Statement by the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation

to the 

FIFRA Scientific Advisory Panel

December 4, 2007

Ecological Significance of Atrazine

Stream-Water Concentrations Using a Statistically-Designed Monitoring
Program

The Iowa Farm Bureau is the state’s largest general farm organization
with more than 157,000 members.  We appreciate the opportunity to
comment on atrazine’s re-registration and its role in Iowa agriculture
and environmental protection.

Iowa farmers have been using atrazine for at least 45 years.  Atrazine
is still the best tool there is for controlling broadleaf weeds in Iowa
corn.  It’s used on about 61 percent of Iowa’s corn acreage, 29
percentage points more than any other crop protection compound. 
That’s the case for three reasons: it works, it’s cost-effective and
it’s safe – for farmers and the environment.

Atrazine is a very effective crop protection compound that Iowa farmers
like because it can be used in smaller amounts in combination with other
products.  This minimizes and potential resistance problems while also
keep options open for its use in a variety of management, crop and
weather situations.

In Iowa, sediment is one of our most challenging water quality issues.  
HYPERLINK
"http://wqm.igsb.uiowa.edu/wqa/303d/2006/FactSheetDraft2006.pdf" The
2006 impaired waters list   shows 274 waterbodies with a total of 356
impairments.  Sediment ranks fourth in terms of the number of impaired
river and stream segments (66).  Only unknown causes, habitat
alterations and low dissolved oxygen rated higher.  Pesticides rank
last, tied with six other causes as impaired 1 segment each.

In Iowa’s lakes, the impact of sediment is more pronounced.  More than
26 percent of Iowa’s lakes are impaired by sediment or related
turbidity issues, more than any other signal cause of impairment. 

Atrazine, when used according to the label, help combat this situation
by working well in Iowa’s popular no-till and other conservation
tillage systems.  It is especially effective in these high residue
situations, delivering excellent, weed control while also helping
farmers reduce sediment delivery to streams and lakes.

Given the effectiveness and high rate of use of this system, the most
negative impact right now on Iowa’s water quality would be the loss of
atrazine. 

Economic studies at agricultural universities have shown that atrazine
saves Iowa corn farmers from $18 to $37 per acre in potential
weed-control costs and yield losses, while also complementing no-till
systems that help prevent soil erosion – Iowa’ biggest water quality
issue.  This equates to roughly $1-$2 billion per year in benefits to
U.S. agriculture.   

And because it’s been used so widely and for so long, atrazine is the
most tested crop protection product ever.  More than 800 studies that
overwhelming support the safety of atrazine to humans and the
environment.  EPA now classifies atrazine as not likely to cause cancer
in humans. EPA has also found that there is a reasonable certainty that
no harm will result to the general U.S. population, infants, children,
or other major identifiable subgroups of consumers from aggregate
exposure (from food, drinking water, and non-occupational sources) to
cumulative residues of atrazine and the other triazine pesticides.  Even
so, extensive water monitoring continues.  In the unlikely event that
any problems are ever found, we’ll be able to deal with them. 

I’m also confident that EPA will confirm its preliminary finding that
a thorough examination of these studies and their results that atrazine
does not adversely affect amphibian gonadal development, and that there
is no compelling reason to pursue additional testing of atrazine for
these effects. 

In the meantime, our Iowa stewardship efforts continue.  The Iowa
Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship has had a system in place
since the early 1990s to reduce atrazine rates in areas of special
groundwater concern, such as sinkholes in Northeast Iowa.  Water quality
monitoring proves this has worked.  Iowa also has a program that
certifies farmers and agribusinesses that apply herbicides to reduce
chances of runoff. 

The Iowa Farm Bureau also continues its proud tradition of working on a
variety of stewardship projects.  The IFBF sponsors conferences,
education programs and grants for its members.  The IFBF has twice won
the Soil & Water Conservation Society’s Merit Award for its efforts.  


The IFBF has awarded more than 60 grants to local watershed projects
totaling almost $300,000, including early support of the Rathbun Lake
Watershed (a recipient of the EPA’s Watershed Initiative Program). 

A new watershed grant will provide $25,000 to one watershed project
annually for design and implementation of a comprehensive information
and education campaign. 

Other stewardship efforts include:

The Iowa Farm Bureau supports Trees Forever Working Watersheds: Buffers
and Beyond Program.  Partnering with Trees Forever, a private,
Iowa-based non-profit organization, the initiative is an exciting
program that is showing farmers and rural landowners how stream side
buffers of trees, shrubs and grasses improve water quality by reducing
soil erosion. The 10-year, $2 million initiative established 166 buffer
demonstration and project sites throughout the state of Iowa that
showcase flexible approaches to establishing and maintaining streamside
buffers. It also developed a network of buffer specialists and provided
recognition of those farmers who use streamside buffers. The partnership
has created tremendous success as shown in the numbers: 96 miles of
stream buffered; 714,195 trees and shrubs planted with the help of
21,587 volunteer hours. The effort has now expanded to Illinois.

The Iowa Farm Bureau has developed the Iowa Farm*A*Syst program.  Iowa
Farm*A*Syst is a farmstead self-assessment system available free of
charge to all Iowans on the IFBF web site.  It was developed six years
ago by the IFBF with technical assistance from various state and federal
agencies and producer organizations.  The goal is to assist rural
residents in protecting their water resources, particularly their
drinking water.  Individuals can tailor the program to meet their
specific needs by choosing specific topics that fit their farmstead or
acreage.  Almost 600 Iowans have been trained on the materials thus far.
 The program includes a series of 12 state-specific online publications
that provide information and ask questions that help farmers and rural
landowners assess their environmental risks.

The Iowa Farm Bureau sponsors the Wetland Mitigation Bank.  Farmers in
parts of 18 north-central Iowa counties now have the option of
mitigating farmed wetland impacts by purchasing wetland credits at the
Iowa Wetland Mitigation Bank, Inc.  The 70-acre bank is operated by the
IFBF and is the first in the nation to be used for farmers with a
functional assessment process that allows for less than one-to-one
mitigation in terms of acres, but does require one-to-one replacement of
wetland functions.  The land is owned and managed by the Iowa Department
of Natural Resources and technical assistance provided by the Natural
Resources Conservation Service.  The cost of purchasing enough credits
for each acre of farmed wetland is about $1,849.  The bank has sold 32
percent of currently available credits with more applications pending.  

The Iowa Farm Bureau supports the IOWATER Volunteer Water Monitoring
Program.  IOWATER is a statewide volunteer water quality-monitoring
program for Iowans.  The IFBF financially supports members who attend
training sessions or for sponsorship of local training sessions.  The
IFBF is also a member of the program coordinating committee.  Upon
completion of training workshops, persons are certified Level 1 IOWATER
citizen monitor. 

In the spirit of these science-based stewardship efforts, the IFBF urges
the EPA to resolve these special review issues quickly and based on the
best science available.

Rick Robinson

Environmental Policy Advisor

Iowa Farm Bureau

West Des Moines, IA

515-225-5432

 HYPERLINK "mailto:rrobinson@ifbf.org" rrobinson@ifbf.org 

IFBF Statement

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