(Beyond Pesticides, July 1, 2025) Published in Water Research, a study highlights the various routes for pesticide contamination, with the results identifying the presence of over 80 substances in streams without adjacent agricultural land use. “Our findings underscore the necessity of further investigating the non-agricultural entry pathways of pesticides and biocides to effectively mitigate their impacts on streams in non-agricultural catchments,” the authors state. They continue, “These streams often serve as critical refuge habitats and sources of recolonization, making their protection essential for biodiversity conservation.” In analyzing nonagricultural streams, the researchers find pesticide contamination that, while lower than levels found in streams directly next to agricultural land, can occur through various routes and threatens biodiversity in essential ecosystems. As the authors describe: “Although pesticide concentrations were lower than in agricultural streams, the potential toxicity of pesticides was associated with a significant reduction in sensitive insect populations, as indicated by the SPEARpesticides index. Notably, 40% of the studied streams did not achieve a good status according to the pesticide specific SPEARpesticides indicator.” The SPEARpesticides indicator is used “to identify pesticide effects on the aquatic invertebrate community. It measures the abundance of pesticide-sensitive species (“species at risk”) in relation to the abundance […]

(Beyond Pesticides, June 24, 2025) As changes in the executive branch of the federal government upend expectations among environmental stakeholders, the regulation of food safety in the United States is being revealed as a rickety structure built over a century with unpredictable and sometimes contradictory additions, extensions, remodels, and tear-downs. In the short term, clarity is unavailable, but there have been calls for revision and strengthening of regulatory processes—requiring lawmaker and regulator willingness to incorporate the vast body of evidence that pesticides do far more harm than good, and that organic regenerative agriculture is the surest path to human and ecological health. News reports out of Costa Rica in May brought public attention to drafted legislation to ban pesticides in the country that the World Health Organization (WHO) has defined as “extremely or highly hazardous, or those with evidence of causing cancer, genetic mutations, or affecting reproduction, according to the Globally Harmonized System (GHS).” The headline sparked a relook in this Daily News at the current and historical failure of U.S. policy, which allows cancer-causing pesticides in food production and land management, despite the booming success of a cost-effective and productive, certified organic sector for which petrochemical pesticides are not […]

Image: Art Page submission from Sara Grantham, “Pollen Song.” (Beyond Pesticides, June 20, 2025) A study in Conservation Genetics, entitled “Organic farming fosters arthropod diversity of specific insect guilds – evidence from metabarcoding,” showcases the negative effect of chemical-intensive, conventional farm management on insect populations when compared to organically managed meadows. The researchers find that the diversity and biomass of flying insects are higher with organic land management by 11% and 75%, respectively. “We report a higher diversity on organic meadows in comparison with conventional ones, all over the diversity of flying insects and not only based solely on a few species-poor groups as in previous studies,” the authors state. They continue: “We found significant richness differences between management types and increased functionality on organic meadows. Our results imply the superiority of organic farming in comparison to conventional farming in the conservation of insect diversity.” The topic of insect biodiversity and the decline of insect populations over the last few decades, also referred to as the insect apocalypse, has been extensively covered by Beyond Pesticides. As previously reported in the Daily News, “Continued Decline in Insect Species Biodiversity with Agricultural Pesticide Use Documented,” insects provide many important services, such as […]

(Beyond Pesticides, June 18, 2025) A major artificial turf manufacturer’s effort to block a webinar about the hazards of synthetic turf has triggered a multi-million-dollar lawsuit against it. That suit, filed in Nassau County, New York, accuses the Polyloom Corporation of America of having engaged in an illegal Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (SLAPP) for trying to block the turf webinar by the non-profit Grassroots Environmental Education, featuring a presentation by a scientist from Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER).  The webinar, slated for January 23, 2025, entitled “The Trouble with Turf,” was intended to discuss potential adverse health risks of artificial turf, including the fact that most artificial grass blades contain toxic per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).  The session and material did not mention Polyloom Corporation, which self-describes as “one of the largest designers, producers, recyclers, manufacturers and installers of artificial turf in the United States.”  Three days before the webinar, Polyloom filed both a complaint and an application for a Temporary Restraining Order, preliminary injunction, and monetary damages against Grassroots, the webinar sponsor, and all the individuals slated to speak in it who were sued in their individual capacities.  Polyloom’s action was filed in the U.S. District Court for […]

