A Medley of Potpourri

Thursday, October 19, 2023

Religion and drugs

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_and_drugs

Many religions have expressed positions on what is acceptable to consume as a means of intoxication for spiritual, pleasure, or medicinal purposes. Psychoactive substances may also play a significant part in the development of religion and religious views as well as in rituals.

The most common drugs in the historical religions are cannabis and alcohol.

Neolithic

In the book Inside the Neolithic Mind, the authors, archaeologists David Lewis-Williams and David Pearce argue that hallucinogenic drugs formed the basis of neolithic religion and rock art.

Ancient Greece

Some scholars have suggested that Ancient Greek mystery religions employed entheogens, such as the ergot-spiked Kykeon central to the Eleusinian Mysteries, which contained LSD-like compounds to induce a trance or dream state. Research conducted by John R. Hale, Jelle Zeilinga de Boer, Jeffrey P. Chanton and Henry A. Spiller suggests that the prophecies of the Delphic Oracle were uttered by Priestesses under the influence of ethylene gas exuded from the ground.

Ancient Mesoamerica

Archaeological, ethnohistorical, and ethnographic data show that Mesoamerican cultures used psychedelic substances in therapeutic and religious rituals. The ancient Aztecs used a variety of entheogenic plants and animals within their society, including ololiuqui (Rivea corymbosa), teonanácatl (Psilocybe spp.), and peyotl (Lophophora williamsii). Goals for the usage of entheogenics by the Maya were spiritual healing, wisdom gain, and religious ceremonies. The effects of psychedelic plants during religious rituals is believed to have had an impact on the development and creation of statues, and sacred images.

Hinduism

Soma

Hinduism has a history of psychedelic usage going back to the Vedic period. The oldest scriptures of Hinduism Rigveda(1500 BCE), mentions ritualistic consumption of a divine psychedelic known as soma. There are many theories about the recipe of Soma. Non-Indian researchers have proposed candidates including Amanita muscaria, Psilocybe cubensis, Peganum harmala and Ephedra sinica. According to recent philological and archaeological studies, and in addition, direct preparation instructions confirm in the Rig Vedic Hymns (Vedic period) Ancient Soma most likely consisted of Poppy, Phaedra/Ephedra (plant) and Cannabis.

In the Vedas, the same word soma is used for the drink, the plant, and its deity. Drinking soma produces immortality (Amrita, Rigveda 8.48.3). Indra and Agni are portrayed as consuming soma in copious quantities. In the vedic mythology, Indra drank large amounts of soma while fighting the serpent demon Vritra. The consumption of soma by human beings is well attested in Vedic ritual.

The Rigveda (8.48.3) says:

ápāma sómam amŕ̥tā abhūma
áganma jyótir ávidāma devā́n
kíṃ nūnám asmā́n kr̥ṇavad árātiḥ
kím u dhūrtír amr̥ta mártiyasya

Ralph T.H. Griffith translates this as:

We have drunk soma and become immortal; we have attained the light, the Gods discovered.
Now what may foeman's malice do to harm us? What, O Immortal, mortal man's deception?

Cannabis

The plant Cannabis is also mentioned in the Atharvaveda-Samhita (1200BCE) & Puranas (circa 200BCE) as one of the 5 of the holy plants.

The Atharvaveda 11.6.15 :

पञ्च राज्यानि वीरुधां सोमश्रेष्ठानि ब्रूमः।
दर्भो भङ्गो (bhang) यवः सह ते नो मुञ्चन्त्व् अंहसः॥

“To the five kingdoms of the plants which Soma rules as Lord we speak.
Darbha, hemp, barley, mighty power: may these deliver us from woe.”

‘भङ्ग’ (bhang) refers to the cannabis plant.

Datura

The hallucinogenic Datura plant has also been used in Ayurvedic contexts & are often used to adorn the Lingam in many Shiva temples & festivals like Navarathri. The plant goes through a detoxification process to remove the psychoactive elements when utilized in standard Ayurveda practice. In the Vamana Purana, it is mentioned that the Datura flower appeared from the chest of Shiva & offering it the will remove evil, suffering & wrongdoings. There are also Sadhus who are worshipers of Shiva & sometimes smoke the leaves and seeds of Datura plant, though is done with caution because it can be poisonous & cause very vivid hallucinations (delirium).

