HUFFINGTON
07.22.12
CHEMISTRY LESSONS
profit Pesticide Action Network.
Mosquito districts in the state
are enlisting more toxic chemicals than they had in years past
for the control of West Nile Virus
due to concerns over pesticide
resistance in mosquitoes. Insects
that can withstand a spray are
more likely to spawn the next
generation of pests. And over
time, this survival of the fittest can render useless whatever
chemical concoction is employed.
Meanwhile, industrial agriculture may soon transition to a
genetically-modified corn resistant to two common pesticides,
Roundup and 2,4-D, in response
to growing resistance among
weeds. The result, advocates
fear, is the use of stronger doses
of the herbicides. Roundup has
been shown to disrupt human
hormones; 2,4-D was a component of Agent Orange.
Matt Liebman, of Iowa State
University, foresees weeds evolving resistance to the new variety
of corn within a few years. “Then
we’ll be on same treadmill that
we’ve been on,” he says.
“Carson was not arguing for
banning all pesticides,” notes
John Wargo of Yale University,
who spent six months going
through 117 boxes of Carson’s
personal files. “She was simply
arguing against the broad-scale
prophylactic application that
would lead to widespread contamination and exposure. Her
arguments follow a train of logic
and a narrative that would be
extremely useful today.”