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Safe pesticide programs fly at Jewish day schools
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By ARLENE FINE, Senior Staff Reporter
Thanks to the efforts of Trish Rosenblum and Barry Zucker, the children in Cleveland’s Jewish day schools will breathe easier.
They have bugged school directors to make sure they are using integrated pest management (IPM) systems. This is a proven, cost-effective program of prevention, sanitation, baiting, caulking and trapping that significantly reduces, or in most cases may eliminate, the use of toxic pesticides.
“Five of my seven children who attend Fuchs Mizrachi School are asthmatic,” says Rosenblum. “Several years ago I read an article in the Cleveland Jewish News about Barry Zucker, executive director of the nonprofit organization Ohio Coalition Against the Misuse of Pesticides (OCAMP). He provided proof that pesticides have been linked to asthma, childhood leukemia, birth defects, learning disabilities, ADHD and Parkinson’s disease. I worried my children were being over-exposed to pesticides at school.”
Rosenblum’s youngest child, who is severely asthmatic, was then attending the Fuchs preschool program at Cleveland Hebrew School (CHS) in Beachwood. “I called the director and learned they had a 35-year relationship with a pest control company that sprayed regularly,” she says.
After doing her own research, Rosenblum discovered the type of pesticide used at the CHS building was classified as a Class B carcinogen.
“The exterminators were regularly spraying this toxic chemical in and around the building when little children and staff were present,” she says. “I was very upset because I knew that even small exposure to pesticides during a child’s development can cause permanent, dangerous health effects, not to mention its potential harm to pregnant women (see sidebar). And when this chemical comes in contact with water, it has a much longer life.”
Pesticides had been used in the past in this building, concede CHS’s new director Amnon Ophir and Leslie Schwersenki, early childhood director for Fuchs Mizrachi’s preschool program. These were allowed by the state.
Over the past year-and-a-half, however, CHS has not used any pesticides. “The decision was made that if there was even the slightest possibility of danger from pesticide use, we would not jeopardize our children’s safety in any way,” says Ophir.
A similar accommodation has occurred with the Fuchs Mizrachi main building in University Heights. The custodian attended an OCAMP session last year. After learning about the benefits of alternative pest control measures, he recommended a number of natural ways to keep pests at bay. These include adding weather stripping to keep out insects, hiring additional kitchen staff to thoroughly clean food areas, and using more food containers for sanitary storage.
“Mizrachi will have a satisfactory IPM plan in place in the next two months,” Rosenblum promises.
Along with Fuchs Mizrachi, Hebrew Academy of Cleveland and Agnon School have adopted an IPM system. “Coming from California, I am fully aware of the dangers of pesticide use in school buildings,” says Jerry Isaak Shapiro, Agnon headmaster. “We use mint oil liberally to deter pests and make sure our kitchen is immaculate and all food is stored in air-tight containers. The adjoining Siegal College uses the same protocol.”
Gross Schechter Day School promised to adopt IPM measures after Rabbi Jim Rogozen was contacted by this CJN reporter. When he learned about the dangers of the odorless microencapsulated insecticide Demand CS (Lambda-Cyhalothrin) that had been sprayed monthly at the school, he halted its use immediately.
“The CJN has positively effected change for Gross Schechter,” says Rogozen.
This fall, the school will continue its programming emphasizing wellness. “This adoption of IPM measures is a very positive step to promote wellness by creating a healthier environment for children and our staff,” he adds.
This is the type of response that OCAMP’s Zucker likes to hear.
“I’m encouraged that school administrators are responding to a serious health issue,” he says. “Documented evidence is piling up, validating that students and children are being poisoned by pesticide exposure.”
However, Zucker tempers his enthusiasm with caution. “To be most effective, schools must have a thoroughly documented IPM program in case there is a change in administration or a parent questions the IPM systems in their schools,” he says. “Also, there should be regular monitoring of pest control measures and frequent contact with the pest control company.”
Scientific studies demonstrate that chemical pesticides represent one of the greatest threats to children’s health, continues Zucker. “Due to their small size and developing organ systems, children face higher risks than adults from pesticides. The National Academy of Science, the American Public Health Association, and the National PTA have all voiced their concerns about pesticide use in schools.”
Hebrew Academy uses Speed Exterminator’s IPM system in all its buildings. “Any school or other public building that is still using tank pesticides is way behind the curve,” says John Young, manager of Speed Exterminating Company. “Parents and administrators should be advocating for IPM’s environmentally sound measures.”
Speed exterminators control potential pest infestations by using traps, boric acid or a dust type formation called diotomaceous earth. This is an abrasive powder made from the shells of fossilized insects. When pests eat diatomaceous earth, the tiny shells they ingest cause them to bleed internally. Speed exterminators also recommend repairing screen openings, caulking cracks and holes, and removing water sources like leaky faucets. “Bugs are attracted to food and water,” says Young. “Improving a school’s sanitation eliminates cockroaches and ants.”