***Featured Art Page submissions for National Pollinator Week, highlighted with the gratitude of Beyond Pesticides: Jesse from Livermore, CA: “Honeybee Pollinating Citrus Blossom”; Yumi from New York, NY: “Birds and the Bees”; Gretchen from Helena, MT: “Butterflies”; Janet from Concord, MA: “Beneath the Big Dipper”; and Trix from Petersburg, NY: “Downy Woodpecker.” (Beyond Pesticides, June 16, 2025) Every year, Beyond Pesticides announces National Pollinator Week to remind eaters of food, gardeners, farmers, communities (including park districts to school districts), civic organizations, responsible corporations, policy makers, and legislators that there are actions that can be taken that are transformative. All the opportunities for action to protect pollinators, and the ecosystems that are critical to their survival, can collectively be transformational in eliminating toxic pesticides that are major contributors to the collapse of biodiversity. This is why Beyond Pesticides starts most discussions and strategic actions for meaningful pollinator and biodiversity protection with the transition to practicing and supporting organic.  In launching National Pollinator Week, Beyond Pesticides makes suggestions for individual actions to increase efforts to think and act holistically to protect the environment that supports pollinators. The impact that people have starts with grocery store purchases and the management of gardens, parks, […]

(Beyond Pesticides, June 13, 2025) A report highlights the ongoing stress to the Chesapeake Bay Watershed from pollutants, particularly pesticides. The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the contiguous United States, with tributaries shared among six states and the District of Columbia. It receives runoff from nine major river systems traversing a wide mix of land uses, with significant agricultural and urban areas nearest the Bay and forest along the western boundary. Nearly 13 million people get their drinking water from the watershed. The watershed report by the Maryland Pesticide Education Network focuses primarily on the herbicide atrazine, the neonicotinoid insecticide thiamethoxam, and per- and polyfluorinated compounds (PFAS). Atrazine needs little introduction, being notorious for disrupting hormones, particularly estrogen, as demonstrated by the pioneering work of Tyrone Hayes and more recent research analyzed by Beyond Pesticides here, here and here. In male fish, it can trigger production of egg proteins, especially vitellogenin, and development of eggs in their testicles. These are manifestations of intersex, in which an organism shows forms of sexual differentiation of both sexes. The Chesapeake watershed report notes that atrazine and metolachlor (also an estrogen/androgen disruptor and suspected human carcinogen) occur together frequently in the Chesapeake […]

(Beyond Pesticides, June 11, 2025) Researchers developed a novel tool* in a recent study published in Nature Communications this year that successfully creates a map of the “pesticide-gut microbiota-metabolite network,” identifying “significant alterations in gut bacteria metabolism.” While the study authors acknowledge that this is not a complete map, since they selected specific pesticides and bacterial partners, the research adds to the body of peer-reviewed scientific literature that underscores the relationship between pesticide residues and human gut health. Organic farmers, as well as any land steward invested in agroecological practices and soil health, understand that microbial life (both in the body and in the soil) is dangerously undermined by the status quo of chemical-intensive land management. Background and Methodology The researchers leverage mass spectrometry to test metabolite (metabolomics) and lipid (lipidomics) relationships with pesticide residues, as well as an in vivo mouse model. *The map itself is a form of computational biology, which advocates have warned could be a false solution if not accompanied by other proven scientific methods. See here for analysis by the Natural Resources Defense Council on risks of unproven methods such as New Approach Methodologies [NAMs]. All major phylogenetic (“evolutionary relationships among biological entities”) groups are […]

(Beyond Pesticides, June 5, 2025) A study conducted in Pennsylvania and published in Environmental Entomology highlights threats to nontarget organisms from neonicotinoid insecticide exposure. Using species of ground beetles as an example, the study documents sublethal behavioral effects as well as decreased week-long survival. This research fills a notable gap in current research, with the authors explaining, “Predatory soil arthropods are under-represented in insecticide toxicity studies, severely limiting our understanding of how insecticides affect soil-invertebrate communities in agroecosystems.”   The researchers continue, “As a step toward addressing this issue, we conducted novel acute oral, topical, and soil-based toxicity assays on 9 ground beetle species (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in response to the neonicotinoid insecticides clothianidin, thiamethoxam, and imidacloprid.” The nine carabid beetle species, all common to agroecosystems in central Pennsylvania, were exposed to clothianidin, while additional assays with thiamethoxam and imidacloprid were conducted on the two most abundant species. A wide body of science exists that connects neonicotinoid exposure to health effects in a variety of nontarget organisms. Neonicotinoids, a class of neurotoxic insecticides, act as agonists of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, “persist under field conditions, and are water soluble, enabling them to translocate into plants and provide systemic protection of seedlings,” the […]

