Agriculture in Concert with the Environment. Strategic Agricultural Initiative Progress Report 2007

摘要

The Strategic Agricultural Initiative (SAI) is an innovative partnership between EPA and the agricultural community. As required by the Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA) of 1996, EPA is phasing out or reducing the risks from many toxic and persistent pesticides. As those pesticides are taken off the market, farmers need assistance adopting new reduced-risk pesticides such as biological pesticides, advanced pest monitoring, pheromone mating disruption, and other Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices. The transition to sustainable, reduced-risk practices requires that agricultural producers have access to new tools and information. In response to this need, EPAs Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) created the SAI as a pilot in 1998. The successful pilot was expanded to all ten EPA Regions in 2002, with one SAI Specialist in each Region to provide technical assistance, outreach, and to implement the SAI grant program. The program encourages bio-intensive farming practices, works with farmers to change their traditional pest management approaches, and measures the impact of those changes on human health and the environment. Biointensive farming practices are economically viable, socially responsible, and minimize the impact on human health and the environment, resulting in cleaner air, water and food. EPA funds grants to demonstrate and facilitate the adoption of pest management practices that will enable growers across the country to transition away from the use of high risk pesticides. SAI partners with pesticide users, grower groups, agricultural educators, and the research community, and passes information and data on pest management needs and economically viable, safer alternatives to OPP. SAI supports EPAs Strategic Plan through collaborative activities, outreach, and grants. Incorporating sustainability into the regulatory decision making process is consistent with EPA's goal of protecting human health and the environment from pesticide risks.