TASK 5: PESTICIDE USE

The Almond PMA’s five years of successful reduced risk research and demonstration illustrate that almonds can be grown using a “soft” pest management program without additional damage to the crop.  According to Pesticide use reports accessed at the California Department of Pesticide Regulation website, http://www.cdpr.ca.gov/docs/pur/, pesticide use in California almonds continues in a general decline since a high in 1997 of 28.6 lbs/ac total pesticides.  During the five years of the Almond PMA (1999-2003), the California almond industry has reduced its annual use of pesticides by almost 3 million pounds, which is a 20% reduction in pounds applied/acre, showing a true commitment by the Almond industry, the University, and the almond growers.  It is likely that the PMA’s outreach and education efforts have had an impact, helping to decrease reliance on pesticides.

In previous years, Task 5 of the PMA has included an analysis of the Pesticide Use Reports, summarizing the use of organophosphates, carbamates, pyrethroids, and Bt on almonds, both statewide and in the counties with PMA sites, Butte, Kern, and Stanislaus.  This report will not include that information, as a much more detailed analysis will soon be directly available California DPR.  The following two reports, not yet released, include a much more detailed statistical analysis of the Pesticide Use Reports than the PMA is capable of.

1.      Dormant Season Organophosphate Use in California Almonds, by Minghua Zhang, Larry Wilhoit, and Chris Geiger

2.     Pest Management Assessment for Almonds:  Reduced-Risk Alternatives to Dormant Organophosphate Insecticides, Prepared by Bob Elliott, Larry Wilhoit, Madeline Brattesani, and Nan Gorder, January 2004