to break the surface tension), and non-diet soda (for the fructose). The liquid catch cup does double duty, drowning the mosquitoes and helping attract even more of them by adding humidity and sweet smell.
Mosquito control involves more than just using a mosquito trap
Mosquito traps target only adult mosquitoes, while good mosquito control practices address the whole range of the insect’s life cycle.
To keep your home mosquito-free, you need to make sure there is no standing water around the yard where mosquitoes can lay their eggs. Treat any decorative ponds or fountains with Mosquito Dunks to kill mosquito larvae, or stock the ponds with mosquito fish that will eat them. Encourage dragonflies to hang around because they eat mosquito larvae and the adults.
Keep the grass and bushes trimmed so mosquitoes have no place to rest during the day, and spray an insecticide if the swarms get thick. Install outdoor lighting that doesn’t attract mosquitoes; wear mosquito repellent when you go outside.
Any given neighborhood might have dozens of different mosquito species flying around, and each species responds to different attractants. Aedes mosquitoes feed on people, bite during the day and rely more on sight when seeking a meal. Culex mosquitoes usually prefer birds, when they’re available, hunt at night and track prey by smell. Some mosquitoes rarely bite people, and stick to other creatures, like frogs. One kind might favor the color red (Aedes aegypti), another the smell of a certain kind of shampoo when used by people with specific body chemistry. There’s no way for a mosquito trap to appeal to all those different tastes. But despite the fact these machines can’t kill every mosquito, they sure do kill a bunch.
The reliability factor
The two main players, Mega-Catch and Mosquito Magnet, utilize two very different systems – CO2 vs Propane. Mega-Catch traps get high marks for nifty features and sheer mosquito-killing ability and the brand has a long history of reliability and customer satisfaction. Mosquito Magnet owners on the other hand describe horrible design and engineering issues. The propane tank connector in earlier models was known for clogged lines and, since it is powered by propane, often has trouble starting. When the manufacturers came up with a device for unblocking the lines, it too was defective and had to be recalled after several people were injured. That’s not to say that Mosquito Magnet traps don’t catch mosquitoes because they do: “this product works when it works“. However, most customer dissatisfaction appears to be with the number of breakdowns and repair costs.
In addition to the reliability factor, propane traps are more expensive to power. You can easily go through a tank of propane in a month, a prospect likely to become even more costly as prices continue to rise.
On the other hand the Dragonfly and Mega-Catch Traps don’t need propane for power because they plug into an electrical outlet, and get their CO2 from food-grade cylinders that are easy to buy or rent. And they are cheaper to run, since one tank can last 3 – 4 months.
Problems with a Mosquito Magnet? You will have to pay to send the unit back to the company for an expensive replacement part and there’s no support offered for some earlier models anymore. Mega-Catch traps are marketed as being DIY Self Serviceable; you just download the repair manual from the company website, and follow the simple step-by-step instructions on everything from replacing the UV bulb to installing a new power cord. Parts are relatively inexpensive and, if defective and under warranty (12 months), are replaced free of charge.
So, there you have it – more versatile features, proven reliability, and a customer-friendly design – the Mega-Catch ticks all those boxes, which no doubt explains why it continues to rate as one of the best performing mosquito traps on the market.
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The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), based in Atlanta, Georgia, is a federal public health agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. ATSDR protects communities from harmful health effects related to exposure to natural and man-made hazardous substances. https://www.atsdr.cdc.gov/phs/phs.asp?id=520&tid=92
What happens to malathion when it enters the environment?
Once malathion is introduced into the environment, usually from spraying on crops or in wide urban/residential areas, droplets of malathion in the air fall on soil, plants, water, or man-made surfaces. While most of the malathion will stay in the areas where it is applied, some can move to areas away from where it was applied by rain, fog, and wind. Malathion stays in the environment from a few days to several months, but is usually broken down within a few weeks. It is broken down to other chemical compounds by water, sunlight, and bacteria found in soil and water. Malathion does not tend to stick to the soil and is rapidly broken down by bacteria; thus, it is unlikely that malathion will reach groundwater in significant amounts. In water, malathion breaks down quickly by the action of the water and the bacteria in the water. In air, malathion is broken down by reacting with other chemicals formed naturally in the air by sunlight, to form a more toxic product called malaoxon. If malathion is present on dry soil or on man-made surfaces such as sidewalks, pavements, or playground equipment, it usually does not break down as fast as it would in moist soil. For more information, see Chapters 4, 5, and 6.1.3 How might I be exposed to malathion?
