thank you...
Posted on 07/12/2014 1:16:57 PM PDT by lowbridge
The peach orchards at Mitcham Farms, near the north Louisiana city of Ruston, have survived winter freezes, droughts and dangerous hail storms, but they evidently will not survive the Environmental Protection Agency and its regulations.
The family-owned business, established in 1946 and featured in tourism magazines, is Louisiana’s largest peach orchard, according to its website, but owner Joe Mitcham expects he’ll close up shop in only a few years.
The federal government’s banning of a chemical in 2005 known as methyl bromide, used to treat diseased peach trees, has really given him no choice, as most of his trees won’t survive without it.
Many of Mitcham’s trees have already died.
The EPA claims using this chemical threatens the earth’s ozone layer.
Mitcham told Watchdog the federal regulations have also forced him to downsize his business from 60 employees to 20.
“Well, with more acreage to use we would be prospering,” Mitcham said. “We had the potential to be a million dollar business, but definitely not now.”
Mitcham said he now has difficulty covering business expenses. While describing himself as upset and frustrated by the situation, Mitcham, who inherited the business from his father, is heading into retirement.
Mitcham’s children are not interested in taking on the family business, but even if they were, the land, with the federal regulations in place, can no longer grow peaches or even other types of fruit, he said.
Selling the business to another potential owner is also not an option, for obvious reasons, nor is buying land elsewhere, given the area’s high property values, Mitcham said.
EPA spokeswoman Enesta Jones told Watchdog on Wednesday that many of the agency’s experts on the subject of methyl bromide are “out of the office this week.”
(Excerpt) Read more at watchdog.org ...
The EPA claims using this chemical threatens the earth’s ozone layer.
Instead, we’ll buy peaches from countries that still use the chemical. The ozone layer won’t know the difference.
He should change is political party to rat. Then they’ll leave him be.
It only damages the ozone in the US. And only if you fail to grease the right palms. It’s settled science.
Just like when they banned R12 Refrigerant, to this day they still only say “It Might” be harmful to the Ozone Layer. When I took my Test in 1995 they said IN THE TEST “It Might” be harmful to the Ozone layer. Not much has changed ALL LIES.
The patent was about to run out, which WAS going to be harmful to DuPont's bottom line. The ban gave DuPont a monopoly on its successor.
thank you...
Sounds like old news. The article says this is the result of an international agreement from 1987 that only took effect in 2005 (making it Bush’s fault, of course).
The Wikipedia article claims that marine organisms produce 1-2 *billion* kg annually, and that industry produces 71 *million* kg annually (or a few percent of the natural production).
It goes on to say:
“Whereas the Montreal Protocol has severely restricted the use of bromomethane internationally, the United States has successfully lobbied for critical-use exemptions.[13] In 2004, over 7 million pounds of bromomethane were applied to California. Applications include tomato, strawberry, and ornamental shrub growers, and fumigation of ham/pork products. Also exempt is the treatment of solid wood packaging (forklift pallets, crates, bracing), and the packaged goods, being exported to ISPM 15 countries(to include Canada in 2012).”
Apparently Louisiana peach growers are not worthy of exemptions.
When will some of our side’s HRs and Sens stand up and say, “disregard EPA’s edicts, they are not accountable to anyone” and actually put forth a lawsuit and take it to SCOTUS if it would get that far?
I wonder if Eckerts in the St. Louis area will face the same situation.
Yup, that’s it in a nutshell. These chemicals or gases are only a problem to the environment(alists) of the world when they’re being used by white, western countries. When they’re not... spray away!
we will have to buy our peaches from China I guess
Yep that is the Obummer way.
I read things like that, and wonder if there is any hope for us.
Is he using methyl bromide for soil fumigation? can he use Dazomet granular instead?
Hate to see a man lose the farm because he can’t sell it.
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