As national butterfly numbers tumble, UNC biologist says citizen-science can help
The decline is concerning because butterflies are important pollinators for the state’s crops and a vital food source for birds.
pesticides
Butterfly numbers have fallen by nearly a quarter since 2000
Butterflies of all kinds of species, in all parts of the country, have declined by one to two percent per year since 2000.
EPA Will Ban A Farming Pesticide Linked To Health Problems In Children
Agency officials issued a final ruling on Wednesday saying chlorpyrifos can no longer be used on the food that makes its way onto American dinner plates. The move overturns a Trump-era decision.
In Arkansas, Backlash Against Pesticide Regulation Gets Personal
A state official in Arkansas who's led a national effort to limit damage from a controversial herbicide has recently found his tractors damaged and hay bales burned.
EPA Orders Amazon and EBay to Stop Selling Bogus Coronavirus-Fighting Products
On Thursday the EPA ordered the e-commerce giants to stop selling a list of unregistered and misbranded products, some of which contained toxic chemicals like methylene chloride and chlorine dioxide.
Pesticide Police, Overwhelmed By Dicamba Complaints, Ask EPA For Help
Across the Midwest, millions of acres of farmland have been damaged by dicamba, an herbicide that can harm crops not engineered to withstand it. There are so many cases, regulators can't keep up.
Controversial Pesticides Are Suspected Of Starving Fish
New evidence from Japan's Lake Shinji suggests that the widely used family of pesticides called neonicotinoids, already controversial for harming pollinators, could pose risks to fish as well.
EPA Chief Pledges To Severely Cut Back On Animal Testing Of Chemicals
Alternative tests are emerging, the agency says, such as computer modeling and tissue studies of cells grown in the lab. Environmental advocates say the move is too quick, and disregards human health.
New Evidence Shows Popular Pesticides Could Cause Unintended Harm To Insects
Studies are revealing new, unintended threats that neonicotinoid pesticides pose to insects. The chemicals, widely used by farmers, are difficult to control because they persist in the environment.
How Best To Snag And Destroy Bedbugs?
Vigilance and heat are currently your best weapons against bedbugs, exterminators say. But scientists are working on a way to give the bugs the hook with a strategy inspired by a Balkan folk remedy.