SACRAMENTO -- Cal/EPA's Department of Pesticide Regulation today announced Pest Management Alliance grants worth a total of more than $600,000 to fund seven large-scale agricultural projects aimed at reducing pesticide risks.
One Alliance grant will help the strawberry industry research alternatives to methyl bromide, a highly toxic fumigant. Other grants will support food safety measures in the poultry industry; seek less-toxic pest solutions for lettuce and pear growers, and look for ways to prevent pesticide runoff from orchards into surface and ground water.
"We expect these Alliance projects to generate new ideas thatcan reduce pesticide risks across segments of the agricultural industry and across the state," said DPR Chief Deputy Director Jean-Mari Peltier, "and our Alliance participants have strong incentives to make their projects a success."
"First, they have agreed to match DPR grants dollar-for-dollar with funding from their own commodity organizations," said Peltier. "Second, all of these projects focus on pest management issues of critical importance to their respective industries, and to agriculture in general."
DPR selected the seven agricultural grant recipients -- plus aproject devoted to schools -- from among 20 Alliance participants chosen in April. To guide its grant selections, DPR provided more than $76,000 to help Alliance participants evaluate their current pest management practices, then submit individual proposals for innovative, reduced-risk projects.
Agricultural Alliance grant recipients are:
The California Strawberry Commission, based in Watsonville, to evaluate pest management for strawberries in the absence of methyl bromide ($93,458).
The Walnut Marketing Board, based in Sacramento, to develop reduced-risk pest control and reduce or eliminate surface and ground water contamination ($100,000).
The California Prune Board, based in Fresno, to expand and strengthen existing reduced risk management strategies and improve communication and cooperation among different segments of the industry ($50,000).
The Almond Board of California, based in Modesto, to promote a reduced-risk system of almond production through use of alternative products and practices, actual on-site demonstrations, and grower education ($99,000).
The California Lettuce Research Board, based in Salinas, to implement pesticide risk-reduction strategies for two critical pest management problems involving iceberg and leaf lettuce ($58,000).
Agrilynx Corporation, based in San Diego, to demonstrate, evaluate and implement integrated pest management and find alternative disinfectants in poultry production ($99,597, in cooperation with theCalifornia Poultry Industry Federation.)
The California Pear Advisory Board, based in Sacramento, to establish a pheromone-based insect management project with new growers in Lake, Mendocino, El Dorado, and Sacramento counties ($100,000).
In addition to the agricultural projects, DPR awarded a $77,000 Alliance grant to develop pesticide solutions and resources for school district administrators. The project will be administered by the Self-Insured Schools of California on behalf to the California Association of School Safety Managers. The project will produce a guide for reduced-risk IPM programs in schools; a training curriculum for administrators, staff, and school workers; a record-keeping system on pesticide use; and a pest management education video for parents and community groups.
This year, DPR has awarded a total of about $1.5 million from the Pest Management Alliance and other programs devoted to reducing pesticide risks to benefit people and the environment.
--end release--
ALLIANCE GRANT RECIPIENTS
The California Strawberry Commission, based in Watsonville, to evaluate pest management for strawberries in the absence of methyl bromide ($93,458).
California produces 80 percent of the nation's strawberry crop,worth an estimated $580 million annually. However, many strawberry growers rely on methyl bromide to kill soilborne pests before planting, and the highly toxic fumigant is due for phaseout under the federal Clean Air Act beginning in 2001. The Alliance grant will allow researchers to study several pre-planting pest management alternatives, including solarization (heating the soil with a plastic tarp), crop rotation, organic composting and mulches, and reduced-risk fumigation methods. Strawberry Commission contact: Teresa Thorne, 408-724-1301.)
The Walnut Marketing Board, Sacramento, to develop reduced-risk pest control and reduce or eliminate surface and ground water contamination ($100,000).California produces more than one-third of the world walnut supply, worth an estimated $313 million. Faced with potentially devastating insect and disease pests, walnut growers have used organophosphate pesticides. However, that strategy is threatened by pest resistance and requirements of the 1996 Food Quality Protection
Act (FQPA). Using its Alliance grant, the walnut board plans to demonstrate full-scale, reduced-risk techniques on the farm and encourage grower support, in cooperation with the University of California, Davis. These reduced-risk techniques -- which include use of *good bugs* and pest monitoring -- may also diminish or eliminate pesticide runoff into waterways. (U.C. Davis contact: Dave Ramos, 530-756-0531.)