Most people are not exposed to malathion in the air that they breathe or on things that they touch, unless they live near areas being sprayed. The people who are at the greatest risk of being exposed to malathion are those who work with this chemical. These include farm workers, chemical sprayers, and people who work in factories that make malathion or other products that contain the chemical. They are exposed to malathion on things they touch where it can pass through their skin, or by breathing it after it has been sprayed. Other people who are at risk of being exposed to malathion are those who use it near their homes and in their gardens, and people living in areas where malathion is sprayed to control medflies or mosquitos. Overexposure to malathion may cause severe poisoning or death. Persons may be exposed to dangerous amounts if they go into fields too soon after spraying. The people most likely to be exposed to malathion can be protected by wearing special clothing and breathing equipment and by staying out of sprayed fields for the appropriate amount of time for the job that they are going to do in the field; this amount of time can be up to 6 days.Individuals can also be exposed to malathion if they live near landfills where malathion has been dumped or near water containing malathion that washes off nearby land or that is accidentally spilled. The greatest amounts of malathion are expected to be present near or on the farms where malathion is used. After spraying, some malathion can be transported by the wind or fog to areas away from where it is used, but the amounts present at these locations are not expected to be at dangerous levels. In a collection of data gathered by the EPA for the years 1971-1991, it was reported that malathion was only found in a total of 12 groundwater monitoring wells in three states. The most that was found in any of the wells was 6.17 parts of malathion per billion parts of water (ppb); this was found in a county in Virginia that is made up mainly of agricultural and forested land. More recent studies of water samples taken near where malathion was sprayed indicate that malathion is not usually found in groundwater. The risk of exposure to malathion from drinking groundwater appears to be low. For more information, see Chapter 6.
Malathion is approved for use on crops, in homes and gardens, in urban/residential areas where mosquitos or medflies pose a problem, and at agricultural sites. The maximum amount of malathion residue allowed by the FDA and EPA on crops used as food is 8 ppm of malathion. The FDA has monitored the food supply for pesticides for a number of years. FDA purchases many kinds of foods through Total Diet Studies (also called Market Basket Surveys) and analyzes them for residue levels of pesticides. These FDA studies allow scientists to estimate the daily intake of pesticides. Generally, the FDA monitoring studies conclude that the U.S. food supply contains only very small amounts of pesticides that are not a concern. For more information, see Section 1.7 and Chapter 6.
1.4 How can malathion enter and leave my body?
For the general population, the most likely way that malathion can enter the body is by eating or drinking contaminated food or water or through dermal contact with contaminated plants, soils, or surfaces such as playground equipment or pavements. It can also enter your body if you breathe air containing malathion during or after it has been sprayed for public health uses. By any means of exposure, malathion enters your body quickly and passes into the bloodstream.Once in your bloodstream, malathion can go to many organs and tissues. Most of the malathion is broken down in your liver into other substances, called metabolites. One of these metabolites is more harmful than malathion. Malathion and its metabolites do not tend to accumulate in the body, and leave mostly in your urine within a few days.
See Chapter 3 for more information on how malathion enters and leaves the body.
1.5 How can malathion affect my health?
Malathion interferes with the normal function of the nervous system. Because the nervous system controls many other organs, malathion indirectly can affect many additional organs and functions. Exposure to high amounts of malathion in the air, water, or food may cause difficulty breathing, chest tightness, vomiting, cramps, diarrhea, watery eyes, blurred vision, salivation, sweating, headaches, dizziness, loss of consciousness, and death. If persons who are exposed accidentally or intentionally to high amounts of malathion are rapidly given appropriate treatment, there may be no long-term harmful effects. If people are exposed to levels of malathion below those that affect the function of the nervous system, few or no health problems seem to occur. This has been shown in studies with volunteers who inhaled or swallowed small known amounts of malathion. There is no evidence that malathion affects the ability of humans to reproduce. There is also no conclusive proof that malathion causes cancer in humans, although some studies have found increased incidence of some cancers in people who are regularly exposed to pesticides, such as farmers and pesticide applicators. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has determined that malathion is unclassifiable as to carcinogenicity to humans.To protect the public from the harmful effects of toxic chemicals and to find ways to treat people who have been harmed, scientists use many tests.