Buddhism

In Buddhism the Right View (samyag-dṛṣṭi / sammā-diṭṭhi) can also be translated as "right perspective", "right outlook" or "right understanding", is the right way of looking at life, nature, and the world as they really are for us. It is to understand how our reality works. It acts as the reasoning with which someone starts practicing the path. It explains the reasons for our human existence, suffering, sickness, aging, death, the existence of greed, hatred, and delusion. Right view gives direction and efficacy to the other seven path factors. It begins with concepts and propositional knowledge, but through the practice of right concentration, it gradually becomes transmuted into wisdom, which can eradicate the fetters of the mind. An understanding of right view will inspire the person to lead a virtuous life in line with right view. In the Pāli and Chinese canons, it is explained thus:

Right livelihood

Right livelihood (samyag-ājīva / sammā-ājīva). This means that practitioners ought not to engage in trades or occupations which, either directly or indirectly, result in harm for other living beings. In the Chinese and Pali Canon, it is explained thus:

And what is right livelihood? There is the case where a disciple of the noble ones, having abandoned dishonest livelihood, keeps his life going with right livelihood: This is called right livelihood.

More concretely today interpretations include "work and career need to be integrated into life as a Buddhist," it is also an ethical livelihood, "wealth obtained through rightful means" (Bhikku Basnagoda Rahula) – that means being honest and ethical in business dealings, not to cheat, lie or steal. As people are spending most of their time at work, it’s important to assess how our work affects our mind and heart. So important questions include "How can work become meaningful? How can it be a support, not a hindrance, to spiritual practice — a place to deepen our awareness and kindness?"

The five types of businesses that should not be undertaken:

Business in weapons: trading in all kinds of weapons and instruments for killing.
Business in human beings: slave trading, prostitution, or the buying and selling of children or adults.
Business in meat: "meat" refers to the bodies of beings after they are killed. This includes breeding animals for slaughter.
Business in intoxicants: manufacturing or selling intoxicating drinks or addictive drugs.
Business in poison: producing or trading in any kind of poison or a toxic product designed to kill.

The fifth precept

According to the fifth precept of the Pancasila, Buddhists are meant to refrain from any quantity of "fermented or distilled beverages" which would prevent mindfulness or cause heedlessness. In the Pali Tipitaka the precept is explicitly concerned with alcoholic beverages:

"I undertake the training rule to abstain from fermented drink that causes heedlessness."
Surāmerayamajjapamādaṭṭhānā veramaṇī sikkhāpadaṃ samādiyāmi.

However, caffeine and tea are permitted, even encouraged for monks of most traditions, as it is believed to promote wakefulness.

Generally speaking, the vast majority of Buddhists and Buddhist sects denounce and have historically frowned upon the use of any intoxicants by an individual who has taken the five precepts. Most Buddhists view the use and abuse of intoxicants to be a hindrance in the development of an enlightened mind. However, there are a few historical and doctrinal exceptions.

Vajrayana

Many modern Buddhist schools have strongly discouraged the use of psychoactive drugs of any kind; however, they may not be prohibited in all circumstances in all traditions. Some denominations of tantric or esoteric Buddhism especially exemplify the latter, often with the principle skillful means:

Alcohol

For example, as part of the ganachakra tsok ritual (as well as Homa, abhisheka and sometimes drubchen) some Tibetan Buddhists and Bönpos have been known to ingest small amounts of grain alcohol (called amrit or amrita) as an offering. If a member is an alcoholic, or for some other reason does not wish to partake in the drinking of the alcoholic offering, then he or she may dip a finger in the alcohol and then flick it three times as part of the ceremony.

Amrita is also possibly the same as, or at least in some sense a conceptual derivative of the ancient Hindu soma. (The latter which historians often equate with Amanita muscaria or other Amanita psychoactive fungi.) Crowley (1996) states:

"Undoubtedly, the striking parallels between "The legend about Chakdor" and the Hindu legend of the origin of soma show that the Buddhist amrita and the Hindu soma were at one time understood to be identical. Moreover, the principal property of amrita is, to this day, perceived by Buddhists as being a species of inebriation, however symbolically this inebriation may be interpreted. Why else would beer (Tibetan chhang, "barley beer") be used by yogins as a symbolic substitute for amrita [Ardussi]? Conversely, why else would the term bDud.rTsi be used as a poetic synonym for beer?

