1st Edition

The Law and Ecology of Pesticides and Pest Management

By Mary Jane Angelo Copyright 2013

    Although concerns over the ecological impacts of pesticides gave rise to the environmental movement of the late 1960s and 1970s, since that time, pesticide use and its effects have been largely ignored by the law and by legal scholars. This book addresses this omission by providing a unique and serious treatment of the significance of pesticide issues in environmental law and takes an ecological perspective on the legal issues. Dealing with a wide range of questions relating to pests and pesticides, the book focuses primarily on agricultural pesticide use as the largest contaminator in the US. It also examines the legacy of past pesticide use and analyzes how recent developments in ecological science can inform the law and increase our understanding of ecology. Interdisciplinary in its approach, the book will be of interest to academics, lawyers, scientists and environmental and agricultural professionals.

    Series Editors’ Preface A Decade of Change in the Concept of the Ecosystem Legal Regime, Richard O. Brooks, Ross A. Virginia; Preface; Introduction; Part I Ecological Science and Policy as Applied to Pests and Pesticides; Chapter 1 Ecological Science; Chapter 2 Ecologically Related Management Tools; Chapter 3 The Ecology of Pests; Part II Agriculture and Pesticides; Chapter 4 The Agricultural Revolution and Farm Policy; Chapter 5 The History of the Control of Pests; Part III The Ecology Impacts of Pesticides; Chapter 6 The Ecological Impacts of Pesticide Use; Chapter 7 The Legacy of Past Pesticide Use: One Example; Part IV The Legal Response to Pesticides; Chapter 8 The Evolution of Domestic Law: FIFRA; Chapter 9 Other Domestic Laws that Address the Ecological Impacts of Pesticides; Chapter 10 The Special Case of Genetically Modified Crops; Chapter 11 The Failure of US Law to Address the Ecological Considerations of Pesticide Use; Chapter 12 The Conflict between Pesticide Law and Wildlife Protection Law; Chapter 13 International Perspectives on Pesticide Law and Ecology; Chapter 14 Ecologically Based Pest Management; Chapter 15 Legal and Policy Proposals to Achieve Ecologically Based Pest Management;

    Biography

    Mary Jane Angelo is a Professor of Law and Director of the University of Florida Levin College of Law Environmental and Land Use law Program. Her courses and research interests include Environmental Law, Water Law, Pesticide Law, Endangered Species Law, Agricultural Law and the integration of Law and Science. Angelo also teaches at the Vermont Law School, where she has developed and teaches a ’Pesticides and the Environment’ course and an 'Agricultural Policy and the Environment' course. Angelo has published extensively in law journals including the Harvard Environmental Law Review, Ecology Law Quarterly (Berkeley), Texas Law Review, Wake Forest Law Review, George Mason Law Review and Environmental Law, as well as in reference works published by Macmillan and Wiley. She currently is a member of two National Academies, national Research Council Committees, one of which is addressing ecological risk assessment under U.S. pesticide law and endangered species law. Angelo has a J.D. from the University of Florida, an M.S. in Entomology and Nematology from the University of Florida and a B.S. in Biological Sciences from Rutgers University. She has practiced environmental law, including pesticide law, at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the St. Johns River Water Management District in Florida.

    ’One of the most serious deficiencies in the use of pesticides under the existing law is increased pest resistance to them and the threat that this poses to sustainable agriculture. This valuable book provides a blueprint to correct this serious deficiency in pesticide regulation.’ A. Dan Tarlock, ITT Chicago-Kent College of Law, USA ’Mary Jane Angelo has written an important and much-needed book on agricultural pesticide use from an ecological perspective. Blending law, science, and policy, it provides a comprehensive history of pesticide use, its role in agriculture, and its immediate and long-term impacts on the environment.’ Alexandra B. Klass, University of Minnesota Law School, USA ’This book is an essential source for anyone seeking a keen understanding of the regulation and science of pesticide use. It also offers a clear guide to sustainable management through reforms of FIFRA, wildlife law, and agricultural subsidies. ’ Robert L. Fischman, Indiana University Maurer School of Law, USA