One way to see if a chemical will hurt people is to learn how the chemical is absorbed, used, and released by the body; for some chemicals, animal testing may be necessary. Animal testing may also be used to identify health effects such as cancer or birth defects. Without laboratory animals, scientists would lose a basic method to get information needed to make wise decisions to protect public health. Scientists have the responsibility to treat research animals with care and compassion. Laws today protect the welfare of research animals, and scientists must comply with strict animal care guidelines.
Studies in animals have observed the same effects that occur in humans after exposure to malathion. This is because malathion also affects the nervous system of animals. Some studies in animals suggest that malathion may produce subtle changes in the immune system, but there was no evidence indicating that those animals were more susceptible to infections than animals that were not given malathion. Some studies in male rats observed temporary alterations in the testes following short-term exposure to malathion, but there is no evidence that exposure to malathion affected the reproductive ability of these animals. A longer-term study that evaluated the ability of rats to reproduce did not detect any harmful effects. Most studies of cancer in animals have not shown evidence of carcinogenicity for malathion, or have shown evidence of cancer at doses considered excessive. Still, there is some disagreement among scientists on how to interpret the results. The EPA has determined that there is suggestive evidence of carcinogenicity for malathion in animals but it is not sufficient to assess potential carcinogenicity in humans. See Chapter 3 for more information on how malathion can affect your health.
1.6 How can malathion affect children?
This section discusses potential health effects from exposures during the period from conception to maturity at 18 years of age in humans.Children can be exposed to malathion from food and drinking water, but these risks are low and not of concern. Because malathion is a widely used pesticide, greater concern exists from exposure following application to recreational areas, parks, and playgrounds and from home and garden uses of malathion. Children can also be exposed when malathion is sprayed, for example, to control mosquitos. Because children spend more time outdoors than adults, they may be at a greater risk of exposure to malathion than adults. Because of their smaller weight, children’s intake of malathion per kilogram of body weight may be greater than that of adults. The EPA permits residues of pesticides to be present in crops used as food, and these amounts are considered to be safe. Children may be exposed also by dermal contact with contaminated surfaces or by placing contaminated objects in their mouths.
The main target of malathion toxicity in children is the nervous system, the same as in adults. Children who have accidentally swallowed high amounts of malathion or who had skin contact with high amounts of malathion experienced difficulty breathing, chest tightness, vomiting, cramps, diarrhea, watery eyes, salivation, sweating, headaches, dizziness, and loss of consciousness, and some died. We do not know whether or not children are more susceptible than adults to malathion toxicity. However, studies in animals have shown that very young animals are more susceptible than older ones when exposed to high amounts of malathion.
There is no evidence that exposure to malathion at levels found in the environment causes birth defects or other developmental effects in people. Malathion has caused adverse developmental effects in animals, but only when administered to the pregnant mothers in amounts high enough to affect the health of the mothers. A study of people in California found that the use of pesticides, malathion among them, at home during pregnancy did not increase the risk of brain tumors in children.
Animal studies have shown that malathion and/or its breakdown products can be transferred from a pregnant mother to the developing fetus and that it can also be passed to newborn animals in the maternal milk. There is no information in humans regarding transfer of malathion to the fetus or to nursing infants.
More information regarding children’s health and malathion can be found in Section 3.7.
1.7 How can families reduce the risk of exposure to malathion?
If your doctor finds that you have been exposed to significant amounts of malathion, ask whether your children might also be exposed. Your doctor might need to ask your state health department to investigate.The general population is not likely to be exposed to large amounts of malathion. The populations living in the areas where malathion is used on crops or those who use the insecticide extensively in their gardens or near their homes, however, may be exposed to greater amounts of malathion. Malathion is often detected in foods and air samples collected where malathion is used. People who live close to areas of malathion use, such as where it is sprayed over urban/residential areas to control medflies or mosquitos, may also be exposed to larger amounts of malathion, because small amounts of the pesticide will move from the place where it is used to nearby areas. These exposures may take place during activities such as touching contaminated plants, soils, or man-made surfaces such as playground equipment, sidewalks, or pavements; breathing the mist formed from the sprayed chemical; drinking contaminated water; or eating recently sprayed fruits and vegetables. People who are most likely to receive the highest exposures are those who work in the factories that make malathion or make products that contain the insecticide, workers who spray it on crops, and farmers. Entry of malathion into the body after contact with the skin is expected to be the major exposure pathway for those working in these operations. Breathing the mist containing malathion may also occur.