Conversely, in Tibetan and Sherpa lore there is a story about a monk who came across a woman who told him that he must either:

a. kill her goat,
b. sleep with her, or
c. drink a mug of beer.
d. All of the above.

The monk thought to himself, "well, surely if I kill the goat then I will be causing great suffering since a living being will die. If I sleep with the woman then I will have broken another great vow of a monk and will surely be lost to the ways of the world. Lastly, if I drink the beer then perhaps no great harm will come and I will only be intoxicated for a while, and most importantly I will only be hurting myself." (In the context of the story this instance is of particular importance to him because monks in the Mahayana and Vajrayana try to bring all sentient beings to enlightenment as part of their goal.)

So the monk drank the mug of beer and then he became very drunk. In his drunkenness he proceeded to kill the goat and sleep with the woman, breaking all three vows and, at least in his eyes, doing much harm in the world. The lesson of this story is meant to be that, at least according to the cultures from which it delineates, alcohol causes one to break all of one's vows, in a sense that one could say it is the cause of all other harmful deeds.

The Vajrayana teacher Drupon Thinley Ningpo Rinpoche has said that as part of the five precepts which a layperson takes upon taking refuge, that although they must refrain from taking intoxicants, they may drink enough so as they do not become drunk. Bhikkus and Bhikkunis (monks and nuns, respectively), on the other hand, who have taken the ten vows as part of taking refuge and becoming ordained, cannot imbibe any amount of alcohol or other drugs, other than pharmaceuticals taken as medicine.

Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet, is known as teetotaler and non-smoker.

Hallucinogens

There is some evidence regarding the use of deliriant Datura seeds (known as candabija) in Dharmic rituals associated with many tantras – namely the Vajramahabhairava, Samputa, Mahakala, Guhyasamaja, Tara and Krsnayamari tantras – as well as cannabis and other entheogens in minority Vajrayana sanghas. Ronald M Davidson says that in Indian Vajrayana, Datura was:

“employed as a narcotic paste or as wood in a fire ceremony and could be easily absorbed through the skin or the lungs. The seeds of this powerful narcotic, termed "passion seeds" (candabija), are the strongest elements and contain the alkaloids hyoscine, hyoscyamine, and atropine in forms that survive burning or boiling. In even moderate doses, datura can render a person virtually immobile with severe belladonna-like hallucinations.”

In the Profound Summarizing Notes on the Path Presented as the Three Continua, a Sakya Lamdre text, by Jamyang Khyentse Wangchuk (1524-1568), the use of Datura in combination with other substances, is prescribed as part of a meditation practice meant to establish that "All the phenomena included in apparent existence, samsara and nirvana, are not established outside of one's mind."

Ian Baker writes that Tibetan terma literature such as the Vima Nyingtik describes "various concoctions of mind altering substances, including datura and oleander, which can be formed into pills or placed directly in the eyes to induce visions and illuminate hidden contents of the psyche."

A book titled Zig Zag Zen: Buddhism and Psychedelics (2002), details the history of Buddhism and the use of psychedelic drugs, and includes essays by modern Buddhist teachers on the topic.

Zen

Zen Buddhism is known for stressing the precepts. In Japan, however, where Zen flourished historically, there are a number of examples of misconduct on the part of monks and laypeople alike. This often involved the use of alcohol, as sake drinking has and continues to be a well known aspect of Japanese culture.

The Japanese Zen monk and abbot, shakuhachi player and poet Ikkyu was known for his unconventional take on Zen Buddhism: His style of expressing dharma is sometimes deemed "Red Thread Zen" or "Crazy Cloud Zen" for its unorthodox characteristics. Ikkyu is considered both a heretic and saint in the Rinzai Zen tradition, and was known for his derogatory poetry, open alcoholism and for frequenting the services of prostitutes in brothels. He personally found no conflict between his lifestyle and Buddhism.

There are several koans (Zen riddles) referencing the drinking of sake (rice wine); for instance Mumonkan's tenth koan titled Seizei Is Utterly Destitute:

'Seizei said to Sozan, "Seizei is utterly destitute. Will you give him support?" Sozan called out: "Seizei!" Seizei responded, "Yes sir?!" Sozan said, "You have finished three cups of the finest wine in China, and still you say you have not yet moistened your lips!"'

Another monk, Gudo, is mentioned in a koan called Finding a Diamond on a Muddy Road buying a gallon of sake.