“Sooner or later, Ohio will institute the same laws against poisonous pesticides used in public buildings that is in effect in Pennsylvania, New York and California,” says Chuck Kettler of Central Exterminating Company. “Ohio legislature has been working on this bill for five years and has still not enacted any laws limiting pesticide use. IPM is more cost-effective and is priceless in terms of human health. Tank pesticides filled with chemicals are becoming dinosaurs and are only recommended as a last resort to crash an infestation.”
According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, asthma is the number one cause of sick days among children nationally. Because both cockroaches and pesticide sprays exacerbate asthma, reducing pest problems while also reducing pesticide use can have a significant impact on children with asthma.
Zucker is hoping the current effort to warn Americans about the health and ecological dangers associated with pesticides will mirror the global campaign to alert people about the harmful effects of smoking.
It is illegal under Ohio law to advertise any pesticides as safe and without any side effects. “By definition pesticides are toxic, and there is no reliable documentation about its long-term effects,” adds Zucker.
Many pubic schools in Northeast Ohio have already adopted an IPM program. Among them are Beachwood, Cleveland-Heights/University Heights, Hawken, Laurel, Mayfield, Orange and South Euclid-Lyndhurst schools.
“If someone’s school is not listed, they should urge school officials to call OCAMP today to start an IPM program,” says Zucker.
“These sprays, dusts and aerosols are now applied almost universally to farms, gardens, forests, and homes n nonselective chemicals that have the power to kill every insect, the “good” and the “bad,” to still the song of birds and the leaping of fish in the streams, to coat the leaves with a deadly film, and to linger on in soil — all this though the intended target may be only a few weeds or insects. Can anyone believe it is possible to lay down such a barrage of poisons on the surface of the earth without making it unfit for all life? They should not be called “insecticides,” but “biocides.”
Rachel Carson, Silent Spring (1962)
Autism linked to pesticide sprays
Preliminary research into birth records and pesticide data reveal that mothers who were within 500 meters of fields sprayed with organ chlorine pesticides during their first trimester of pregnancy were six times more likely with have children with autism compared to mothers who did not live near such fields.
Scientists from the California Department of Public Health conducted the study. It is available online in Environmental Health and Perspectives (www.ehponline.org) titled “Maternal Residence Near Agricultural Pesticide Applications and Autism Spectrum Disorders Among Children in the California Central Valley.”
The study found that 28% of the mothers surveyed who lived near fields in Central Valley which were sprayed with so-called organ chlorines have children with autism.
- LATimes.com
They have bugged school directors to make sure they are using integrated pest management (IPM) systems. This is a proven, cost-effective program of prevention, sanitation, baiting, caulking and trapping that significantly reduces, or in most cases may eliminate, the use of toxic pesticides.
“Five of my seven children who attend Fuchs Mizrachi School are asthmatic,” says Rosenblum. “Several years ago I read an article in the Cleveland Jewish News about Barry Zucker, executive director of the nonprofit organization Ohio Coalition Against the Misuse of Pesticides (OCAMP). He provided proof that pesticides have been linked to asthma, childhood leukemia, birth defects, learning disabilities, ADHD and Parkinson’s disease. I worried my children were being over-exposed to pesticides at school.”
Rosenblum’s youngest child, who is severely asthmatic, was then attending the Fuchs preschool program at Cleveland Hebrew School (CHS) in Beachwood. “I called the director and learned they had a 35-year relationship with a pest control company that sprayed regularly,” she says.
After doing her own research, Rosenblum discovered the type of pesticide used at the CHS building was classified as a Class B carcinogen.
“The exterminators were regularly spraying this toxic chemical in and around the building when little children and staff were present,” she says. “I was very upset because I knew that even small exposure to pesticides during a child’s development can cause permanent, dangerous health effects, not to mention its potential harm to pregnant women (see sidebar). And when this chemical comes in contact with water, it has a much longer life.”
Pesticides had been used in the past in this building, concede CHS’s new director Amnon Ophir and Leslie Schwersenki, early childhood director for Fuchs Mizrachi’s preschool program. These were allowed by the state.
Over the past year-and-a-half, however, CHS has not used any pesticides. “The decision was made that if there was even the slightest possibility of danger from pesticide use, we would not jeopardize our children’s safety in any way,” says Ophir.
A similar accommodation has occurred with the Fuchs Mizrachi main building in University Heights. The custodian attended an OCAMP session last year. After learning about the benefits of alternative pest control measures, he recommended a number of natural ways to keep pests at bay. These include adding weather stripping to keep out insects, hiring additional kitchen staff to thoroughly clean food areas, and using more food containers for sanitary storage.
“Mizrachi will have a satisfactory IPM plan in place in the next two months,” Rosenblum promises.
