A New Pesticide Safety Dawn

Practising Hindus believe that the fourth day of the bright phase of the moon during the indigenous month of Bhadra is exceptionally auspicious. That is why, with the approval of all my friends, whether Hindu or of other systems of faith or ideology, I invoke the obstacle-dissolving blessings of beloved Lord Ganesha, in my new pesticide safety endeavor.

All stakeholders support pesticide safety. I welcome everyone's invaluable contributions to make my humble contribution to this universal task successful. You can post below, or send mail to sochiye.pesticidesafety@gmail.com at any time. You need not disclose your identity. All legal comments, especially most critical ones, are welcome.

My focus is on agricultural laborers who are most in danger of exposures above NOELs. I want to follow the lead of the United States, and use this cadre to create a force for positive change in pesticide safety and pest management standards.

Here are the five principal planks of my new pesticide safety strategy:

1. Provide professional spray operators with protective clothing and aids, remote-controlled and drift-resistant application equipment, IPM knowledge resources, and beneficial insect rearing facilities.

2. Spread the good word about Universal Health Insurance, and provide recorded annual health-appraisal facilities.

3. Campaign against the abuse of pesticides with systemic potentials, so that honeybees, other pollinators, and humans are saved from insidious toxicity.

4. Support the development of new pesticide formulations that eliminate ingredients with untested carcinogenic potentials, that waste precious water resources. and which contribute to destruction of the ozone layer of Mother Earth.

5. Prevail upon the powerful pesticide industry lobby to adopt a life-cycle approach to their enterprises, ensuring clean-up and remediation following use of their molecules.

Now it is your turn.