Genetically engineered insecticide under fire EPA's failure to track genetically engineered crops producing natural pesticides may cause the demise of organic farming and increase chemical insecticide use, according to a petition filed Sept. 16 by several environmental groups. The groups, including Greenpeace International and the Sierra Club, are asking EPA to cancel the registration for bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) until their concerns are addressed. Bt is a naturally occurring bacteria in some plants and repels specific insects. The petition calls the agency's resistance management plans inadequate for preventing the development of resistance to Bt. Current plans require farmers to plant alternating rows of crops with Bt, without the gene to limit exposure. EPA does not have resistance management plans for any other pesticide. Joseph Mendelson, legal director for petitioner International Center for Technology Assessment, a nonprofit policy group, said insects are constantiy exposed to Bt when it is inserted into crops, because the plants exude it all the time. That accelerates the potential for insects to develop widespread resistance to Bt. Using Bt crops in large quantities will destroy the natural pest control's effectiveness within 2-10 years, the petition says. Al Hire, a spokesperson for EPA's Office of Pesticide Programs, said Bt is not toxic to mammals, birds, or aquatic life, nor does it pose risks to soil, air, or water. In early 1995, EPA began registering transgenic Bt plant pesticides on a limited basis, and the first commercial plantings were in 1996. Bt crops also are endorsed by the Department of Agriculture and the Food and Drug Administration. St. Louis-based Monsanto Co. is among a handful of companies inserting the Bt gene into corn and cotton seeds and delivering the bioinsecticide through the plant. "There's no real difference between spraying it and having it as part of the plant," said James Sherman, a senior toxicologist with Solutia, formerly the chemical business of Monsanto. EPA has until mid-December to respond to petitioners, who have promised to file a lawsuit by the end of the year if the agency doesn't cancel its approval of the crops.
Heavy-duty diesel engines face controls for PM, NOx Two rulemakings announced in October will significantly reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides (NOX) and particulate matter (PM) from diesel engines and assist states in meeting new ozone and PM standards. The rulemakings are the outgrowth of two agreements signed by engine manufacturers and California and EPA officials several years ago. The first, a final standard for emissions from all heavy-duty diesel trucks and buses, requires a 50% reduction in N0X emissions from engines manufactured in 2004 and beyond. This would be accomplished by meeting a combined nonmethane hydrocarbons and N0X standard that allows manufacturers to average, bank, or trade their N0X emissions—a move expected to help keep down the costs of upgrading the engines, EPA officials say. The rule is expected to reduce annual N0X emissions by 1 million tons by 2020. A technology review in 1999 will assess industry progress in meeting the standard, which might be adjusted if industry progress is minimal. The agency is also studying the role of fuels to achieve lower emissions from heavy-duty engines. The second, a proposed rule for nonroad engines, including those in bulldozers, logging equipment, and some ships, would require manufacturers to meet progressively tighter N0 X and PM standards that would be phased in between 1999 and 2008. The proposed standards are expected to be adopted by California, which can set its own vehicle emissions levels. By 2008, EPA estimates that the proposed standards will cut N0X and particulate emissions from each engine by up to twothirds of the level of current standards. Both rules can be found at www.epa.gov/OMSWW.
First controls for medical waste incinerator emissions The first federal regulation for medical waste incinerators is expected to shut down between 50% and 80% of the estimated 2400 units operating in the United States, EPA officials predict. The long-awaited rule, proposed in February 1995, sets federal emission levels for nine air pollutants: particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, hydrochloric acid, nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, lead, cadmium, mercury, and dioxins and furans. States, which have set their own incinerator emission standards for the nine pollutants, have six months to comply with the new rule. It became effective Sept. 15, said Rick Copeland of the Office of Air Quality Planning and Standards. Incinerator manufacturers and dealers say the rule is "unreasonably tough." The high cost of testing and the operational costs of complying are likely to end incinerator production, according to Dean Robbins, president of Oregon-based Thermatec, a medical waste incinerator manufacturer. Most hospital officials say the rule is acceptable. The cost of antipollution devices ranges from $50,000 to $500,000, with a ballpark average of $200,000, said Jim McLarney, associate vice president of the American Hospital Association. As technology evolves and new tech-
5 5 0 A • VOL. 31, NO. 12, 1997 / ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY / NEWS
niques arise, hospitals will use them in greater numbers. Waste disposal companies that specialize in alternative methods are also pleased with the rule, according to Jonathan Riser, spokesperson with the Medical Waste Institute. Environmental groups believe that the rule is too weak, although only the Natural Resources Defense Council has threatened a lawsuit.
Science Advisory Board announces new chair The Science Advisory Board (SAB) has named Joan M. Daisey as its new chair. Daisey, director of the Indoor Environment Program at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, Calif., succeeds Genevieve Matanoski of Johns Hopkins University, who completed her term Sept. 31. Daisey has been on the SAB for seven years, serving as chair of the Integrated Human Exposure Assessment committee for four cUld ctS a member of the Executive Committee for the same period. Daisey's research focuses on the measurement and modeling of human exposures to toxic and carcinogenic organic compounds in indoor and outdoor air, development of new sampling and analysis methods for exposure characterization, and understanding the sources and fate of airborne pollutants.