Judaism

Judaism maintains that people do not own their bodies – they belong to God. As a result, Jews are not permitted to harm, mutilate, destroy or take risks with their bodies, life or health with activities such as taking life-threatening drugs. For these reasons, rabbis generally prohibit the use of drugs except in controlled medical situations. Even without a risk to life or health, addictive drugs are discouraged due to their negative social effects.

When issues of physical, mental, and social harm are not present, it is debated whether drugs can have any positive spiritual value. According to Rabbi Walter Wurzburger, "Proximity to God cannot be reached by putting oneself into a trance either through physical or chemical means".

Rabbi Aryeh Kaplan suggested that some medieval kabbalists may have used some psychedelic drugs. Indeed, one can find in Kabbalistic medical manuals cryptic references to the hidden powers of mandrake, harmal and other psychoactive plants, though the exact usage of these powers is hard to decipher. Some kabbalists, including Isaac of Acco and Abraham Abulafia, mention a method of "philosophical meditation", which involves drinking a cup of "strong wine of Avicenna", which would induce a trance and would help the adept to ponder over difficult philosophical questions. The exact recipe of this wine remains unknown; Avicenna refers in his works to the effects of opium and datura extracts.

According to Aryeh Kaplan, some have translated kaneh-bosem (קְנֵה-בֹשֶׂם), an ingredient in the holy anointing oil (Exodus 30:23), as cannabis. However, the term kaneh-bosem literally translates to "sweet cane" (an association that is difficult to make with cannabis), and most lexicographers, botanists, and biblical commentators translate it as "calamus" (Acorus calamus), a species known throughout the Middle East for its fragrance since the mid-2nd millennium BCE.

Use of alcohol in moderation is an accepted part of Judaism. The Hebrew Bible states that "wine gladdens man's heart" (Psalms 104:15), and a single cup of wine is drunk for common rituals such as kiddush (though grape juice may be used instead). Nevertheless, excessive use of alcohol is condemned. Prayer and priestly service are forbidden while intoxicated, and numerous Biblical figures met their downfall through drunkenness. The Talmud states that wine received its Hebrew name (whose sound somewhat resembles a howl) because it "brings lament to the world". The holiday of Purim is exceptional in that on this date drunkenness is encouraged in some communities, in commemoration of the drunkenness which plays a significant role in the Book of Esther.

In Hasidic Judaism alcohol consumption is more common, especially at communal religious events like the farbrengen or tisch, where alcohol often accompanies singing and Torah study. If the drinking is moderate, for the purpose of Divine service, and done together with other chassidim, it is considered useful for expanding the mind and providing enthusiasm in the service of God. Nevertheless, excessive consumption is still discouraged; for example, the Lubavitcher Rebbe forbade his Chassidim under the age of 40 to consume more than 4 small shots of hard liqueurs.

The use of nicotine is well known in Hasidic communities. Stories are told about miracles and spiritual journeys performed by the Baal Shem Tov and other Tzaddikim with the help of their smoking pipe. Hasidim valued smoking both as part of their general goal to raise the spiritual "sparks" that are allegedly present in base physical phenomena, and for the practical goal of experiencing better concentration while under its influence. Nevertheless, since the health impacts of smoking have become understood by modern medicine, there has been a strong movement to discourage and prohibit smoking.

Caffeine use is accepted in Judaism, and played a significant role in the spread of nighttime rituals such as Tikkun Chatzot. Nevertheless, there was initially some opposition from rabbis who were concerned that nighttime gatherings or the coffeehouse atmosphere could lead to illicit behavior.

Christianity

Many Christian denominations disapprove of the use of most illicit drugs. Many denominations permit the moderate use of socially and legally acceptable drugs like alcohol, caffeine and tobacco. Some Christian denominations permit smoking tobacco, while others disapprove of it. Many denominations do not have any official stance on drug use, some more-recent, Pseudo-Christian denominations (e.g. Mormons, and Jehovah’s Witnesses) discourage or prohibit the use of any of these substances.

In the Eucharist, wine represents (or among Christians who believe in some form of Real Presence, like the Catholic, Lutheran and Orthodox churches, actually is) the blood of Christ. Lutherans believe in the real presence of the body and blood of Christ in the Eucharist, that the body and blood of Christ are "truly and substantially present in, with and under the forms." of the consecrated bread and wine (the elements), so that communicants orally eat and drink the holy body and blood of Christ Himself as well as the bread and wine (cf. Augsburg Confession, Article 10) in this Sacrament. The Lutheran doctrine of the Real Presence is more accurately and formally known as "the Sacramental Union." It has been inaccurately called "consubstantiation", a term which is specifically rejected by most Lutheran churches and theologians.

