I would like to notify everyone of a workshop the California Department of
Pesticide Regulation and the California Department of Food and Agriculture
are holding in Sacramento on June 9, concerning soil amendments which are
registered in California as fertilizers, but which some believe have pest
suppressive properties. These properties cannot be advertised, because to
do so would require that they be registered as pesticides. The purpose of
the workshop is to capture as many of the ideas surrounding this issue as
possible, in order to determine whether there is something we as
regulators should do.
You are invited to attend the workshop or, if that is not possible, I
would like to get some of your ideas, either as a posting here, or by
e-mail through econet or to pstoddard@cdpr.ca.gov.
Here is some information about the workshop.
------------------------------------------------------------------
MEETING NOTICE
WORKSHOP ON SOIL AMENDMENTS
WITH PEST SUPPRESSIVE PROPERTIES
Thursday June 9, 1994
1:30 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
1020 N Street, Room 215
Sacramento
For information about the Workshop, please contact Peter Stoddard,
California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR), at (916) 324-4078,
pstoddard@cdpr.ca.gov.
Agenda
Technical presentations
1. Manufacturers' perspective (15 mins). Dr. John Hsu,
JH Biotech, Inc., Ventura
2. Users' perspective (15 mins). Mr. John Williamson,
Mid-State Laboratory, Visalia
3. Technical considerations (15 minutes). Dr. Roland D. Meyer,
Extension Soils Specialist, Department of Land Air and Water
Resources, University of California, Davis
Policy Presentations
4. Summary of state and federal laws, regulations and policies
relating to pesticides (5 mins). Jerry Campbell, Supervisor
of Registration, DPR
5. Summary of state and federal laws, regulations and policies
relating to fertilizers (5 mins). Maryam Khosravifard,
Feed, Fertilizer and Livestock Drugs Branch, Division of
Inspection Services, California Department of Food and
Agriculture (CDFA)
6. Perspective of the fertilizer industry (10 mins). Steve
Beckley, Executive Vice President, California Fertilizer
Association
7. Pesticide Industry Perspective (10 mins). Robert Ehn, Vice
Chairman for Regulatory Affairs, Western Agricultural
Chemical Association
Discussion
8. Moderated Discussion (50 mins). Paul Gosselin, Chief,
Division of Enforcement, Environmental Monitoring and Data
Management, DPR, Moderator
WORKSHOP ON SOIL AMENDMENTS
WITH PEST SUPPRESSIVE PROPERTIES
Introduction
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) and the
California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) are jointly
sponsoring a Workshop on Soil Amendments with Pest Suppressive
Properties. This workshop arose as a result of efforts by both
DPR and CDFA to identify potential regulatory obstacles to the
adoption of environmentally sound pest management practices.
As a result of these efforts, several people suggested that some
of the soil amendments which are registered as fertilizers in
California have additional effects as pest suppressants.
However, manufacturers cannot advertise these suppressive effects
because to do so would constitute pesticidal claims, making the
products subject to the laws governing pesticides.
Purpose
The purpose of the workshop will be to determine what changes to
federal and state laws, regulations and policies should be made,
if any, to reduce the risk of adverse effects of pesticides by
encouraging the use of soil amendments with pest-suppressive
properties.
Scope
The scope of the workshop will include soil amendment products
which are regulated by CDFA, and which enhance soil quality.
This excludes bulk materials and mineral nutrients and urea.
Format
The workshop will be moderated by Paul Gosselin, Chief, Division
of Enforcement, Environmental Monitoring and Data Management,
DPR, and will consist of presentations on the technical and
policy aspects of the problem, followed by a general discussion.
Participants
Dr. John Hsu, President, J.H. Biotech, Inc. in Ventura,
conducting research, development, and marketing of micronutrient
and biological products for plant and animal nutrition.
Mr. John Williamson, President, Mid State Laboratories, Inc. in
Visalia, a full-service industrial/agricultural analytical
laboratory conducting analyses of many different media including
soils, water, and plant tissue, and recommending applications of
fertilizers and soil amendments when appropriate.
Dr. Roland D. Meyer, Extension Soils Specialist in the Department
of Land, Air and Water Resources at the University of California,
Davis. Dr. Meyer has been an adviser to CDFA on the subject of
fertilizers and plant health for over 20 years.
Mr. Jerry Campbell, Supervisor of Registration, and oversees the
day to day operations of the Registration Branch in DPR.
Ms. Maryam Khosravifard, Associate Review Scientist in the Feed,
Fertilizer and Livestock Drugs Branch, CDFA. Maryam has an MS in
Chemistry and also has experience in CDFA's Analytical Laboratory
and DPR's Registration Branch.
Mr. Steve Beckley, Executive Vice President, California
Fertilizer Association. The California Fertilizer Association
represents the manufacturers, distributors, wholesalers and
retailers of fertilizer and soil amendments in California
Mr. Robert Ehn, Vice Chairman for Regulatory Affairs, Western
Agricultural Chemical Association. Bob is also Western
Regulatory Affairs Manager for FMC Corp.
Mr. Paul Gosselin, Chief of the Division of Enforcement,
Environmental Monitoring and Data Management, DPR. Paul was
formerly the Director of the Division of Regulatory Services for
the Massachusetts Department of Food and Agriculture, and joined
DPR as Assistant Director in November, 1993.
--
Peter Stoddard stoddard@netcom.com pstoddard@cdpr.ca.gov