Pesticide News Updates
edited by Billie Karel
Pesticide
illness reporting in North Carolina may become mandatory.
February, 2006: The NC Commission for Health Services has
approved a new requirement that physicians report pesticide
illnesses and injuries to the NC Division of Public Health.
This important rule is the first step in implementing a
pesticide illness & injury surveillance program for
the state. Many citizens, pediatricians and other medical
professionals, farmworker advocates, and even the NC Pesticide
Board, voiced their support and helped make this happen.
The rule must now go through a formal review process before
final adoption.
Children’s
health study may be doomed.
February, 2006: The National Children's Study is in jeopardy
because it was not allotted any money in President Bush’s
FY 2007 budget. This program was ordered by Congress and
had the support of medical groups and the chemical industry.
It would have followed a cohort of children from before birth
to 21 years in order to study the effects of chemical pollutants
and environmental toxins on their development and well-being
(source: Charlotte Observer).
Chemical
mixtures are more toxic than their parts.
January, 2006: Researchers at UC Berkeley have found that
chemical mixtures, such as the soup of pesticides found in
agricultural run-off, can be vastly more toxic to humans
and wildlife than individual chemicals in isolation. This
has important implications for current methods of risk assessment,
which typically consider exposure to one chemical at a time.
The study appears in February’s issue of the journal
Environmental Health Perspectives.
Toxic
Free NC seeks pesticide-affected church members.
Spring, 2006: Toxic Free NC is looking to partner with churches
in North Carolina whose members may be affected by pesticide
contamination. Let’s work together on solutions that
build leadership and improve the health & well-being
of your community. Might your church be interested? Call
our program coordinator at (919) 833-1123 to find out more.
Toxic Free News is a publication of
Toxic Free North Carolina
115 South St. Mary's St., Suite D, Raleigh, NC 27603, (919) 833-5333,
Toll-free 1-877-NO-SPRAY http://www.toxicfreenc.org
Mission: Toxic Free NC advocates
for alternatives to toxic pesticides in North Carolina
by empowering people to make sound decisions about their
health and environment.
Staff: Communications
Associate: Alejandra Gómez; Program Coordinator:
Billie Karel; Executive Director: Fawn Pattison.
Board of Directors: Allen
Spalt, President; Katherine M. Shea, Vice President; Colleen
Boudreau, Treasurer; Jane Sharp MacRae, Secretary; Michelle
Nowlin; Annette Hiatt; Karl A. Macklin, Jr.; Omar Laínez;
Billie Rogers, Emeritus.
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