(Beyond Pesticides, May 22, 2025) A medical study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) finds that “living within 1 mile of a golf course was associated with 126% increased odds of developing PD [Parkinson’s Disease] compared with individuals living more than 6 miles away from a golf course.” While organic land management offers a simple solution, current pesticide restrictions do not address chronic neurological diseases such as Parkinson’s Disease, which are linked to pesticide exposure. It has become increasingly clear that viable and cost-effective land management practices, including for golf course management, are critical to the protection of community health. Yet, the federal regulatory agencies, including the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), do not conduct an alternative practices assessment as part of their review process to determine whether the risks are “reasonable” (statutory language) or the risk assessments accept an unnecessary hazard. The complexity of pesticide exposure, which includes mixtures of multiple chemicals and undisclosed hazardous “inert” ingredients, raises broad questions about the threats to public health as well as biodiversity. See a recent Action of the Week, FDA Must Establish Tolerances for Pesticides Used in Mixtures, to see […]

(Beyond Pesticides, May 19, 2025) The Trump administration has removed crucial protections established under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA), including those that protect birds from pesticide poisoning. The Migratory Bird Protection Act (MBPA), introduced in May by Rep. Jared Huffman (D-CA) and Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), will restore protections against an “incidental take.” Beyond Pesticides is calling for the protection of migratory birds and the restitution of funds to implement the law. This is not the first time that President Trump has reduced protection for migratory birds. In his first term (2017), the Department of the Interior issued a policy that relieved industries of the requirement to protect birds, and they will no longer be held accountable for bird deaths. In addition, the agency is expected to propose rules to make this policy change permanent. >> Tell your U.S. Representative to cosponsor the Migratory Bird Protection Act (H.R. 3188).  MBTA was passed in 1918 to protect migratory birds soon after the last Passenger Pigeon died in captivity, followed by the last Carolina Parakeet. MBTA originally resulted from the loss of birds due to a number of threats—notably at the time, the collection of bird feathers. It prohibits the take (including killing, […]

(Beyond Pesticides, May 15, 2025) The United Nations’ Conference of Parties (COP) for the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), originally adopted by 128 countries in 2001, voted to move the highly neurotoxic organophosphate insecticide chlorpyrifos, linked to brain damage in children, to Annex A (Elimination) with exemptions on a range of crops, control for ticks for cattle, and wood preservation, according to the POPs Review Committee. The exemptions drew criticism from groups seeking to eliminate chlorpyrifos without exemptions, as had been originally proposed. In the world of pesticide restrictions, this POPs classification marks a step forward in the international regulation of chlorpyrifos, as the U.S. sits on the sidelines. The long effort to ban this one hazardous pesticide, as important as the action is, serves as a reminder of the limitations of a whack-a-mole approach to chemical regulation of the thousands of toxic products poisoning people and the planet, filled with compromises to public health and the environment—while alternative practices and materials are available to meet productivity, profitability, and quality of life goals. According to Down to Earth, the 18 specific crop and use exemptions include the following: Barley (termites), Cabbage (diamondback moth), Cacao (cacao-mosquitoes and cacao pod […]

(Beyond Pesticides, May 8, 2025) A study, published in Environmental Pollutants and Bioavailability, assesses the impacts on Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) with subacute and chronic exposure to thiamethoxam, a neonicotinoid insecticide, and finds genotoxicity, oxidative stress, and changes in tissue structure, among other threats to organ function and overall fish health. “The study focused on biochemical markers, genetic damage, pesticide residue levels in fish flesh, and histopathological changes in fish exposed to different concentrations of thiamethoxam,” the authors state. The threats do not end there; human health is also at risk from the consumption of these contaminated fish. “Unfortunately, neonicotinoids, rapidly washed into surface water from agricultural areas, pose a significant threat to environmental water quality and can harm non-target species, particularly aquatic organisms,” the researchers state. The accumulation of these chemicals leads to “ultimately harming both aquatic ecosystems and human health,” they say. In particular, the study highlights that prolonged exposure to high doses of thiamethoxam can cause “significant negative effects on fish health,” the authors note. They continue: “This exposure led to increased levels of urea and ALT [alanine aminotransferase] in the blood, indicating potential damage to the kidneys and liver. Additionally, thiamethoxam caused oxidative stress, as evidenced […]

