Pesticide Use Spikes as GMO Failure Cripples Corn Belt

[Ladyhawke1]

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2013/07/09-6


Published on Tuesday, July 9, 2013 by Common Dreams

Pesticide Use Spikes as GMO Failure Cripples Corn Belt

Midwest farmers douse their fields in chemicals as insects grow resistant to Bt Corn

- Sarah Lazare, staff writer



Pesticides Poured on Illinois Cornfield (Photo: Fig and Sage)

Pesticide use is skyrocketing across the Midwestern U.S. corn belt, as biotech companies like Syngenta and AMVAC Chemical watch their pesticide sales spike 50 to 100 percent over the past two years, NPR reported Tuesday.

The culprit? Bt corna type of genetically engineered corn with insecticide built into its genes.

Variations of this corn strainpeddled across the world by large multinationals including Monstanto and Syngentaare giving rise to Bt resistant insects and worms, studies show.

NPR reports that resistant 'pests' are decimating entire cornfields across Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota and Nebraska.

Yet, now that the targeted insect killings are not working, big agribusiness is simply throwing pesticides at the problem instead of moving away from GMOs.

This is despite warnings last year from the Environmental Protection Agency that unrestrained use of Bt corn will off-set the balance of the ecosystem.

Monsanto denies the severity of the damage wrought by Bt corn, assuring customers that many farmers 'have great success.'

Environmental groups have long warned that Bt corn is a danger to non-'pest' insects. In a 2004 briefing, Greenpeace showed that the effects of non-targeted insect killings ripple throughout the ecosystem.

Critics charge that the modified cornwhich is spread by big agribusiness, pushed to small farmers, and crossbred with non GMO strainsundermines food diversity and security and devastates small-scale, sustainable farmers and peasants.

The revelation comes after scientists recently warned that pollution runoff from Midwestern farms, carried to the ocean by the Mississippi, is slated to create the largest ocean dead zone recorded in the Gulf of Mexico, choking marine life that crosses its path.

(Photo: Digital Journal)

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[seedcorn]

The truth:

Bt is still working, it's the root worm gene that they have mutated against. Yes, they are using insecticides along with gene protection in some counties in Illinois and Iowa. Rest of country, nothing has changed.

NOONE is denying the problem, instead they are studying the situation to see the best ways to address it. Going away from Rootworm gene will not solve the problem.

Ag doesn't want to use insecticides because we understand value of worms and other insects as Rootworm gene is species specific.

Too bad your rag doesn't see the need to do accurate research.

 

[Ladyhawke1]

Did you bother to use the links in the article?

The truth.

Using ideology over solutions is a failed and failing policy.

 

[Ridgerunner]

This is despite warnings last year from the Environmental Protection Agency that unrestrained use of Bt corn will off-set the balance of the ecosystem

Could you please give a reference for this statement from the EPA? I can find a lot of organizations saying this but Id like to see the original statement from the EPA so I can see the context. Thanks.

The revelation comes after scientists recently warned that pollution runoff from Midwestern farms, carried to the ocean by the Mississippi, is slated to create the largest ocean dead zone recorded in the Gulf of Mexico, choking marine life that crosses its path.

Yep, that dead zone should be really big this year. If youll check, the size of the dead zone is tied to the amount of rainwater runoff a whole lot more than the amount of fertilizers used in the fields. There is no question in my mind that fertilizers used in agriculture and on city lawns contribute to the creation of the dead zone, just like all the other nutrients that get washed downstream to the gulf. Fertilizers are a major contributor, but its the amount of rainwater runoff that has the big effect on the size of that dead zone.

 

[Ladyhawke1]

This is despite warnings last year from the Environmental Protection Agency that unrestrained use of Bt corn will off-set the balance of the ecosystem

Could you please give a reference for this statement from the EPA? I can find a lot of organizations saying this but Id like to see the original statement from the EPA so I can see the context. Thanks.

The revelation comes after scientists recently warned that pollution runoff from Midwestern farms, carried to the ocean by the Mississippi, is slated to create the largest ocean dead zone recorded in the Gulf of Mexico, choking marine life that crosses its path.

Yep, that dead zone should be really big this year. If youll check, the size of the dead zone is tied to the amount of rainwater runoff a whole lot more than the amount of fertilizers used in the fields. There is no question in my mind that fertilizers used in agriculture and on city lawns contribute to the creation of the dead zone, just like all the other nutrients that get washed downstream to the gulf. Fertilizers are a major contributor, but its the amount of rainwater runoff that has the big effect on the size of that dead zone.

If you will use the links within the article that I provided (as a link)

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2013/07/09-6

you can carefully read those documents. Remember that with Monsanto there is a revolving door with those coming from the AG companies going into the EPA. EPA is government.

http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=EPA-HQ-OPP-2011-0922

 

[Ridgerunner]

This is despite warnings last year from the Environmental Protection Agency that unrestrained use of Bt corn will off-set the balance of the ecosystem

Im still trying to find the specific EPA study or warning that this references. What you gave are really not much help. Through a Google search I was able to find EPA-HQ-OPP-2011-0922 but that is a document with all kinds of articles. When I looked through the BT one I could not find that comment so maybe it's somewhere else. That BT one did not talk about BT corn anyway, just BT as a pesticide.. I really would like to see that statement in context.

I could spend a lot of time going through a lot of stuff and Id still not be sure Id found the article you are talking about. Any help you could give in actually getting to the document in question with that comment would be greatly appreciated.