Tomatoes at Ozone's Expense

EARTHKEEPING NEWS
A NEWSLETTER OF THE NORTH AMERICAN COALITION FOR CHRISTIANITY AND ECOLOGY

Volume Five, Number One
September/October 1995

Call to Action:

Must We Grow Tomatoes at Ozone's Expense?

The 104th Congress has stepped up its attack on Earth's life support systems. Congressman Dan Miller (R-FL) has introduced HR 2230 which would effectively strip away the ban on the use and importation of methyl bromide, scheduled to go into effect in 2001, as required by the Montreal Protocol.

HR 2230 shifts the regulatory authority of methyl bromide from the Environmental Protection Agency to the US Department of Agriculture, stating that it is: "A bill to make a regulatory correction concerning methyl bromide to meet the obligations of the Montreal Protocol without placing the farmers of the US at a competitive disadvantage versus foreign growers." [page 1]

According to the United Nation's Environment Programme's 1994 Report of the Methyl Bromide Technical Options Committee (MBTOC), "Article V [developing] countries currently use about 18 percent of the global production of methyl bromide for agricultural use. . . . Where methyl bromide is used for soil fumigation in Article V countries, it is principally for pest and disease control in production and export of certain high value cash crops (e.g. tobacco, cut flowers. . . )."

And further, "In many, but not all Article V countries, little or no methyl bromide is used for the production of food for in-country consumption. None is used for the production of staple foodstuffs."

In contrast, according to MBTOC, the US accounts for 40 percent of global use of methyl bromide for soil fumigation, particularly by commercial tomato and strawberry growers in Florida and California. It is a toxic chemical used to kill pests and weeds in the soil, in structures and on commodities. It is also fifty times more destructive of ozone, atom for atom, than Clorofluorocarbons (CFCs).

HOLY MANURE!

The work of restoring God's creation is like manure. Its message leaves an odor people don't like, but in its work, it conditions the soil to bring forth new and abundant life. (Analogy from a Russian pastor, used in a sermon by Rev. Rose Carol Taul, Chicago, 1995)

Methyl bromide is part of the delicate balance of chemical reactions in the stratosphere. Emissions from human use of methyl bromide, CFCs and other industrial chemicals skew this balance.The unusually high levels deplete the ozone layer. We are seeing ultraviolet damage from ozone depletion to humans, trees, frogs, plankton and other living systems in the US right now. Each percent of depletion has consequences.

Moreover, the UN has published a report stating that for more than 90 percent of the existing uses of methyl bromide there are either existing alternatives, or alternatives in an advanced state of development.

Four hundred scientists (including scientists from the methyl bromide industry) agree as to the importance of a 2001 global ban on methyl bromide. A world wide ban on production of methyl bromide would be the single greatest step we could take towards protecting the ozone layer. All projections for ozone layer recovery are based on full compliance.

Whether or not HR 2230 is an election year ploy, now is the time to write your own Congress person, with a copy to Representative Miller, expressing your concerns regarding our arrogant disregard of international agreements to protect the atmosphere.

Information from Ozone Action, 1621 Connecticut Ave NW, Washington, DC 20009.