(Beyond Pesticides, May 6, 2025) A study in Ecology Letters finds “severe degradation of ecosystem functioning in the form of loss of organic matter consumption and dramatic shifts in primary productivity,” the researchers state, after performing an experiment with “36 naturally established freshwater ecosystems exposed to increasing field-realistic concentrations of the neonicotinoid thiacloprid.” Aquatic communities contribute to overall biodiversity and are crucial in maintaining healthy ecosystems; without them, the entire food web and vital ecosystem services, such as nutrient cycling, water filtration, and climate regulation, are threatened. As the authors reference, there is a current unprecedented decline in biodiversity that can be attributed to anthropogenic impacts. A multitude of studies connect pesticides, and more specifically neonicotinoid insecticides, to impacts on aquatic ecosystems. (See studies here and here.) “Since the community of organisms locally present is responsible for the functioning of the local ecosystems,” the researchers begin, “this begs the question: do neonicotinoid-induced shifts in community composition result in a degradation of ecosystem functioning?” Previous research finds that neonicotinoids can “impede several freshwater ecosystem processes such as organic matter (‘OM’) decomposition, primary production or biomass transfer to neighbouring ecosystems,” the authors say. (See studies here, here, and here.) They continue: “However, […]

* This article was cross-posted with permission from the Ecological Landscape Alliance, which was originally published on April 30, 2025. A link will be shared once it is made available. (Beyond Pesticides, May 2, 2025) With the current existential health, biodiversity, and climate threats, organic land management is a bright spot for the sustainable future envisioned by Beyond Pesticides. Founded in 1981, Beyond Pesticides began tracking the science of pesticide hazards and questioning dependency on toxic, fossil fuel-based pesticides as unnecessary to achieving effective land management, both in agricultural and nonagricultural contexts. The organization, which grew out of a series of site visits and field hearings to document the limitations of labor standards necessary to protect farmworkers, was created to bring together environmentalists, public health practitioners, farmers, land managers, farmworkers, and consumers.  Nearly a decade before its founding and less than 20 years after the publication of Silent Spring, many important laws governing clean air, water, food safety, and pesticides had been adopted. However, these statutes’ focus on mitigating risks of harm to health and the environment has fallen short, according to Beyond Pesticides. Instead, the organization pursues a precautionary approach that is codified in organic standards that grow out of […]