Families can reduce the risk of exposure to malathion in the soil, on plants, or in the air by staying away from fields that have been recently sprayed. If families wait at least a week before entering sprayed fields, then the amount of malathion present in the air or on plants is expected to be small. In areas where malathion is sprayed to control medflies or mosquitos, families may reduce the risk of exposure to the chemical by remaining inside during the spraying periods, and by washing their hands and clothes if they come into contact with sprayed surfaces within a few days of the spraying. For children who play in dry sand boxes, on sidewalks, or on playground equipment that is located in or near the treated areas, the amount of time that caution should be used (that is, the time during which they should make sure to wash thoroughly after contact with sprayed surfaces) may need to be longer. Families may also reduce the risk of exposure to malathion by wearing protective equipment, such as gloves, when applying the insecticide in their homes and gardens, and washing their hands and clothes after they have been in a backyard garden or yard that has been treated with the insecticide. Foods grown in a garden treated with malathion may contain some of the residues on their surface. To reduce the risk of exposure to malathion that may occur when contaminated vegetables or other produce grown in a backyard garden is eaten, it is important to wash the foods prior to eating them.
Families should also be aware that sometimes malathion could be illegally sprayed inside the home to kill insects. Your children may be exposed to malathion if either you or another person applies pesticides containing it in your home. In some cases, the improper use of pesticides not intended for indoor use in homes has turned homes into hazardous waste sites. Make sure that any person you hire is licensed and, if appropriate, certified to apply pesticides. Your state licenses each person who is qualified to apply pesticides according to EPA standards and further certifies each person who is qualified to apply “restricted use” pesticides. Ask to see the license and certification. Also ask for the brand name of the pesticide, a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS), the name of the product’s active ingredient, and the EPA registration number. Ask whether EPA has designated the pesticide “for restricted use” and what the approved uses are. This information is important if you or your family react to the product. If you buy over-the-counter pesticides products to apply yourself, be sure the products are in unopened pesticide containers that are labeled and contain an EPA registration number. Carefully follow the instructions on the label. If you plan to spray inside, make sure the products are intended for indoor use and are in unopened pesticide containers that are labeled and contain an EPA registration number. Carefully follow the instructions on the label. If you feel sick after a pesticide has been used in your home, consult your doctor or local poison control center.
1.8 Is there a medical test to determine whether I have been exposed to malathion?
There are tests available to determine whether you have been exposed to malathion. Breakdown products of malathion can be measured in the urine, but the tests need to be conducted within days of the exposure since these products are eliminated fairly rapidly. These tests, however, do not predict whether or not the exposure to malathion will produce harmful health effects. Another type of test measures the levels of a substance called cholinesterase in your blood. This test is not specific for malathion, but can be used to determine exposure to many other substances that act in a way similar to malathion. If the levels of cholinesterase in you blood are less than half of what they should be, then you may get symptoms of poisoning. Smaller decreases in cholinesterase may only indicate that you have been exposed to malathion or similar substances, but you will not necessarily experience harmful effects. Cholinesterase levels in the blood can stay low for months after you have been exposed to malathion or similar chemicals. For more information, see Chapters 3 and 7.1.9 What recommendations has the federal government made to protect human health?
The federal government develops regulations and recommendations to protect public health. Regulations can be enforced by law. Federal agencies that develop regulations for toxic substances include the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Recommendations provide valuable guidelines to protect public health but cannot be enforced by law. Federal organizations that develop recommendations for toxic substances include the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH).Regulations and recommendations can be expressed in not-to-exceed levels in air, water, soil, or food that are usually based on levels that affect animals; then they are adjusted to help protect people. Sometimes these not-to-exceed levels differ among federal organizations because of different exposure times (an 8-hour workday or a 24-hour day), the use of different animal studies, or other factors.
Recommendations and regulations are also periodically updated as more information becomes available. For the most current information, check with the federal agency or organization that provides it. Some regulations and recommendations for malathion include the following:
OSHA has established an exposure limit for malathion in the workplace of 15 milligrams per cubic meter (mg/m3), for an 8-hour workday, 40 hours per week. NIOSH recommends that workers not be exposed to more than 10 mg/m3 of malathion for a 10-hour workday, 40 hours per workweek. NIOSH also recommends that a level of 250 mg/m3 of malathion in the air be considered as immediately dangerous to life and health.