The California Prune Board, based in Fresno, to expand and strengthen existing reduced-risk pest management strategies and improve communication and cooperation among different segments of the industry ($50,000).
Virtually all of the nation's prunes are grown in California. With approximately 1,400 growers and 81,000 bearing acres, California growers produce almost 70 percent of the world's dried prunes.Innovative growers have significantly reduced their use of organophosphate insecticides, switching to low-toxicity materials such as oil, potassium nitrate, Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), and the use of beneficial insects. Growers have also planted cover crops or established strips of vegetation to help keep pesticides, including weed killers, within their orchards. The Alliance project will encourage widespread adoption of these techniques while seeking alternatives to organophosphate insecticides, fungicides, nematicides and herbicides. The project also seeks to reduce or eliminate surface water contamination from insecticides used in dormant sprays. (Prune Board contact: Rich Peterson, 925-734-0150.)
The Almond Board of California, based in Modesto, topromote a reduced- risk system of almond production through use of alternative products and practices, actual on-site demonstrations, and grower education ($99,000).
By the year 2000, California is projected to produce one billion pounds of almonds annually on about 500,000 acres. Many of California's 6,000 almond growers rely on pesticides, but they also understand public concern about pesticide use. The Biologically Integrated Orchard System (BIOS) group and the University of California have shown how almond growers can effectively reduce their use of conventional pesticides with IPM techniques. BIOS growers have successfully reduced or eliminated dormant organophosphate sprays for peach twig borer with Bt. This bacteria selectively targets peach twig borer and navel orange worm. BIOS growers are also releasing tiny, parasitic wasps to kill the peach twig borer. If widely adopted, such practices could help reduce pesticide runoff into the Sacramento and San Joaquin watersheds. The Alliance almond project will encourage industry-wide adoption of reduced-risk pest management techniques. (Almond Board contact: Heidi Savage, 209-549-8262.)
The California Lettuce Research Board, based in Salinas,
to implement pesticide risk-reduction strategies for two critical
pest management problems involving iceberg and leaf lettuce
($58,000).
Lettuce is a year-round crop in California, grown in four major
regions with a total of more than 140,000 acres in production. Many
growers face two critical pests: downy mildew and leafminer, a type of
fly. This Alliance project seeks to share information on successful,
reduced-risk pest management practices among lettuce growers
statewide. For example, the project will seek to adapt downy mildew
pest management practices from the central coast to the desert region.
Another goal is to manage leafminer resistance to certain insecticides,
and to create a stable pest management system. (Lettuce Board contact:
Ed Kurtz, 408-424-3782.)
Agrilynx Corporation, based in San Diego, to
demonstrate, evaluate, and implement integrated pest
management and find alternative disinfectants in poultry
production ($99,597, in cooperation with the California Poultry
Industry Association).
Poultry is the tenth largest agricultural industry in California,
generating $679 million in cash receipts. Working in cooperation with
various poultry producers and industry groups, Agrilynx will demonstrate
cost-effective alternatives for formaldehyde, used to disinfect poultry
houses. About one million pounds of the disinfectant is used annually by
poultry meat producers. Foam application techniques, new to the poultry
industry but more common in the food processing industry, will be
demonstrated. Another task of this project is to demonstrate the use of
innovative fly control methods, including biological control, reducing the
need for organophosphate insecticides. Educational materials on existing
IPM systems for poultry will also be produced. (Agrilynx contact: Leslie
Hickle, 619-482-1243.)
The California Pear Advisory Board, based in Sacramento,
to establish a pheromone-based insect management project
with new growers in Lake, Mendocino, El Dorado, and
Sacramento counties ($100,000).
California pear growers produce approximately 300,000 tons on
less than 20,000 acres. The codling moth is a critical pear pest. Pear
growers face the loss of a key insecticide because of pest resistance
and DPR guidelines for worker safety. A relatively new method to control
codling moth involves use of pheromones, or scents that disrupt mating.
This biological control tool has been successfully used by a small group
of growers. However, the method has drawbacks and leads to damage
from other pests. The Alliance project seeks to develop a combination of
pheromones, insect growth regulators, and conventional chemicals to
manage pear pests, reduce codling moth resistance to pesticides, and
protect beneficial organisms in an environmentally safe manner. (Pear
Board contact: Chris Zanobini, 916-441-0432.)
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