Investigators from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) asked SAF and ANLA for comments during the course of a study the GAO is conducting on the USDA’s Agricultural Chemical Usage survey and its discontinuance as part of a 2007 budget-cutting effort.
In 2007, the USDA announced plans to discontinue the Chemical Usage survey. All major agriculture organizations joined together to protest the decision, and Congress eventually voted to restore survey funding. In 2009, the House and Senate included specific funding for $8.2 million for the survey, building on the Obama Administration’s proposal to reinstate it. The data provides the only publicly available agricultural chemical-use information. Survey results also give the EPA “real-world” data to use in making worker protection and chemical registration decisions. Without those data, the EPA defaults to “worst-case” scenarios, which do not present an accurate picture of how chemicals are used in agriculture.
SAF and ANLA were contacted as part of the interviews conducted during the GAO’s investigation of the survey’s discontinuance.
“We emphasized that the floriculture and nursery crops’ chemical use survey is conducted only once every three years and that we value it highly,” said SAF’s Lin Schmale. “We would like to see it cover more states and be conducted more often. It helps us give ‘real-world’ data to the EPA and others.”
Coincidentally, the USDA is in the process now of conducting the restored survey. Floriculture and nursery growers in the states of California, Florida, Michigan, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Texas should have received the survey or should receive it soon. Growers are encouraged to respond.
Supporters Seek to Revive EFCA
Despite setbacks earlier this year, supporters of the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) or Card Check legislation (S. 560/H.R. 1409) are pushing hard for passage and some Washington insiders say the bill could return to the Senate floor in the coming weeks.
Those rumors have been fanned by several sources, including Richard Trumka, the AFL-CIO’s president. “There are multitudes of things we can get (EFCA) attached to, and we will,” Richard said. “We will get it done, and it will be good for the country.”
Richard Trumka isn’t the only high-profile supporter speaking up this week in favor of moving the union-backed initiative forward. Sens. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) and Mark Pryor (D-Ark.) and other senators are said to be working with unions to attach EFCA to another moving legislative vehicle, and the issue still has powerful support from Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.).
EFCA supporters are considering other avenues for passage, too. Supporters may try to break up the legislation and pass pieces separately. The same source reports supporters may also try to achieve their goals administratively through the Labor Department of the National Labor Relations Board.
SAF Participates in NAPPO Panel
SAF’s Lin Schmale, who represents the U.S. greenhouse industry as a member of the NAPPO Invasive Species Panel, met in a four-day symposium with other panel members and scientists from the USDA and European and U.S. universities to discuss the issue of assessing pathway risks for transmitting pests and diseases. The Invasive Species Panel is charged with developing a “standard” by which countries should analyze the risk that pathways might (or might not) present.
“Pathway” is defined under the international treaty governing plant protection and quarantines as “any means that allows the entry or spread of a pest.” Pathways can vary widely, and they may potentially be the source of infection or introduction of pests or diseases into the country. A pathway, for example, might be “wood packing material,” or “passenger airline flights from China” or even “cruise ships.” “Plants for planting” are widely considered to be an important potential pathway.
Because of the diversity and complexity of pathways, writing a standard that each member country would use as a guideline to conduct analysis of potential problem areas is difficult. To date, none of the world’s regional plant organizations has written one, and if the NAPPO panel succeeds, its standard could be used as a reference point for other regional organizations.
NAPPO includes representatives of the U.S., Mexican and Canadian governments. It helps protect North American agriculture and the environment from the entry and establishment of pests and diseases, while helping to guide international trade under the World Trade Organization, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and other treaty obligations.
Source: Society of American Florists