According to EPA, the following levels of malathion in drinking water are not expected to cause effects that are harmful to health: 0.2 milligrams per liter (mg/L) for 1 day, 10 days, or longer-term exposure for children, and 0.1 mg/L for lifetime exposure of adults.
EPA also has set maximum levels of malathion residues in meat and dairy products, vegetables, fruits, tree nuts, cereal grains, and grass forage, fodder, and hay. Individual values are listed in Table 8-1.
EPA requires notification to the Agency of spills or accidental releases of 100 pounds or more of malathion to the environment. For more information on regulations and guidelines applicable to malathion, see Chapter 8.
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I am an asthmatic and could not understand why they continue to fog rather than find some other methods.
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David
Dennis Low Lowe is a shite, and will always be a shite. The power has gone completely to his head. He is utterly distasteful in his ministerial role. This entire DLP administration nitpicky and shitety is shite. All the jackasses got to do is collaborate with FCT. Use Kammie Holder to the max; support he and the trust initiatives and the dog dead. But Dennis Low Lowe wants to be the big man reeling the power and showing off his might. Completely dislike the insufferable gnat.
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We have good reasons to distrust NGOs of all kinds.
For we now know that these ‘do-gooders’ are at least infiltrated by intelligence agencies.
Or at worst, are instruments of American foreign policy. They largely get their money from the same industries which they pretend to police – oil and gas.
NGOs are scams. And their ambassadors not much different than the missionaries coming with a bible to ‘save’ souls. And what good has that done us?
None of this says that environmentally we are not going to a real hell in a hand-basket, to the contrary.
But neither set of missionaries are empowered to save any of us or were meant to.
Theirs is about the repeat of a betrayal while serving as agents, unwittingly most times, of others.
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The Kenya government made an announcement today:
” A ban on plastic carrier bags has come into force in Kenya, which means that anyone found selling, manufacturing or carrying them could face fines of up to $38,000 or prison sentences of up to four years.”
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Here is a very interesting long read that ties in together climate change, gentrification and race!
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/high-ground-is-becoming-hot-property-as-sea-level-rises/
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all for protecting the environment but there must be a better way than asking or imposing a fee on the consumer also one can clearly see that sooner or later once a precedent is set other initiatives would follow with fees being applied to all items that contain plastics such as plastic forks and other non degradable easy to use household items , this is just the start of one of those quick and easy money making proposals which would eventually hurt the consumer
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Angela Skeete
You are a real real cunt for real tho. What do would you propose other than the stupid ass Cahill nonsensical wheel and deal proposal. Come wid something good ya two face lackey. Talk a bunch a shite fuh shite talking sake..stuuuuupse
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Next it would be the milk plastic bottles and on and on fee after fee after fee more money to lined the enviromentalist pockets. Jac a.ss dont you see where all this poppycock is heading or are u just a simpleton having a one word vocabulary as in the wordcu…nt
Phew what a Johnny -
You and all the other jack a.sses were saying that the taxpayers would have to fund the Cahill project .Now who is now funding the enviromentalist laundry list of to do things of everthing that contains plastics that would hog tie the cosumer to never ending fees that are complict to one arm bandit tactics.
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You lap dog skin pooch shite. If the idiots to whom you kiss ass were not a bunch of deceiving rats, they could have easily gone into an arrangement for a plant that recycles plastics and other valuable waste. But, no, your shitety DLP wanted a whole sow pig. All wunna want to do is spend money foolish is shite when commitment to a recycling plant could easily solve the problem of plastics. Anyway, I think we too late for that now. The society is too friggin indiscipline, vex and busy trying to make ends meet to give a shit now about the environment. And I hope you braying ass, understand that a large percentage of that society is now made up of ignorant doan carish hooligans. We got your idiot Prime Minister to thank for the state of affairs.
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Yes many opposed because of the technology read gasification but others were more concerned about the lack of transparency (governance).
