Re: Malathion

["Carl Larkins" <carllark@olypen.com>]

Jon,

Kudos!  I wish I had thought of that.  Includung those aflicted with
asthma, emphazema, chemical sensitivies, heart disease, and on and
on......

Carl L.

-----Original Message-----
From: Jon Campbell <jon@cqs.com>
To: Multiple recipients of list DIOXIN-L <dioxin-l@essential.org>
Date: Tuesday, September 14, 1999 9:00 AM
Subject: Re: Malathion


|A possible way to stop the spraying...
|
|    The way we stopped this madness in Acton, MA (population 18,000)
is that
|in addition to building an anti-spray movement, I sent an open letter
(in
|the media) to the town official responsible for the spraying that I
would
|sue him and the town if they happened to spray when my father was
visiting
|me (at the time he was in his late 80s and had consumed alcohol
regularly in
|his earlier years, so undoubtedly had liver damage). Further, I
suggested to
|all Acton residents that they think about whether they had lost
elderly
|loved ones at the times of spraying in the past, and to sue the town
|official and the town for wrongful death.
|
|      At the next town meeting, the town official responsible for
spraying
|said that he was opposed to spraying and that he now favored IPM
(integrated
|pest management). He never spoke to me again...
|
|     The most ridiculous thing is that NYC, by hiring the homeless to
rid
|the city of mosquito-breeding media, could clean up NYC, establish
some
|semblance of cleanliness in communities that don't have the resources
to do
|so, restore some self-worth among the homeless, and save New Yorkers
from
|being poisoned. But, no, it is much more important to "solve" the
problem by
|spraying every New Yorker with nerve gas to kill the mosquitoes right
away.
|Malathion has a relatively short "life" as an effective insecticide
(it is
|persistent in the environment, however) so they will  have to spray
and
|respray and respray. This is craziness.
|
|
|Regards
|Jon
|
|----- Original Message -----
|From: Joseph R Parrish Jr <JoeParrish@CompuServe.COM>
|To: dioxin-L <dioxin-l@essential.org>
|Cc: Air-Mail <air-mail@igc.apc.org>; ENVIRONMENT-L (Cornell)
|<ENVIRONMENT-L@cornell.edu>; hcwh-south <hcwh-south@essential.org>
|Sent: Tuesday, September 14, 1999 12:13 AM
|Subject: Malathion
|
|
|> Does this look like something that should be sprayed over
|> six million people?
|> Joe Parrish
|> NY/NJ Environmental Watch
|> New York City
|>
|> New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services
|> HAZARDOUS SUBSTANCE FACT SHEET
|>
|> Common Name: MALATHION
|> CAS Number: 121-75-5
|> DOT Number: NA 2783
|> -------------------------------------------------------------------
------
|> HAZARD SUMMARY
|> * Malathion can affect you when breathed in and by
|> passing through your skin.
|> * Malathion may cause mutations. Handle with extreme
|> caution.
|> * Contact can irritate the eyes.
|> * Exposure can cause severe organophosphate poisoning
|> with headache, sweating, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea
|> and death.
|> * High or repeated exposure may damage the nerves.
|> IDENTIFICATION
|> Malathion is a yellow to deep brown liquid with a skunk-like
|> odor. It is an organophosphate insecticide available as
|> wettable powders, liquid concentrates, dusts and aerosols.
|> REASON FOR CITATION
|> * Malathion is on the Hazardous Substance List because it
|> is regulated by OSHA and cited by ACGIH, DOT, HHAG,
|> NIOSH and EPA.
|> * This chemical is on the Special Health Hazard Substance
|> List because it is a MUTAGEN.
|> * Definitions are provided on page 5.
|> HOW TO DETERMINE IF YOU ARE BEING
|> EXPOSED
|> The New Jersey Right to Know Act requires most employers
|> to label chemicals in the workplace and requires public
|> employers to provide their employees with information and
|> training concerning chemical hazards and controls. The
|> federal OSHA Hazard Communication Standard, 1910.1200,
|> requires private employers to provide similar training and
|> information to their employees.
|> * Exposure to hazardous substances should be routinely
|> evaluated. This may include collecting personal and area
|> air samples. You can obtain copies of sampling results
|> from your employer. You have a legal right to this
|> information under OSHA 1910.20.
|> * If you think you are experiencing any work-related health
|> problems, see a doctor trained to recognize occupational
|> diseases. Take this Fact Sheet with you.
|> RTK Substance number: 1150
|> Date: March 1989 Revision: April 1997
|> -------------------------------------------------------------------
------
|> WORKPLACE EXPOSURE LIMITS
|> OSHA: The legal airborne permissible exposure limit
|> (PEL) is 15 mg/m 3 averaged over an 8-hour
|> workshift.
|> NIOSH: The recommended airborne exposure limit is
|> 15 mg/m 3 averaged over a 10-hour workshift.
|> ACGIH: The recommended airborne exposure limit is
|> 10 mg/m 3 averaged over an 8-hour workshift.
|> * The above exposure limits are for air levels only. When
|> skin contact also occurs, you may be overexposed, even
|> though air levels are less than the limits listed above.
|> * Malathion may cause mutations. All contact with this
|> chemical should be reduced to the lowest possible level.
|> WAYS OF REDUCING EXPOSURE
|> * Where possible, enclose operations and use local exhaust
|> ventilation at the site of chemical release. If local exhaust
|> ventilation or enclosure is not used, respirators should be
|> worn.
|> * Wear protective work clothing.
|> * Wash thoroughly immediately after exposure to
|> Malathion and at the end of the workshift.
|> * Post hazard and warning information in the work area. In
|> addition, as part of an ongoing education and training
|> effort, communicate all information on the health and
|> safety hazards of Malathion to potentially exposed
|> workers.
|>
|
|