Quote:
PRESS RELEASE
TOWN OF MUNSTER
Representatives from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources have
informed the Town that they will be conducting flyover spraying for gypsy moths.
The spraying process is tentatively scheduled at dawn on Tuesday, May 17. Any
residents in that are in the affected spray area (provided in the map below)
should have received a postcard informing them of the scheduled spray.
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This was in 2011. Part of that mapped area was MY street/house/car/yard/parks/stores/church, etc. The plane was to fly TWICE within a two week schedule. Very low. Back and forth over the same area too many times to count. Dumping GALLONS of "cide" all over our neighborhood - only to return a few days later and do it all over again.
I fought it for my street. Handed as much information to others as I could. DNR kept repeating that the btk is a HARMLESS BACTERIA found in the soil. On and on they repeated this. Never informing the public that it was FORAY 76B to be applied and that the gm bacteria is one small ingredient in the bug killer.
I found that the early Foray 76B DID begin in Monsanto and was sold to the corp making it now. I called the rep in Canada and was told to leave the area for a few DAYS during the spraying. Precautionary yes - but that is because I KNEW what it was and what harm it could do to pregnant women, babies, elderly, transplant patients, those with HIV and the list went on.
Whenever I see those tiny green boxes on utility poles I know the DNR is testing for moths. This is only a SLOW THE SPREAD program. We don't have issue with this insect.
Two months later the towns are spraying for mosquitoes. Without a care for safety.
Thank you for this information. I will be sharing it with my contacts at the DNR.
ETA: Some information I relied on
http://www.nosprayzone.org/pesticides/index.html
Btk
Bacillus thuringiensis var kurstaki or
Btk is a bacteria that is related to a natural bacteria (Bt) found in soil at extremely low concentrations. Btk strains in Foray 48B are not commonly found in soil. Researchers found a mutant strain of Btk, generically called an HD-1 type, in a sample and selectively bred it for maximum activity against caterpillars. Btk strains used in commercial pesticides are not found in any significant quantity in their present form (yet!) in nature and may be genetically modified; some have been patented (it is not possible to patent a natural life form). For a better understanding of how Btk works, see our
short Bt primer.
"All subspecies of Bt produce a substance, called a protoxin, that becomes poisonous when it is ingested by target insects (caterpillars for Btk). The only reason we are not poisoned is that
the acid in our digestive tract deactivates the protoxin. However, this might
not be completely true if you inhale Btk protoxin.
Btk is also toxic in its own right; in the lab it has been observed to destroy cell walls in animal tissue.
It is claimed that Btk is a natural insecticide that is found in the soil and is used on organic crops. This is only partly true. While Btk is used somewhat today as an organic pest control, there is increasing awareness in the organic farming community that
Btk could soon be a genetically modifed organism and probably
should be avoided. When we eat vegetables or fruits sprayed with Btk, we only swallow a tiny amount of it, especially since most of the Btk is destroyed by the UV in sunlight after a few days of exposure.
During a neighborhood spraying one would expect to inhale more Btk spores than would be consumed in a year's worth of food. In addition, Btk is inactivated to some extent by injesting it, but it
spores may germinate and temporarily colonize the human respiratory tract after sprayings. Btk insecticidal strains produce protoxin at a level higher than that of the organisms commonly found in soil. The protoxin itself is isolated as a chemical (called crystalline protoxin or
parasporal inclusion bodies) and mixed with the Btk in Foray 48B.
No Spray Zone maintains an active survey of health literature on Btk, some of which is found on our
Btk Information Page. "
While this pesticide was raining down from the crop duster, kids were on the corners waiting for the school bus. People were at the park walking their pets. My own Town claimed ignorance of the spraying. The only reason the above posted Town of Munster Press Release was done was due to the fact I went to the schools, day cares, stores, libraries, etc with the information and many people began calling the Town Board. That was for Munster
only. My Town was Highland. There was NO warning. NO Press Release in the papers...just me and my packet of info dropped off at schools, hospital, day cares, etc. The copies alone that I made cost a fortune but time was running out.
The sprays continue throughout Indiana and Illinois.