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Prevalence of Pesticide Use

  • 1.5 x 109 lbs of pesticide are used annually.
  • There are 600 basic pesticides with 50,000 different formulations.
  • Since 1970 (Silent Spring, EPA), pesticide use has more than doubled.
  • 420 species of insect have developed a resistance to various pesticides.
Historical Usage of Pesticides
  • 1000 B.C. - Sulfur used in China as a fumigant (still used heavily in California)
  • 1690 - Tobacco leaves are used as an insecticide. Strychnine is used as a rodenticide. Fish oil & vinegar is used an an insecticide (weakens insect cuticle).
  • 1800s - Rotenone and Pyrethrum, Arsenic Trioxide (dandelions)
  • 1930s - Modern Era
Increasing pesticide production in the United States.

(Chiras, Daniel D. Environmental Science, 1994, p. 434)

Fate of pesticides in the environment.

(Jones, Julie Miller. Food Safety, 1995, p. 353)

Pesticide sprayed from planes contaminates the ecosystem because most of the pesticide drifts away.

(Chiras, Daniel D. Environmental Science, 1994, p. 436)

Possible costs to include in the cost of using pesticides in the United States.

(Jones, Julie Miller. Food Safety, 1995, p. 357)
 

© 2005 Center for Environmental Health