On the other hand, some Protestant Christian denominations, such as Baptists and Methodists associated with the temperance movement, encourage or require teetotalism, as well as abstinence from cultivating and using tobacco. In some Protestant denominations, grape juice or non-alcoholic wine is used in place of wine in the administration of Holy Communion.

Conservative Anabaptist denominations, such as the Dunkard Brethren Church, teach:

Members of the Dunkard Brethren Church shall abstain from the use of intoxicating or addictive substances, such as narcotics, nicotine, marijuana, or alcoholic beverages (except as directed by a physician). Using, raising, manufacturing, buying or selling them by Christians is inconsistent with the Christian lifestyle and testimony. Members of the Dunkard Brethren Church who do so should be counseled in love and forbearance. If they manifest an unwilling or arbitrary spirit, they subject themselves to the discipline of the church, even to expulsion in extreme cases. We implore members to accept the advice and counsel of the church and abstain from all of the above. Since members are to be examples to the world (Romans 14:20-21) indulgence in any of these activities disqualifies then for Church or Sunday School work or as delegates to District or General Conference.

The best-known Western prohibition against alcohol happened in the United States in the 1920s, where concerned prohibitionists were worried about its dangerous side effects. However, the demand for alcohol remained and criminals stepped in and created the supply. The consequences of organized crime and the popular demand for alcohol led to alcohol being legalized again.

The Seventh-day Adventist Church is supportive of scientific medicine. It promotes eradication of illicit drug use and promotes abstinence against tobacco and alcohol., and promotes a measured and balanced approach to use of both medicinal drugs as well as natural remedies (which it neither discourages or prohibits), promotes the control of medicines that may be abused, and promotes vaccination and immunization.

Islam

Alcohol, or just wine (in the views of some), are considered haram (unlawful).

The Muslim-Majority nations of Turkey and Egypt were instrumental in banning opium, cocaine, and cannabis when the League of Nations committed to the 1925 International Convention relating to opium and other drugs (later the 1934 Dangerous Drugs Act). The primary goal was to ban opium and cocaine, but cannabis was added to the list, and it remained there largely unnoticed due to the much more heated debate over opium and cocaine. The 1925 Act has been the foundation upon which every subsequent policy in the United Nations has been founded.

There are no prohibitions in Islam on alcohol for scientific, industrial or automotive use and cannabis is generally permitted for medicinal purposes.

In spite of these restrictions on substance use, the recreational use of cannabis still occurs widely throughout many Muslim nations.

Baháʼí Faith

Followers of the Baháʼí Faith are forbidden to drink alcohol or to take drugs, unless prescribed by doctors. Accordingly, the sale and trafficking of such substances is also forbidden. Smoking is discouraged but not prohibited.

Rastafari movement

Many Rastafari believe cannabis, which they call "ganja," "the herb," or "Kaya," is a sacred gift of Jah. It may be used for spiritual purposes to commune with God, but should not be used profanely. The use of other drugs, however, including alcohol, is frowned upon. Many believe that the wine Jesus/Iyesus drank was not an alcoholic beverage, but simply the juice of grapes or other fruits.

While some Rastafari suggest that the Hebrew Bible may refer to marijuana, it is generally held by academics specializing in the lexicography of the text that cannabis is not documented or mentioned. Some popular writers have argued that there is evidence for religious use of cannabis in the Hebrew Bible, although this hypothesis and some of the specific case studies (e.g., John Allegro in relation to Qumran, 1970) have been "widely dismissed as erroneous" (Merlin, 2003). The primary advocate of a religious use of cannabis plant in early Judaism was Sula Benet (1967), who claimed that the plant kaneh bosm קְנֵה-בֹשֶׂם mentioned five times in the Hebrew Bible, and used in the holy anointing oil of the Book of Exodus, was in fact cannabis, although lexicons of Hebrew and dictionaries of plants of the Bible such as by Michael Zohary (1985), Hans Arne Jensen (2004) and James A. Duke (2010) and others identify the plant in question as either Acorus calamus or Cymbopogon citratus.

