Andrew Douglas B2B journalist, turned PR man, specializing in new media.

Anti atrazine goes viral

As they say in hockey just before the gloves come off... It is ON!

The fight to prove the safety of cosmetic pesticides is virtually lost. And the regulatory, science-backed system that approved all those products to begin with has been called into question. In Ontario, where I live, the provincial government has instituted a ban on cosmetic pesticides, basically thumbing its nose at the feds who regulate -- and have approved -- their use.

Now the guns have been turned on agriculture. I hope it's a fair fight.

The Environmental Protection Agency is taking a close look at atrazine, one of the oldest and most effective chemicals used in conventional agriculture. This news came across my desk in an article by Patrick Gallagher in the October 20, 2009 issue of the Ontario Farmer.

During the new evaluation the EPA said it would consider the potential for atrazine to cause cancer as well as non-cancer health effects. The agency will review a number of new studies that have been done since 2003 that indicate that atrazine may have some potential for causing birth defects, low birth weights and premature births.

I needn't say the obvious -- that only a fool would support the use of a chemical if it was known to cause cancer when used properly. If atrazine is proven by unbiased scientists to be deadly then of course it must be pulled from the marketplace.

But my fear is that there will be plenty of spin to future pesticide research and overwhelming pressure to come up with damning evidence that the risk of pesticides far outweighs any benefit. The pressure may come not only from the pro organic-agriculture front but also from anti-capitalism wing nuts.

The debate is already all over Twitter. Check out these tweets I pulled off TweetDeck just by searching on the word "pesticide" the other evening. They came within 19 minutes of each other:

Pesticides Exposure Linked to Suicidal Thoughts http://digg.com/u1Esnd

Pesticides Destroying 60 Percent of Honeybees http://bit.ly/VvnE7

Pesticide industry cheers EPA testing roll-back http://is.gd/4wAc7 #Pesticides

40% of US children have dangerous OP pesticides exposure http://is.gd/4wAST #Pesticides

Organizations that represent the industry better get out there fast. The debate is happening now. Farmers, consumers, communications people like me -- we all want a balanced discussion. That will take arming us all with facts.

And the key messages can no longer rely on the hackneyed "our world-leading, super-safe regulatory system will protect the population..." That's not enough. Look at how many people aren't getting an H1N1 flu shot this season because they distrust the vaccine -- a government tested, approved and promoted shot meant to save the population from sickness.

This isn't the time for more dry fact sheets that only the choir will ever read. Get your farmer face on and defend yourself. This debate is happening in the trenches. It's time to get dirty.