(Beyond Pesticides, May 1, 2025) Pesticides by themselves are a grave threat to global health. As is global warming. As is antibiotic resistance. Each of these problems has to be analyzed in its own silo to reveal the mechanisms driving its dynamics. But eventually, it must be acknowledged that they actually converge. A common soil arthropod has clearly illustrated how this convergence creates synergistic effects: warming increases pesticide toxicity; pesticide toxicity triggers antibiotic resistance; antibiotic resistance spreads through horizontal gene transfer (movement through the environment to people) and predation. The consequences, not yet fully understood, are nevertheless emerging from accumulating research. A study published in the Journal of Hazardous Materials by scientists at six Chinese universities and research centers examines the convergence in springtails (Folsomia candida)—tiny insect-like animals that live in soils worldwide and are commonly used as laboratory subjects. The researchers exposed springtails to the neonicotinoid insecticide imidacloprid at three concentrations and three temperatures. In addition to measuring the springtails’ direct mortality, the researchers also investigated the microbes in the animals’ guts, checking for expression of genes involved in antibiotic resistance. The evidence is unequivocal: imidacloprid exposure at a soil temperature consistent with current and expected warming (30°C, or […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 25, 2025) A novel study in Chemosphere finds impacts on male fertility in a bee species (Osmia bicornis) with exposure to sulfoxaflor, a systemic sulfoximine insecticide with similar mechanisms to neonicotinoids. “For the first time, we demonstrate that short-term chronic, field-realistic exposure to a common pesticide reduced pre-copulatory display (36%) and sounds (27%) [courtship behaviors], increased the number of copulations (+110%) and the mating duration (+166%), while finally reducing sperm quantity (25%) and mating success (43%),” the researchers report. They continue, “Our research raises considerable concern on the impact of field-realistic, low sublethal pesticide levels on the fertility and reproductive success of pollinators.” Mating behaviors and the ability to successfully reproduce determines the survival of species. As the authors state: “Mating disorders may therefore contribute to the recent decline in insect and pollinators’ health worldwide. While the impact of pesticides on pollinators is widely considered as a driving factor for reducing pollinators’ health, their effect on mating behaviour and male fertility remains widely overlooked.” The red mason bee (O. bicornis) can “provide essential pollination service for both crops and wild plants sustaining food production and biodiversity while serving as a bioindicator of environmental health.” The abundance and […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 17, 2025) A literature review in Reproductive Sciences finds glyphosate (GLY) and glyphosate-based herbicides (GBH) impact women’s reproductive health, adding to the long list of documented harm from this widely used weed killer. The authors note, “Considering the widespread use of GLY, the controversy regarding its endocrine-disrupting potential and reproductive toxicity, and the innumerable lawsuits filed against Bayer and Monsanto by consumers for morbidities related to Roundup™ exposure, the purpose of this review is to summarize the current literature on the potential adverse effects of GLY and GBHs on the female reproductive tract and discuss possible clinical implications on reproductive health outcomes, including polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), endometriosis, and female fertility.”  Glyphosate and aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA), the primary metabolite (breakdown product) of GLY, are found throughout the environment in soil and water, as well as in samples of blood, urine, seminal plasma, and breast milk. Studies have detected residues in farmworkers, as well as “in the urine of 60–80% of the general public in the USA, including pregnant women and children.” (See studies here, here, and here.) The ubiquitous use of GLY and GBH, and subsequent persistence, threatens the health and well-being of all.  Previous studies have […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 15, 2025) A study in Communications Earth & Environment, through field, greenhouse, and laboratory experiments involving three plant bug species, finds both species-specific and sex-specific sensitivity responses to neonicotinoid insecticide exposure—highlighting the threats to grassland insect communities that are disregarded in risk assessments. By assessing the effects of Mospilan®SG, with the active ingredient acetamiprid, the researchers determine that nontarget plant bug species are highly sensitive to neonicotinoids and face community-level harm with exposure. As systemic insecticides, neonicotinoids move through the vascular system of plants, expressing the poison through pollen, nectar, and guttation droplets. As persistent pesticides, these chemicals indiscriminately poison insects and organisms in the soil. “Although pesticides have been proposed as one of the main causes of insect decline, there are still few studies assessing their effects on non-target species under field conditions,” the authors state. They continue: “In this study, we address the existing research gap on insecticide exposure of non-target herbivorous insects, focusing on two main aspects: (1) realistic exposure scenarios, (2) community-level effects, i.e., differential sensitivity between closely related species and between sexes of the same species. We chose plant bugs (Heteroptera: Miridae) as a model group because they are one of the […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 9, 2025) On March 12, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin announced the agency would be shutting down the Environmental Justice and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) offices and staff at ten of the regional offices and the headquarters in Washington, D.C. Administrator Zeldin declared that this move implemented President Donald Trump’s Executive Order, “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing.” In response to this decision, ten Democratic U.S. Senators—led by Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) and including Senators Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Edward J. Markey (D-MA), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Bernie Sanders (I-VT), Adam Schiff (D-CA), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Ron Wyden (D-OR)—co-sponsored the Empowering and Enforcing Environmental Justice Act of 2025 to Congress that would codify funding for environmental justice offices in the Department of Justice. (See Sen. Padilla’s press release here.) Senators Duckworth and Booker—founding co-chairs of the Senate Environmental Justice Caucus—also issued the following statement: “Underserved communities in rural, urban and tribal areas already shoulder the brunt of the climate crisis and environmental injustice. These cuts and reversals will make it even harder for these communities to address some of […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 8, 2025) A comprehensive literature review in Environment & Health analyzes evidence from human biomonitoring, epidemiological studies, and toxicological studies that link adverse effects on women’s reproductive health, specifically impacting the ovary, to pesticide exposure. In examining the scientific literature, consisting of over 200 studies performed in the last 25 years, the authors find pesticide exposure threatens women’s health through ovarian dysfunction. “Epidemiological studies have shown that pesticide exposures are associated with early/delayed menarche [first occurrence of menstruation], menstrual cycle disorders, early menopause, long time to pregnancy, polycystic ovary syndrome, primary ovarian insufficiency, infertility, and implantation failure in women,” the researchers state. They continue, “Both in vivo [in animals] and in vitro [in cells] studies have shown that exposure to pesticides disrupts the estrous cycle, reduces the follicle pool, alters hormone levels, and impairs oocyte [egg] maturation.” These reproductive implications are noted with many different classes of pesticides, such as insecticides, including organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), organophosphates (OPs), pyrethroids, and neonicotinoids, as well as herbicides and fungicides. The authors, however, comment on present research gaps: “Much of the available epidemiological evidence focuses on legacy insecticides, such as OCPs, and a subset of insecticides that are still in use […]

