Filed Under: Environmental Issues | New York City | Public Health | Public Health

PesticidesPesticides Many New Yorkers are unknowingly exposed to pesticides that are being used in their schools, office buildings and residential neighborhoods. Statewide, on average more than 20 million pounds and 2.8 million gallons of pesticides are applied by commercial applicators or sold to farmers annually. Unknown quantities more are bought by consumers and homeowners. In fact, studies show that New York counties in urban and suburban areas report the highest pesticide use in the state. In 2000, the state created a new law, called the Pesticide Neighbor Notification Law, requiring advance notice before certain types of pesticide applications. The law has two major components. All schools and day care centers are now required to notify parents and staff about pesticide use on their premises. The law also allows counties, and New York City, to adopt local laws requiring lawn care companies to give 48-hour advance notice to neighbors before most spray-type tree and lawn pesticide applications. The local law also requires home-owners to post signs on their lawns when they apply lawn pesticides themselves. As of 2004, seven counties had adopted this law. The adverse health impacts of exposure to pesticides depend on the type and amount of chemical used, and the degree of exposure. New York State's Pesticide Use and Sales Database, administered by the State DEC and first released in July 1998, gives us a better understanding of what type, how much, and where pesticides are being used in the state and their health risks. In June 2000, the federal government banned the use and manufacture of chlorpyrifos, one of the most heavily used pesticides in New York City to control cockroaches and other insects. Chlorpyrifos, a chemical contained in the commonly used Dursban, is suspected to adversely affect the development of the brain and the nervous system. Recent studies undertaken at Columbia University indicate that chlorpyrifos are extremely persistent in the indoor environment may result in lower birth weights and impaired neurological, physical and mental development in babies. Safer alternatives to pesticides are being developed and used in homes and schools throughout the country. Even lawn care, and roach control has seen a burst of alternative products and control methods now offered by some commercial applicators. In addition to modifying your own pest control efforts, approach the building manager and groundskeeper at your residence, place of employment, or child's school to urge that they replace hazardous chemicals with non-toxic methods of pest control if they have not already done so. After the City's widespread spraying to kill mosquitoes due to the appearance of West Nile Virus in 1999, public interest in pesticides and their effects greatly increased. In May 2000 the New York Attorney General's Office recommended establishing a Pesticide Management Board in New York City to collect information on all agencies' pesticide use as a first step to creating an intelligent plan to reduce their overall use. Advocates such as New York Public Interest Research Group also called for the Board, which would incorporate citizen participation, much like those in Buffalo and Albany. The Board would have given local officials and residents an opportunity for input into decisions relating to pesticide use, however the Board was not created. In April 2004, bills were introduced to the City Council to opt New York City into the Pesticide Neighbor Notification Law and to reduce pesticide use by New York City agencies. Among other things, the New York City Pesticide Reduction Law would require New York City agencies to stop using the most acutely toxic pesticides, to institute non-toxic pest control approaches wherever such alternatives are available, and to use least-toxic pesticides in all other cases. The bill would include emergency waivers for health purposes, and would require City agencies to post signs prior to any pesticide application. Finally, it would require City agencies to report annually to the City Council on their pesticide use, and would se up an inter-agency committee to share information and develop a plan for how agencies will reduce their pesticide use. Parties Involved: Advocates: New York Public Interest Research Group ,Environmental Defense, Environmental Advocates, New York Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides, West Harlem Environmental Action; Mount Sinai Center for Children's Health. Government: Environmental Protection Agency; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention State: Department of Environmental Conservation, Department of Health, NYS Attorney General; City: Department of Citywide Administrative Services, Board of Education. Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Department of Housing Preservation and Development, Poison Control Center.