BREAKING EPA to Approve Dow's New GMOs Crops - Take a Stand! | Food Democracy Now. A copy of this petition will be delivered to the White House: Docket No. EPA-HQ-OPP-2014-0195-0427 Dear President Obama, I urge you to step in and stop Dow Chemical’s 2,4-D resistant genetically engineered (GE) corn and soybeans, and the toxic herbicide mixture they rely on, Enlist Duo. USDA approved these risky crops last month despite half a million public comments, letters from scientists and health care professionals, and even a letter from 60 members of Congress in opposition.
EPA is about to follow suit and approve Dow’s new 2,4-D-glyphosate herbicide mix intended for use on these GE crops. If you allow EPA to approve this herbicide mix, tens of millions of pounds more 2,4-D will be sprayed on these new crops. 2,4-D would contaminate our food, water and atmosphere. I urge you to stop the approval of Enlist Duo herbicide and reverse USDA’s approval of 2,4-D-resistant corn and soybeans.
Sincerely, [Your Name] Stop New GMO ‘Agent Orange’ Crops! Bees Don’t Like Agent Orange Crops, Either. The dirt on the “Agent Orange” GMOs you’ve been hearing so much about. On Friday, the USDA recommended the approval of new, herbicide-resistant, genetically engineered corn and soybeans. A lot of the journalism covering this news focused on concerns that it would be an environmental catastrophe, and dwelled on the ominous-sounding fact that the herbicide in question, 2,4-D, was an ingredient in the Vietnam War defoliant Agent Orange. Here’s what you should know about this news: What really happened?
Not that much actually. So, environmental catastrophe? It’s more like a tradeoff. Is this going to lead to more herbicide-resistant weeds? Unclear. 2,4-D-resistant weeds are already out there. Was 2,4-D really in Agent Orange? Yup. Takeaway? We’ve got to figure out a better way of doing conservation tillage rather than just relying on more and more herbicides. The Dirt on 'Agent Orange' GMOs. Last week, news broke that the USDA is recommending the approval of new, herbicide-resistant, genetically engineered corn and soybeans, sometimes referred to as “Agent Orange” GMOs. Here’s what you need to know: Right after the announcement, concerns sprung up that this new GMO would be “an environmental catastrophe,” since the herbicide, 2,4-D, was an ingredient in the Vietnam War defoliant Agent Orange.
The USDA issued its initial draft of its environmental impact statement on the corn and soybeans (engineered by Dow AgroSciences and branded under the name Enlist), while the Environmental Protection Agency is working to decide on the environmental effects of the new herbicide, Enlist Duo. So, there’s still a chance that a pin could get put in the whole operation. So what’s really at stake? Many are wondering if an approval will mean that more and more of these types of GMOs are released. The fact remains that while 2,4-D was in Agent Orange, it wasn’t the really nasty stuff. Chemical Time Bomb - Four Corners. In the 1980s and 1990s governments across Australia outlawed the use of the herbicide 245T. The ban was introduced for one very good reason - 245T contains dioxin, a chemical impurity with the potential to seriously harm people who are exposed to it.
Four Corners reveals evidence that this potentially deadly chemical compound may still be present in weed control products and that authorities do not routinely test for it. The program also reveals that this hands-off approach to regulation is entirely in keeping with the way governments have dealt with the lethal chemical dioxin over four decades. Weeds are a scourge on country life, costing landowners up to $4 billion a year. In the 1960s and 70s the solution used in weed eradication often involved the spraying of herbicides 245T and 24D. Both substances contained dioxin. Four Corners reveals the full extent of the problems caused by the chemicals. 'CHEMICAL TIME BOMB' - Monday 22 July 2013 KERRY O'BRIEN: Twenty years ago it was banned.
Agent Orange. Legacy of Death and Deformity. Sign the Petition to Tom Vilsack, Secretary, United States Department of Agriculture · Stop New GMO ‘Agent Orange’ Crops! Remember Agent Orange? The 2,4-D chemical concoction commissioned by the U.S. Army to defoliate jungles and destroy food crops during the Vietnam War? U.S. corn and soybean farmers could soon be using more of this toxic herbicide than ever before. Unless we convince the U.S. Please sign our petition to the USDA asking them to reject "Agent Orange" crops!
A large body of evidence indicates major health problems result from exposure to 2,4-D, including cancer, reproductive problems, neurotoxicity and auto-immune disorders. The USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) concedes that Dow's new 2,4-D-resistant crops could speed up the evolution of new "superweeds" which would ultimately require even heavier applications of ever-more toxic herbicides, and could also have "off-target" effects. Still, the agency signaled (on January 3, 2014), in the release of its Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS), that it favors approving the new GMO crops. Tell the USDA: Don’t Approve New GMO ‘Agent Orange’ Crops! Remember Agent Orange? The 2,4-D chemical concoction commissioned by the U.S. Army to defoliate jungles and destroy food crops during the Vietnam War?
U.S. corn and soybean farmers could soon be using more of this toxic herbicide than ever before. Unless we convince the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to put the brakes on plans to approve Dow AgroSciences’ new “Enlist” brand corn and soy—GMO crops designed to resist massive doses of 2,4-D herbicide. Please sign our petition (below) to the USDA asking them to reject “Agent Orange” crops! A large body of evidence indicates major health problems result from exposure to 2,4-D, including cancer, reproductive problems, neurotoxicity and auto-immune disorders.
Still, the agency signaled (on January 3, 2014), in the release of its Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS), that it favors approving the new GMO crops. Most corn and soy grown in the U.S. is already genetically engineered to resist Monsanto’s Roundup. Tell the USDA to Keep Agent GMOs Off Your Plate. A copy of this petition will be delivered to Secretary Vilsack: Dear Secretary Vilsack, I am writing to urge you to reject the approval of Dow’s genetically engineered corn and soybeans, designed to survive repeated spraying of the toxic herbicide 2,4-D, a major component of Agent Orange, the chemical defoliant used by the U.S. military in Vietnam.
The scientific community has sounded alarms about the dangers of 2,4-D for decades. Numerous studies link 2,4-D exposure to major health problems such as cancer, lowered sperm counts, liver toxicity, Parkinson’s disease and birth anomalies in the children of pesticide applicators. Industry and independent scientific tests show that 2,4-D is still contaminated with dioxins. I urge you to heed the warnings of the scientific and environmental communities and deny approval of Dow Chemical's 2,4-D resistant GMO corn and soy. Sincerely, [Your Name]