Apple Pest Report: Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Vol. 15 No. 19
Apple maturity
Other news
1) There will be a special focus on Maine apples in the
Children’s area at the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association
(MOFGA) Common Ground Fair on September 22 and 23.
From the MOFGA website at http://www.mofga.org/TheFair/Areas/ChildrensAreaGardenParade/tabid/327/Default.aspx
“Maine Apple Adventures - The Maine Apple Tent (MAT) has ongoing
opportunities for children of all ages to learn about, taste, weigh, measure, cook
with and enjoy other activities and games relating to the life cycle, history
and nutritional benefits of Maine apples. Children in kindergarten through
grade 8 and their families are invited on Saturday and Sunday to investigate
one of Maine's most delicious and important orchard crops in a series of Fair
activities entitled Maine Apple Adventures. An "Apple Adventure
Passport" challenges children to explore other areas of the Fair, to learn
about the many types of Maine apples, how they're grown and how they benefit
human health. This program is sponsored by a generous grant from Tom's of
Maine.
The
Maine Apple Tent will be in the Children’s Area this year! Kids, please note that you can enter an apple pie
contest in the Exhibition Hall. For rules write to
cgcf@mofga.org.”
2) Great
Maine Apple Day will be held 10am to 3pm, October 30 at the MOFGA Common
Ground Education Center. For more
information see http://www.mofga.org/Programs/Events/GreatMaineAppleDay/tabid/294/Default.aspx
3) Progress made in identifying one possible cause
of honeybee Colony Collapse Disorder.
http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/nature/
4) A summary
of EPA regulations that apply to farm operations is available online. The summary contains links to web sites
that provide more complete information on each regulation (Worker Protection,
Pesticide Applicator Training, etc.)
The guide is current as of June 2007 and is available at http://www.epa.gov/agriculture/agmatrix.pdf
Of particular relevance to
apple growers is the information on Worker Protection Standards.
http://www.epa.gov/agriculture/twor.html#Who%20and%20What%20Are%20Covered?
http://www.epa.gov/agriculture/htc.html
Update on the Food Quality Protection
Act
The EPA guide
includes links to information about the Food Quality Protection Act
(FQPA). The FQPA required that all
registrations for pesticides used in food production be reconsidered for
continued registration. This caused
concern that pesticides important for apple production could be lost. That review is essentially
completed. The most significant
changes to apple pesticide registrations to arise from FQPA are:
a) Azinphosmethyl (e.g. Guthion) use on
apples will end in 2012, and the extension of REI to 14 days, and extension of
PHI to 30 days for Pick-Your-Own orchards.
A comprehensive survey found that in the 2004 growing season the most
extensive use for azinphosmethyl was by 34% of New England apple growers
against plum curculio. In addition
to Imidan, newer alternative materials with similar efficacy as azinphosmethyl
have emerged. These include Actara,
Assail, Avaunt, Calypso and several new pyrethroids.
b) Chlorpyrifos (Lorsban) is no longer
allowed for use on apple canopies after bloom. This is the best material for control of
roundheaded apple tree borer and other borer insects. Fortunately, prebloom use appears to
provide season-long borer control and the label does allow postbloom use for
trunk-only applications.
c) While not a direct result of FQPA,
two other significant apple pesticide regulatory changes have been the
reduction of the REI for captan fungicide products from 96 hours down to 24
hours; and removal of the requirement to treat storage of more than 10 pounds
of phosmet (active ingredient in Imidan) as a hazardous substance requiring
reports and safety plans to emergency management officials.
While all food-use pesticide
registrations have been reviewed, FQPA is ongoing. Pesticide registrations will be
reconsidered on a 15-year interval to account for evolving safety
standards.
The scientific
review of pesticide use on food crops has lessened dietary concerns and shifted
emphasis to worker protection needs.
For 2007, it seems that FQPA provides apple growers with a margin of
safety against the possibility of negative publicity surrounding dietary
concerns associated with use of registered pesticides.
Below are
excerpts from an EPA summary of the FQPA.
*********************************
With the 1996 enactment of the Food
Quality Protection Act (FQPA), Congress presented EPA with the enormous
challenge of implementing the most comprehensive and historic overhaul of the
Nation's pesticide and food safety laws in decades. The centerpiece of FQPA was
the requirement to complete within a decade the massive review and reassessment
of the tolerances (maximum permitted residues) for all food use pesticides. On
the tenth anniversary of FQPA enactment, we have completed over 99% of the
required tolerance reassessments, and we celebrate the cumulative public health
progress achieved by the thousands of individual protective actions taken under
this law. This degree of success for such an ambitious, controversial and
complex undertaking is unprecedented.
When it passed, the bill was noted as a "landmark bipartisan
agreement that will bring Federal regulation of the Nation's food producers
into the 21st century."
Over this 10-year period, EPA and its public and private sector partners
have met FQPA's challenge and achieved significant enhancements in public
health and environmental protection for the American people. This tremendous
accomplishment required persistence and commitment to the strategic FQPA
principles of sound, science-based decisions, open government, timely action,
and sensible public policy.
By successfully implementing the Food Quality Protection Act, EPA is
ensuring that all pesticides used on food in the United States meet FQPA's more
stringent safety standard. To carry out the pesticide regulatory program under
FQPA, EPA has used groundbreaking science and provided extensive opportunities
for public involvement, while maintaining a commitment to timeliness. As a
result, the Agency and its partners have upgraded the protective framework of
integrated programs and actions ensuring that safe and effective pesticides are
available to support production of one of the most abundant, affordable, and
healthy food supplies in the world and to safely meet America's other pest
control needs.
Sincerely,
Glen
Glen Koehler
Pest Management Office
491 College Avenue
Orono, ME 04473
Voice: 207-581-3882
Email: gkoehler@umext.maine.edu
Web: PRONewEngland.org
What we call the secret of
happiness is no more a secret than our willingness to choose life.
- Leo Buscaglia