APPENDIX II-Z: Innume System Compromised by Pesticides-Miami-Cunningham.
The following information with references to peer reviewed articles via internet links comes from:
PROPAGANDA AND TRUTH IN
MYTH #1: PESTICIDES POSE NO THREAT TO PEOPLE
Here is What We are Told:
The
sprays used to control mosquitoes in
Here is the Truth
A. Permethrin (Trade name Biomist) - used for ground spraying from trucks. Permethrin is in a class of pesticides called "pyrethroids." It is a neurotoxin.
Effects of Permethrin
on the Endocrine System
Studies done at Mount
Sinai School of Medicine in New York and Brown
University indicate pyrethroids disrupt the
endocrine system by mimicking the effects of the female hormone estrogen. This
in turn can cause breast cancer in women and lowered sperm counts in men.
Researchers at
Permethrin and Parkinson's Disease
Studies done at the Virginia
Polytechnic Institute indicate that, even at low doses, exposure to permethrin may increase the risk of Parkinson's Disease.
They found that permethrin caused a reduction in
levels of an important neurotransmitter chemical called dopamine. Parkinson's
is believed to be caused by a deficiency of dopamine. Another recent study at
the Harvard
School of Public Health examined possible links between chronic, low-dose
exposure to pesticides (including permethrin and
other pesticides) and Parkinson's. Researchers found that individuals
reporting exposure to pesticides had a 70 percent higher incidence of
Parkinson's than those not reporting exposure.
Yet in spite of the dangers, Miami-Dade Mosquito Control sprayed
310,000 acres in
B. Naled (trade name Dibrom) – used for aerial spraying. Naled is readily absorbed into the bloodstream through the skin and lung and intestinal tissue. Naled causes cholinesterase inhibition in humans; that is, it can over stimulate the nervous system causing nausea, dizziness, confusion, and at very high exposures, respiratory paralysis and death.
Yet in spite of these dangers, Miami-Dade
Mosquito Control sprayed 675,000 acres in
MYTH #2: THERE IS NO DAMAGE TO THE ENVIRONMENT
Here is What We are
Told:
Citizens can be reassured that when
Here is the Truth:
There are many beneficial insects and other animals active at twilight and
early evening when the trucks and airplanes are spraying. There is even a term
for animals that are active at dusk and dawn: crepuscular. For example, bats
and moths and fireflies are crepuscular. There are 80 species of crickets in
But
animals don’t have to be active to be affected by the spray. Since insecticides
land on the foliage, they also kill feeding larvae and resting insects such as
butterflies. Dr. Karen Oberhauser, an entomologist at the
Mosquito spraying has also devastated the critically imperiled species of
butterfly native to
. .
Myth #3: SPRAYING PROTECTS FROM DISEASE
Here is What We are Told:
We must spray to protect Miami-Dade citizens from deadly tropical diseases
borne by mosquitoes like Eastern Equine
Encephalitis and West Nile Virus.
Here is the Truth:
A report in the Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association found that
application
of Naled may actually increase the incidence of
Eastern Equine Encephalitis. In this study, researchers at the New
York Department of Health showed that 11 years of naled
spraying was "successful in achieving short term reductions in mosquito
abundance," but populations of the mosquito that was the primary cause
of Eastern Equine Encephalitis (called C. melanura),
"increased 15-fold" over the 11 years of spraying. The authors
conclude: "The possibility that applications of naled
contributed to increased populations of C. melanura
discredits the rationale that preventive applications of naled
reduce the risk of EEE."
In another study 7 communities which spray pesticides as a regular part of
their mosquito control program and 7 communities which do not were compared. No differences were found
in the incidence of West Nile Virus. Communities that sprayed had no lower
incidence of West Nile Virus than communities that did not spray.
Another study led by the Harvard School of Public Health found that spraying
does not reduce the transmission of West Nile Virus. In this study, they
used the same method of application that is used in
In general West Nile Virus is a mild disease. It only becomes serious
encephalitis if the virus can cross the blood-brain barrier (the blood-brain
barrier prevents passage of substances from the bloodstream into the brain).
Among the agents that impair the blood-brain barrier in young rats are pyrethroids like permethrin and
organophosphates like naled. Thus, insecticide
spraying has the potential to worsen the process of West Nile Virus infection.
CHOOSING NOT TO SPRAY
Many communities have chosen to stop spraying altogether. For example,
the City of Fort Worth, Texas discontinued their spraying program in 1991 and
has not sprayed since. Here's what the Fort
Worth Department of Public Health says about spraying::
“…spraying will not eliminate the threat of mosquito-borne illnesses. The
potential inhalation hazard to the general population does not seem worth the
risk of killing a few mosquitoes."
Washington D. C. also has stopped mosquito spraying. The District of Columbia Dept of Health states: "The District does not expect to spray for mosquitoes because of low efficacy, kills off non-target species, and potential risks to a high population of persons effected by respiratory problems and a compromised immune system."
"MOSQUITO CONTROL" IS AN ILLUSION
Mosquitoes are an inevitable part of the ecology in Miami-Dade. We
cannot control mosquitoes in
When we see large mosquito trucks coming around the corner, we believe that they bring relief. However, as soon as the wind once again blows out of the west, the mosquitoes are back in full force. Sadly, the butterflies, crickets, and fireflies that have been eradicated by the spray won’t be replaced by the next westerly wind. They are gone forever. To achieve this level of destruction is not cheap: Miami-Dade County Mosquito Control has a budget of 3.6 million dollars for fiscal year 2006-2007.
We welcome your feedback. Please contact us if you have been harmed in any
way by mosquito spraying in