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Cahill muh a.ss finish done with thanks to a holes like you still stuck in wunna throat doah now go pay yuh shitty enviromental fee fuh all things plastics and shut yuh a,sss , The environmentalist got wunna by the balls and wunna got to pay the cost, Now i get the last laugh HEW HEE HEE
The govt gave a proposal and wunna jac a.ss lambast the govt wunna even brought in carpet baggers to wipe and mop the floor feeling real good yeah but not so good now , yuh see reality has a nice way of getting even ,
Now talking shit asking people to pay a mandatory fee for bags get real -
the humanoid as an ass
climate denialism grows as climate events continue to engulf us all
right now we have all manner of extreme weather conditions in many parts of the world
climate refugees are emerging from Houston to Mumbai
soon hundreds of millions will make up permanent wanderers
yet an orange faced man in a house of the whites denies Pachamama as God.
their unwillingness to accept Pacha’s divine judgement will multiply human misery
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@Angela Skeete, what would you recommend and will you be participating in the upcoming Clean Up Barbados campaign?To volunteer, you can call 625-2020 and we will be provided with gloves and a free t-shirt as we appreciate all the help we can get. Oh you can use any of your noms de plume.
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@Angela Skeete, I encourage you to put partisanship aside and put country first. I implore you to avail yourself with the Rio Declaration Principle 10. In addition, call and arrange a tour of the South Coast Sewerage plant during the time the guys have to undertake the daily unclogging. The manual process is not only dirty, dangerous but life threatening. What do they remove? Go and see and if they don`t do this daily task due to the indiscriminate flushing and dumping in sewer, shit will flow in our streets.
Why do we have to always wait on GOB to do everything especially when they are unpopular without much political capital?
Will you take your own bag and refuse to pay the optional fee? What is the objective? -
Irma as of this morning packing 120 mph winds heading our way.
Near shore, fringe reefs have all but died yet the indifferent technocrats in BIM tell us California environmental laws are extremely strict so the ban on RoundUp and other dangerous chemicals does not apply to us. #OstrichSyndrome
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I have received a disturbing audio message on whatsapp that says Irma may be a serious threat to Barbados next week. Today on the VOB news, the met office is reported advising that these social media messages should be ignored. What to believe?
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Put what partisanship aside the enviromentalist initiatives are costly . imagine buying a product at a high cost then having the pay an additional enviromental fee for each product do the maths and calculate in dollars and cents how many times over it would cost to buy the same product evertime the consumer purchase it with annenvuromental fee applied
Then in percentage how much of the population uses the same product annually and usage applied do the maths all this money is coming out of mostly the poor pockets who relies on plastiic products as a faster and quicker way in their daily activities
Look the money generated by these enviromental initiatives are in the billion and there still is not any hardened proff that alternatives to plastic would help the enviroment
So far all the alternatives tried to household products have been failures. So now it seems we are back to paper a ban initiative which the enviromentalist had touted
Ok to sound the alarm but in so doing the enviromentslist must also find a fair balance between peoples pocket books and the enviroment -
As the plastic list gets longer and fees imposed even the childrens birthday party favours like balloons would be a target. Yes once the door is open the horse bolts and no onw would ever give a hoot a bout catching him.
Everything plastic would be fair game for a fee while the consumer a.ss gets burn instead of the plastic -
@Angela Skeete, do not forget glitter aka confetti which is now banned in some parts of Europe. We are also advocating for a ban on forks,plates, cups and straws made from plastics. Styrofoam should have been banned eons ago.
The Future Centre Trust can be contacted at 625-2020 and we will share correspondence sent to government with suggestions
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Look ban all you want but please do not punish the consumer because of what enviromentalist and manufacturers once touted as better than glass
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@Angela Skeete, please send to to the Future Centre Trust to collect 2 reusable shopping bags. It does not matter what name you choose to use. In addition, the deterrent fee is a optional decision that the stubborn can choose to pay or not. Why would a shopper pay a deterrent fee the cost of bags are already included in price.
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@Kammie
Your job is to educate. Unfortunately some will always be blinded by their political bent. If the supermarket had up the retail fee by .15 cents as they routinely do nobody would be the wiser. Some of us understand that to change entrenched behaviour one must be disruptive in approach, especially if there is a crisis facing us.