(Beyond Pesticides, April 2, 2025) In examining prenatal residential proximity of documented pesticide spraying in California to the menstrual cycle characteristics of 273 Latina adolescents, researchers report in the American Journal of Epidemiology a positive association between exposure to the insecticide methomyl and heavy bleeding. Other pesticides appear to influence menstrual symptoms as well. “Adolescents’ menstrual cycle characteristics can be ‘vital signs’ of health and impact quality of life,” the authors share. They continue, “To our knowledge, this is the first study to examine the association between prenatal pesticide exposure and menstrual outcomes in adolescents of any demographic group.” Menstrual cycle characteristics, such as dysmenorrhea (painful or uncomfortable menstrual cramps), irregularity, and heavy menstrual bleeding, can also be indicators of underlying health conditions, including endometriosis, polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), thyroid dysfunction, and bleeding disorders. By associating the pesticide exposure of mothers during pregnancy to impacts on their children, the researchers highlight important health risks for women and young girls that are often disregarded. “The prenatal period is a critical period of reproductive development that may be particularly sensitive to endocrine disruption,” the researchers share. As previously reported by Beyond Pesticides, endocrine-disrupting chemicals are any synthetic or natural compounds that hinder […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 31, 2025) This week, Beyond Pesticides is urging the public to contact their Governor and local officials to respond to a new report on the serious decline of bird populations by eliminating the use of toxic pesticides in the management of state and local public property. The latest study on bird declines is the 2025 edition of the State of the Birds report, written by scientists in the U.S. Committee of the North American Bird Conservation Initiative (NABCI), a forum of government agencies, private organizations, and bird initiatives. The study finds “[s]obering evidence that America’s birds continue to decline across the board.” Furthermore, the report says: “Birds are telling us that the habitats people depend on are vanishing. Declines are happening across the board: in grasslands, aridlands, western and eastern forests, in Hawaii’s fragile ecosystems; and with our shorebirds and seabirds. Even waterfowl, which had rebounded strongly thanks to decades of conservation work, are seeing sharp recent declines.”  >> Tell your governor and mayor to protect birds by adopting policies that support organic land management.  Not only are bird species important for preserving biodiversity, but many species provide ecosystem services such as pollination and mosquito management. The protection of birds and their habitats allows […]

(Beyond Pesticides, March 28, 2025) The Rhine Valley in southwestern Germany is renowned for the agricultural bounty it has provided for centuries. Today, the area is home to dense wine, vegetable, fruit, and cereal cultivation. However, a study shows that current regulation of pesticides, even in the relatively progressive European Union, is inadequate to protect humans and all the other organisms that produce the environment necessary for human life and civilization.  The study goal was to determine how far—and which—pesticides traveled beyond the croplands of vegetables, fruit orchards, and cereals, as well forested lands, into nontarget areas that should serve as refugia for plants, animals, and invertebrates not considered pests. Based at the Landau Institute for Environmental Sciences at the University of Kaiserslautern-Landau, the researchers used innovative methods to measure the types, concentrations, and distribution of pesticides. They took samples from three landscape categories—vegetation, topsoil, and surface water—at 78 sites distributed along six transects, each reaching from the valley floor to the tops of the mountains on either side. Samples were taken from grasses, shrub leaves, and topsoils along each transect, together with water samples from rivers, small streams, ponds, and puddles. They tested for 93 current-use pesticides (CUPs). There […]