developing countries. Trans-shipments have made it very difficult to know exactly
where pesticides trade originates. For example, some of the products from the United
States may come through European countries.
The U.S. government does not maintain complete records of pesticide shipments,
and there are many data gaps. For instance, between 1992 and 1996, more than 2
billion pounds of pesticides left U.S. ports with their specific chemical names omitted
from publicly accessible shipping records. The practice of manufacturers hiding their
identity on exported products to prevent competitors from receiving confidential
marketing information is legal in the United States, but creates an obstacle for devel-
oping countries and special-interest groups trying to expose the risks posed by the
careless use of pesticides. Masking the identity of pesticides in customs records is a
common illegal practice.^6Consequences of Lack of AwarenessMany pesticides used in developing countries are banned or severely restricted in
the industrialized world because of safety concerns. These concerns are generally not
shared by pesticide users in the developing world, due to a widespread lack of aware-
ness of the hazards of pesticide exposure. Pesticide labels leave much to be desired.
They are commonly unclear, written in a foreign language, lack clear health warnings,
or are difficult or impossible to comprehend, especially by farmers, many of whom
have poor English literacy. Recommended safety measures are often not employed.
The use of protective masks, gloves, and boots is often impractical or simply unaf-
fordable. Pesticides are frequently mixed, stored, or disposed of in a dangerous fash-
ion, and are often applied too frequently or at too high a concentration.
Foreign farmers are na€ıve and will assume that any chemical coming from the
United States must be relatively benign, despite the fact that most pesticides registered
in this country would be too toxic to license if the EPA did not restrict their use.^7Small Pesticide VendorsSmall vendors are often ignorant of pesticide dangers because they have little work-
place training. They fail to protect both themselves and their staff. They rarely pro-
vide workers with protective equipment, and often leftover pesticides are simply
spilled onto the streets or into their backyards. Some pesticide distributors have credit
systems that they offer to farmers to distribute and promote sales of pesticides. Com-
peting pesticide distributors have their own extension agents whose sole purpose is to
sell pesticides. Since the income of the pesticide salespersons depends on quantities
they sell per season or day, each seller strives to be the top salesperson. In the process,
pesticides are often misused and accumulate in the environment. Pesticide containers
prove to be equally as dangerous as the pesticides themselves. In many countries,
farmers are advised by pesticide distributing agents to bury containers in their back-
yards. Unfortunately, most of them end up for domestic use either as water containers
or for food storage.^8222 | Pesticides