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U David should be the last to talk about change . Especially your infamous input in helping to stagnate a technological approach to resolving enviromental issues an approach which would have gone a long way in solving multiple problems indicative to human foot prints which is destroying the enviroment
Bro please don’t come with your pretentious and political mongering .. -
The fact being that at the heart of this issue there is a fee or a cost to the consumer one that is ridiculous and most likely to affect those who use the product. Btw youhave all but confirmed what i said as relevant to how far enviromentalist would go in their efforts mind you when all is said and done the botom line being that there is not a fair balance and approach as to the financially affects these fees have on the consumer
Understand there is a choice however the choice does not remove the risk of at some point and time i have to purchase the bag -
@Angela Skeete, change is extremely hard to accept especially which it’s so disruptive to anbajan society who are indifferent to progress. Perhaps, we need to introduce a 4 year jail term like Kenya for persons caught with a SUnplastic bag.s
Please send for your bags at the FCT and stop take the Single Use Plastic bags.
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@ Kammie Holder September 2, 2017 at 6:17 AM
Kammie, we laud your inexorable drive of Sisyphean proportion to turn dirty Bajans into a class of people fit to sit in a palace of the king of pigs.
The retail segment of the economy existed before the wide use of plastic bags and indeed will continue after your Herculean task is accomplished.
As you are aware, the indiscriminate disposal of these shopping plastic bags poses a massive threat to the efficient functioning of the local drainage system with the widespread careless disposal of Styrofoam food containers acting as a readymade home for mosquito breeding and being a clear and present danger to human health and a direct cause of serious flooding arising from already poorly maintained local drainage system.
But there is one aspect of this ‘wholly’ altruistic campaign to eliminate the use of disposable plastic for ‘convenient’ shopping mainly for items already processed and packaged in mostly plastic wrapping materials which, apparently, you are overlooking.
Isn’t it an indisputable fact that many Bajans especially those living in perceived low income areas with poor hosing stock ( aka ghettoes for want of better term) use these plastic bags to store garbage for collection by a most unreliable service?
Composting and alternative garbage disposal methods have not yet been firmly planted in the cultural DNA of most Bajans as can be confirmed by the stinking odours which emanate from the unsightly piles of garbage rotting in the tropical heat for many days awaiting a poorly-managed garbage collection service.
So the question being posed to you and your FCT is what proposals have been considered to replace the plastic bags currently used for garbage storage and disposal and which make up a significant proportion of the loads collected by the collection service providers.
What measures are on the cards to make sure nasty smelly garbage is not strewn by nasty uncaring Bajans on the ground and on the streets for collection by an already overburdened collection service?
Would the SSA and its agents be prepared to distribute two sets of bags to householders for proper garbage disposal? One bag for recyclable materials and the other for the ‘regular’ waste with hefty penalties attached to enforce compliance as is in the case of the seatbelt law in a country where the speed limit is on average 60 km per hr.
Shouldn’t the funding of such a project be done through the NSRL if Bajans are to feel proud to boast about their so-called level of education unmatched in the region?
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Yes Kammie this plastic bag issue as you would mostly gleamed has a composite that can be negative to the average household the economics is broader and wider than you perceives
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@millertheanunnaki who wrote “Isn’t it an indisputable fact that many Bajans especially those living in perceived low income areas with poor hosing stock ( aka ghettoes for want of better term) use these plastic bags to store garbage for collection by a most unreliable service?”
Fish scales and guts, potato peelings etc. are a problem for people who cook at home.
Composting is difficult for low income people.
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The governments of Barbados have no interest in simple sustainable environmental solutions.
Perhaps, if the Barbados Water Authority could commission a documentary on Capialist Gangsterism as with support from the GOB we could develop a new governance model.Senator Darcy Boyce and PS Jehru Wiltshire needs to tell the country when the BWA will have its own solar farm and how will the approximately $35M grant money is to be allocated as well as what transparency will be in place. The country needs to know Dr Estwick.
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It is almost the end of a second term of his government and the inability to transform the energy requirements of BWA, GAIA, etc is a disappointment.
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The Barbados Water Authority needs to undergo a radical surgical forensic audit by an international audit firm along with Scotland Yard.
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I do love the manner in which you have framed this particular issue plus it really does present me personally some fodder for consideration. Nonetheless, from what I have personally seen, I simply just wish when other commentary stack on that folks stay on issue and in no way embark on a tirade regarding the news of the day. Still, thank you for this fantastic point and although I can not necessarily go along with this in totality, I regard your point of view.
The blogmaster invites you to join the discussion.