¥‘‘I personally feel that there is too much blame on the farmers who try to do
everything they can do to be safe with their own and everyone else’s lives. I do
not like how the average person can go to a department store and buy a pesti-
cide with no training, apply it by dumping it, instead of spraying. Then they
blame other people for the problems of the environment. We, the farmers, do
not have the money to throw around and waste with not having the training to
apply it correctly.’’
¥‘‘More restrictions should be implemented to household and lawn care prod-
ucts. They pose serious environmental problems.’’
¥‘‘I would like to see New York state have quicker approval of newly released
pesticides—ones that the EPA and other states have already approved. Each
additional agency that requires approval before use only drives the corn growers’
cost up for the pesticides, and for crop production, such that New York state,
which is a marginal corn production area, will eventually have fewer and fewer
farmers producing. I am very concerned about the re-evaluation of atrazine. If it
is not reapproved, there will be no replacement for this broad-spectrum and eco-
nomical herbicide.’’
¥‘‘New York state corn producers have to be competitive with Midwest corn
growers who have a much wider spectrum of chemical controls that are priced
more competitively. Chemical companies don’t register in New York because of
delays in registration. Atrazine products and others are more cost effective than
many alternatives.’’
¥‘‘To grow food and crops we need the option of chemicals that are safe for all
users and the environment. When we lose good products that do a good job, it
will cost everybody lots of money. We must read and apply according to the
label to protect the environment, people, and products.’’
¥‘‘In New York state, farmers are dying of taxes and other expenses. Other states
bordering New York have more access to less-costly pesticides. Atrazine is one of
the few chemicals we can use to control small problems with lower cost per
acre.’’
¥‘‘With the demise of atrazine formulations, the growing of corn will be very
expensive.’’
¥‘‘We need access to newer, safer chemicals. I would not remove older ones from
the market, however. We need to be able to rotate chemicals in order to avoid
resistance problems.’’
¥‘‘Our main concern in using pesticides in growing crops are the threats of fines
and liabilities. Even though we use practical precautions, we are aware things
possibly can go wrong. We are very mindful of the effects to persons and the
environment, and do our utmost to be careful. It seems that the control agency
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