Subject: PANUPS: Azinphos Methyl and Fish Kills

From: Pesticide Action Network North America Reg Ctr <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 9 Oct 92 16:50:48 PDT

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PESTICIDE ACTION NETWORK NORTH AMERICA UPDATES SERVICE
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MASSIVE FISH KILLS IN LOUISIANA PROMPT ACTION ON 
AZINPHOS METHYL

October 9, 1992

A series of fish kills in the rivers of southern Louisiana in the past year 
has prompted state Agriculture Commissioner Bob Odum to restrict 
the use of the organophosphate insecticide azinphos methyl to case-by-
case approval.  There were six fish-kill incidents in southern Louisiana 
this year, including three in the month of August.  During the 1991 
spraying season, azinphos methyl was implicated by the US 
Environmental Protection Agency in the deaths of up to 750,000 fish, 
and an unknown number of other animals including turtles, alligators, 
snakes, and birds.  Louisiana's Agriculture Department was criticized 
heavily in 1991 for what some observers felt was a lack of decisive 
action to control azinphos methyl's toxic effects on wildlife.

Commissioner Odum issued an emergency regulation on August 20, 
1992, stating that permits to use azinphos methylwill depend on the 
proximity of sugarcane fields to waterways, the drainage and water 
content of the soil in the area of proposed use, and the likelihood of 
sudden rain.  According to Odum, "th unpredictable nature of 
thunderstorms in south Louisiana this time of year makes . . . runoff 
likely."  At the time, there were approximately two weeks left to the 
usual azinphos methyl spraying season for cane borer control. A 
representative of the Department of Agriculture's Pesticide and 
Environmental Programs Office confirmed that since passage of this 
act,  no further fish kills have been reported.

Azinphos methyl is typically applied aerially to sugarcane fields during 
the humid summer months of July and August.  Residents of towns 
throughout the cane-growing region report crop dusters who fly so 
close to peopleUs homes that identification numbers on the side of the 
airplane and the color of the pilotUs hair have been accurately observed.  
In 1991, one pilot was charged with negligent injury after the town of 
Grosse Tete, near cane fields west of Baton Rouge, was sprayed.  Six of 
Grosse TeteUs 727 residents reported to hospital emergency rooms with 
symptoms of azinphos methyl exposure 

Pesticide-related fish kills have contributed to one of the most severe 
crises facing the fishing and farming industries in recent history.   Mike 
Walker, field biologist with the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and 
Fisheries, reports that as a result of damage from September's 
Hurricane Andrew, the Achafalaya River, previously a "fisherman's 
paradise," is now a wasteland with 182 million dead fish.   Habitat for 
many aquatic and terrestrial species was destroyed or altered severely by 
the hurricane.

A coalition of Louisiana farmers, scientists, business groups, and 
citizen organizations has begun to work together to arrive at lasting 
solutions to the major problems now facing rural Louisiana. Major 
organizers in this effort are the Southern Sustainable Agriculture 
Working Group (Southern SWAG), together with the Southern 
Mutual Help Association (SMHA), an advocacy organization for the 
rural poor.  The coalition has addressed the need for cooperation 
among its diverse participants in confronting the fish-kill problem.  
Their long-range goal is to ensure the continued health of local and 
their ecosystems, economic survival for those in natural resource based 
industries, and self-determination for residents of rural areas.  Helen 
Vinton, a former member of Louisiana's pesticide commission and a 
community organizer with SMHA, notes that she has "a great deal of 
trust in the agricultural community.  Farmers want to do the right 
thing.  They just need more choices to help them do that."

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Helen Vinton, SMHA, 5002 Old 
Jeanerette Road, New Iberia, LA 70560.  Phone (318) 368-3277.

SOURCES: Pesticide & Toxic Chemical News, August 14, 1991;  New 
York Times, August 21, 1991; Daily Iberian, August 15, 1992, August 18, 
1992, August 22, 1992; Sunday Iberian, September 6, 1992; Acadiana 
Lifestyle, 5(11), September, 1992; Sunday Atlanta Journal/Constitution, 
September 12, 1992; personal communication with Sr. Helen Vinton, 
and with members of the Louisiana Department of Agriculture.
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This information is provided by the Pesticide Action Network North 
America Updates Service (PANUPS), a pesticide-related news service 
from the Pesticide Action Network (PAN) North American Regional 
Center. Updates are posted weekly on EcoNet in the "en.pesticides," 
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PENpages agriculture information service at Penn State Univ. Hard-
copy compilations of these updates are also available. For more 
information about PAN activities and publications, contact: PAN NA 
RC, 965 Mission Street #514, San Francisco, CA 94103. Tel: (415) 541-
9140. Fax: (415) 541-9253. Telex: 156283472 PANNA. E-mail address on 
EcoNet: [email-masked]
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