Along with Fuchs Mizrachi, Hebrew Academy of Cleveland and Agnon School have adopted an IPM system. “Coming from California, I am fully aware of the dangers of pesticide use in school buildings,” says Jerry Isaak Shapiro, Agnon headmaster. “We use mint oil liberally to deter pests and make sure our kitchen is immaculate and all food is stored in air-tight containers. The adjoining Siegal College uses the same protocol.”
Gross Schechter Day School promised to adopt IPM measures after Rabbi Jim Rogozen was contacted by this CJN reporter. When he learned about the dangers of the odorless microencapsulated insecticide Demand CS (Lambda-Cyhalothrin) that had been sprayed monthly at the school, he halted its use immediately.
“The CJN has positively effected change for Gross Schechter,” says Rogozen.
This fall, the school will continue its programming emphasizing wellness. “This adoption of IPM measures is a very positive step to promote wellness by creating a healthier environment for children and our staff,” he adds.
This is the type of response that OCAMP’s Zucker likes to hear.
“I’m encouraged that school administrators are responding to a serious health issue,” he says. “Documented evidence is piling up, validating that students and children are being poisoned by pesticide exposure.”
However, Zucker tempers his enthusiasm with caution. “To be most effective, schools must have a thoroughly documented IPM program in case there is a change in administration or a parent questions the IPM systems in their schools,” he says. “Also, there should be regular monitoring of pest control measures and frequent contact with the pest control company.”
Scientific studies demonstrate that chemical pesticides represent one of the greatest threats to children’s health, continues Zucker. “Due to their small size and developing organ systems, children face higher risks than adults from pesticides. The National Academy of Science, the American Public Health Association, and the National PTA have all voiced their concerns about pesticide use in schools.”
Hebrew Academy uses Speed Exterminator’s IPM system in all its buildings. “Any school or other public building that is still using tank pesticides is way behind the curve,” says John Young, manager of Speed Exterminating Company. “Parents and administrators should be advocating for IPM’s environmentally sound measures.”
Speed exterminators control potential pest infestations by using traps, boric acid or a dust type formation called diotomaceous earth. This is an abrasive powder made from the shells of fossilized insects. When pests eat diatomaceous earth, the tiny shells they ingest cause them to bleed internally. Speed exterminators also recommend repairing screen openings, caulking cracks and holes, and removing water sources like leaky faucets. “Bugs are attracted to food and water,” says Young. “Improving a school’s sanitation eliminates cockroaches and ants.”
“Sooner or later, Ohio will institute the same laws against poisonous pesticides used in public buildings that is in effect in Pennsylvania, New York and California,” says Chuck Kettler of Central Exterminating Company. “Ohio legislature has been working on this bill for five years and has still not enacted any laws limiting pesticide use. IPM is more cost-effective and is priceless in terms of human health. Tank pesticides filled with chemicals are becoming dinosaurs and are only recommended as a last resort to crash an infestation.”
According to the Journal of the American Medical Association, asthma is the number one cause of sick days among children nationally. Because both cockroaches and pesticide sprays exacerbate asthma, reducing pest problems while also reducing pesticide use can have a significant impact on children with asthma.
Zucker is hoping the current effort to warn Americans about the health and ecological dangers associated with pesticides will mirror the global campaign to alert people about the harmful effects of smoking.
It is illegal under Ohio law to advertise any pesticides as safe and without any side effects. “By definition pesticides are toxic, and there is no reliable documentation about its long-term effects,” adds Zucker.
Many pubic schools in Northeast Ohio have already adopted an IPM program. Among them are Beachwood, Cleveland-Heights/University Heights, Hawken, Laurel, Mayfield, Orange and South Euclid-Lyndhurst schools.
“If someone’s school is not listed, they should urge school officials to call OCAMP today to start an IPM program,” says Zucker.
“These sprays, dusts and aerosols are now applied almost universally to farms, gardens, forests, and homes n nonselective chemicals that have the power to kill every insect, the “good” and the “bad,” to still the song of birds and the leaping of fish in the streams, to coat the leaves with a deadly film, and to linger on in soil — all this though the intended target may be only a few weeds or insects. Can anyone believe it is possible to lay down such a barrage of poisons on the surface of the earth without making it unfit for all life? They should not be called “insecticides,” but “biocides.”
Rachel Carson, Silent Spring (1962)
Autism linked to pesticide sprays
Preliminary research into birth records and pesticide data reveal that mothers who were within 500 meters of fields sprayed with organ chlorine pesticides during their first trimester of pregnancy were six times more likely with have children with autism compared to mothers who did not live near such fields.
Scientists from the California Department of Public Health conducted the study. It is available online in Environmental Health and Perspectives (www.ehponline.org) titled “Maternal Residence Near Agricultural Pesticide Applications and Autism Spectrum Disorders Among Children in the California Central Valley.”
The study found that 28% of the mothers surveyed who lived near fields in Central Valley which were sprayed with so-called organ chlorines have children with autism.
- LATimes.com
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