UNITED STATES ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY WASHINGTON, O.C. 20460 OFFICIAL BUSINESS PENALTY FOR PRIVATE USE $300 AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER U.S. POSTAGE AND FEES PAID ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGE EPA-3 35 A Environmental News O'Neill (202) 755-0344 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 30, 1974 EPA TO CONSIDER TUSSOCK MOTH/DDT PROBLEM AT WASHINGTON, D.C. HEARING The last of five public hearings will be held by the Environ- mental Protection Agency in Washington, D.C. on a request by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to use the pesticide DDT against the tussock moth in the Pacific Northwest this spring. The D.C. hearing will begin at 8:30 a.m., Friday, February 1, at the Departmental Auditorium, U.S. Department of Commerce, Conference Room B, 14th and Constitution Avenue, NW. Four other hearings on the Agriculture Department DDT request are taking place in the Pacific Northwest this month. The request, dated January 3, 19 74, is on an "if needed" basis pending study of whether the moth population is likely to collapse naturally from a virus. The request involves the application of DDT at the rate of .75 pound dissolved in one gallon of fuel oil per acre. Up to 650,000 acres in the States of Oregon, Washington, and Idaho may need treatment. The tussock moth is a native American insect, which in the caterpillar stage can defoliate Douglas and other fir trees by eating their needles. (more) Return this sheet if you do NOT with to receive thit material f]. or if change of address fs needed ~ (indicate change, including zip code). EPA FORM 1510.1 (REV. »-72) R-345 ------- General uses of DDT were banned by EPA effective December 31, 19 72. Last year, the Agency turned down similar requests from the Agriculture Department and the States of Oregon and Washington. Under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act as amended, Federal and State agencies must have EPA approval for emergency unregistered uses of pesticides, such as DDT in this case. A preliminary list of witnesses shows the National Wildlife Federation, the National Forest Products Association, the Sierra Club, and Dow Chemical Company as testifying. Other individuals and organizations will also testify. Interested persons may submit written comments on the Agri- culture Department request through February 4, 1974 to the Office of Pesticide Programs, EPA, 401 M Street, S.W., Room 545, Mail Code HM-566, Washington, D.C. 20460. EPA has indicated that it will decide on the request not later than March 1/ 19 74. Attached is a brief list of questions that EPA will be concerned with at the hearing. # # # ------- SPECIFIC AREAS WHICH EPA WOULD LIKE TO HAVE ADDRESSED AT THE HEARINGS ON THE POSSIBLE USE OF DDT FOR CONTROL OF THE TUSSOCK MOTH 1. Is there presently an emergency in the moth infested areas of the Pacific Northwest ? 2. If emergency conditions do exist, is DDT the only available means of meeting the emergency, or are there alternative control methods which would provide the necessary degree of pest reduction? Is there reason to believe that the moth population will decline naturally? 3. If the use of DDT does appear necessary, under what conditions should this pesticide be applied? What would be the criteria for determining that the ^raying is necessary? What research and monitoring should the beneficiaries of the control program support? 4. Is die Forest Service Environmental Impact Statement adequate? ------- |