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A Small Insect Causes a Big Stir
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A Small Insect Causes a Big Stir
By Supervisor Ellen Pirie
A little bug known as the Light Brown Apple Moth (LBAM) is causing quite a stir in Santa Cruz County and across California. The moth is an invasive insect that has found its way to California and set up headquarters in our county. Of the 10,000 moths caught in traps that are set out in order to figure out where the moths are, over 7,000 moths have been found in Santa Cruz County.
This moth can eat and live in over 2,000 plant species. The federal and state governments, as well as the governments of other states and countries, consider the Light Brown Apple Moth a very harmful insect. They will do everything possible to keep it out of their jurisdictions.
The most common way of keeping out insect pests is to prohibit the importation of plants from an infected area. Santa Cruz County farmers, and California farmers, could find their produce banned from other states and countries if the moth is not eradicated.
In an effort to ensure that agriculture is not dealt such a devastating blow, the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) is undertaking an aerial spraying program over Santa Cruz and Monterey counties.
CDFA is spraying an artificial "pheromone" product. It mimics the scent produced by a female moth. Normally the male moths find the female moths by following their pheromone scent. When the pheromone is everywhere, the male moths are confused and can't find the female moths to breed. Eventually the insects disappear since they are not reproducing.
First Spraying to Last Four Nights
The state's plan is to apply the pheromone spray over parts of Santa Cruz County. Spraying is scheduled to take place over a four night period beginning Nov. 4. The spraying would continue several times a year until 2010 or until no moths are found.
State officials say that while the pheromone products are classified as pesticides, they are nontoxic.
The use of pheromones for pest eradication is a safer alternative than insecticides (in fact, pheromones were a concept pioneered by the early environmentalists as an alternative to poisonous chemicals). But the state's failure to anticipate the public's questions and concerns, and have clear and complete answers, has resulted in a fearful and angry public.
First, there are lingering questions about the ingredients in CheckMate LBAM-F â€" the product which is to be sprayed over parts of our county.
Initially the product's manufacturer refused to release ingredients, claiming they were protected as a "trade secret." The federal Environmental Protection Agency added to the fear by stating that a potentially harmful chemical (polymethylene polyphenyl isocyanate or PPI) was an ingredient, and then corrected itself, saying it wasn't.
The manufacturer then stated that it was an in- gredient, but that it was only used as a starting material and was not present in the final product.
When Governor Schwarzenegger ordered a release of the ingredients in the product, PPI was not listed at all.
The Board of Supervisors believes that the public has a valid right to know the pheromone pesticide's ingredients. Nighttime aerial spraying of anything is creepy enough, but the belated release of information â€" and the misinformation â€" has created a climate of fear, distrust and confusion. Therefore, the Board of Supervisors has requested that the state provide a full and complete disclosure and evaluation of all of the pheromone pesticide's ingredients.
Emergency Declaration Allows State to Avoid First Preparing EIR
Under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), the state is required to determine any environmental impacts that could be caused by its moth eradication efforts. It is also required to publicly disclose those impacts and to consider the different alternatives to deal with the infestation.
The state, however, has claimed an emergency exemption under CEQA. The emergency exemption allows the state to begin the spraying without conducting environmental review and to prepare an Environmental Impact Report (EIR) after the aerial spraying has begun.
Because protecting public health is one of the basic functions of government, we have asked that the state expedite its preparation of the EIR for aerial spraying over urban areas. We also asked that the state fund a long-term study of the health effects resulting from the aerial spraying and that a monitoring program evaluate potential effects on the county's water resources.
The use of pheromone attractants usually involves the ground application of a male pheromone attractant in a device that looks like a twist tie. However, because of the large area of infestation and the topography, ground applications were deemed infeasible. Unfortunately, because the pheromone hasn't been sprayed over an urban population before, any ill effects of aerial application are unknown.
The Board believes that the twist tie application is a less invasive treatment that could be used in urban areas until it has been established that an aerial application is safe.
Unfortunately, the Board of Supervisors has no legal authority to prohibit or control the eradication effort by the state and federal governments. However, we do feel that our concerns and the concerns of our residents should be addressed. Many have urged our Board to take legal action, perhaps joining with the city of Santa Cruz in its lawsuit.
That option is still under consideration, but lawsuits challenging these actions have, so far, been unsuccessful. The Board is not interested in initiating litigation unless we believe it has some chance of success.
While it is true that the state's performance has been confusing and perhaps inadequate, thereby adding to public distrust of government, it is also true that the apple moth is a very serious threat to our environment and agriculture industry. We cannot afford to do nothing.
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