phill4paul
11-25-2016, 11:05 AM
An efficient, chilling new weapon in the urban war on rats may be swiftly meeting its demise after the government notified major cities that the use of dry ice as a rodenticide violates federal law.
The method of stuffing dry ice — frozen carbon dioxide — into burrows to suffocate rats as it sublimates from a solid to a gas proved more efficient at killing rodents and cheaper than using conventional rat poisons in cities such as Boston, Chicago and New York, which all recently launched programs to test the method.
But the Environmental Protection Agency reached out to state agencies in Illinois, Massachusetts, New York and elsewhere in recent months to make clear that federal guidelines prohibit the use of dry ice for rat abatement because the deadly treatment is not registered with the federal agency as required. The law is in place to ensure products are safe, and directions for use minimize risks to users, the public and the environment.
The revelation prompted Boston and New York to halt the use of dry ice in their rat abatement programs, while Chicago is investigating the issue. All three cities launched tests this year as urban centers around the country experienced a spike in the number of citizen complaints about rodents after a relatively warm winter.
The notifications, months after the cities first began using dry ice, highlight the complicated process of pesticide use in the USA. States enforce the federal guidelines and receive notification from the EPA if a city is in violation.
“We didn’t see this thing as a pesticide by the classic definition, because dry ice is used everywhere,” Christopher said. “You go to a nightclub and they’ll serve cocktails in a bucket of dry ice. This is not necessarily one of those logical things, it’s a regulatory issue, and we’ll respect everything they want us to do.”
The Boston's legal team is in the process of applying for an EPA permit to restart the program, Christopher said. The city recorded as much as a 95% reduction in rodent activity in areas where it deployed dry ice after it launched the pilot in April.
Chicago launched its pilot in August and immediately recorded a 60% reduction in burrows in areas it tested. The city noted that at 50 cents per pound, dry ice is far cheaper than the rat poison pellets selling for $57 per 20-pound bucket.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2016/11/23/epa-big-cities-stop-killing-rats-dry-ice/94337366/
The method of stuffing dry ice — frozen carbon dioxide — into burrows to suffocate rats as it sublimates from a solid to a gas proved more efficient at killing rodents and cheaper than using conventional rat poisons in cities such as Boston, Chicago and New York, which all recently launched programs to test the method.
But the Environmental Protection Agency reached out to state agencies in Illinois, Massachusetts, New York and elsewhere in recent months to make clear that federal guidelines prohibit the use of dry ice for rat abatement because the deadly treatment is not registered with the federal agency as required. The law is in place to ensure products are safe, and directions for use minimize risks to users, the public and the environment.
The revelation prompted Boston and New York to halt the use of dry ice in their rat abatement programs, while Chicago is investigating the issue. All three cities launched tests this year as urban centers around the country experienced a spike in the number of citizen complaints about rodents after a relatively warm winter.
The notifications, months after the cities first began using dry ice, highlight the complicated process of pesticide use in the USA. States enforce the federal guidelines and receive notification from the EPA if a city is in violation.
“We didn’t see this thing as a pesticide by the classic definition, because dry ice is used everywhere,” Christopher said. “You go to a nightclub and they’ll serve cocktails in a bucket of dry ice. This is not necessarily one of those logical things, it’s a regulatory issue, and we’ll respect everything they want us to do.”
The Boston's legal team is in the process of applying for an EPA permit to restart the program, Christopher said. The city recorded as much as a 95% reduction in rodent activity in areas where it deployed dry ice after it launched the pilot in April.
Chicago launched its pilot in August and immediately recorded a 60% reduction in burrows in areas it tested. The city noted that at 50 cents per pound, dry ice is far cheaper than the rat poison pellets selling for $57 per 20-pound bucket.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2016/11/23/epa-big-cities-stop-killing-rats-dry-ice/94337366/