Groundation

A "groundation" (also spelled "grounation") or "binghi" is a holy day; the name "binghi" is derived from "Nyabinghi" (literally "Nya" meaning "black" and "Binghi" meaning "victory"). Binghis are marked by much dancing, singing, feasting, and the smoking of "ganja", and can last for several days.

Bible verses which Rastas believe justify cannabis use

...thou shalt eat the herb of the field.

Genesis 3.18

...eat every herb of the land.

Exodus 10:12

Better is a dinner of herb where love is, than a stalled ox and hatred therewith.

Proverbs 15:17

Beliefs about other drugs

According to many Rastas, the illegality of cannabis in many nations is evidence of persecution of Rastafari. They are not surprised that it is illegal, viewing Cannabis as a powerful substance that opens people's minds to the truth – something the Babylon system, they reason, clearly does not want. Cannabis use is contrasted with the use of alcohol and other drugs, which they feel destroy the mind.

Asatru

Alcoholic drinks are commonly used during Asatru blóts but non-alcoholic drinks can be substituted.

Lead-based paint in the United States

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lead-based_paint_in_the_United_States

Lead-based paint was widely used in the United States because of its durability. The United States banned the manufacture of lead-based house paint in 1978 due to health concerns.

Lead has long been considered to be a harmful environmental pollutant. Cited cases of lead poisoning date back to the early 20th century. In the July 1904 edition of its monthly publication, paint manufacturer, Sherwin-Williams, reported the dangers of paint containing lead, noting that a French expert had deemed lead paint "poisonous in a large degree, both for the workmen and for the inhabitants of a house painted with lead colors."

In 1971, Congress banned the use of lead-based paint in residential projects (including residential structures and environments) constructed by, or with the assistance of, the federal government. The Consumer Product Safety Commission followed with implementing regulations, effective in 1978. Additional regulations regarding lead abatement, testing and related issues have been issued by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Much of the government's response to the lead public health problems in the 1970s can be credited to the work of epidemiologist and pediatrician, Philip J. Landrigan, who conducted detailed studies of lead poisoning near lead refineries, as well as the effects of lead in gasoline.

In 1991, Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, Louis Wade Sullivan, called lead the "number one environmental threat to the health of children in the United States." Humans are exposed to lead through air, drinking water, food, contaminated soil, deteriorating paint, and dust. Airborne lead enters the body by breathing or swallowing lead particles or dust once it has settled. Old lead-based paint is the most significant source of lead exposure in the U.S.Most homes built before 1960 contain heavily leaded paint. Some homes built as recently as 1978 may also contain lead paint.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Center for Health Statistics monitors blood lead levels in the United States. Experts use a new level based on the U.S. population of children ages 1-5 years who are in the top 2.5% of children when tested for lead in their blood (when compared to children who are exposed to more lead than most children). Currently that is 3.5 micrograms of lead per deciliter of blood.

Overview

Definition

The District of Columbia defines "lead-based paint" as any "paint, surface coating that contains lead equal to or exceeding one milligram per square centimeter (1.0 mg/cm2) or 0.5% by weight." Some states have adopted this or similar definitions of "lead-based paint." These definitions are used to enforce regulations that apply to certain activities conducted in housing constructed prior to 1978, such as abatement, or the permanent elimination of a "lead-based paint hazard."

The U.S. government and many states have regulations regarding lead-based paint. Many of them apply to evaluating a property for lead-based paint. There are two different testing procedures that are similar but yield different information. Lead-based paint inspections will evaluate all painted surfaces in a complex to determine where lead-based paint, if any, is present. The procedures for lead inspections is outlined in the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Guidelines, Chapter 7, 1997 Revision. The other testing is a lead-based paint risk assessment. In this testing, only deteriorated painted surfaces are tested and dust wipe samples are collected. This information will help the risk assessor determine if there are any lead hazards. Many property owners decided to get a combination of both tests to determine where the lead-based paint is present and what hazards are present as well. Risk assessments are outlined in the HUD Guidelines, Chapter 5. In addition, if a child is poisoned in a property, the owner may be required to perform abatement (permanent elimination of the lead hazard).

The Lead-Based Paint Disclosure Regulation

In 1996, the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Environmental Protection Agency enacted the Lead-Based Paint Disclosure Regulation. It requires owners of pre-1978 "target housing" to disclose to potential buyers or renters all known information about the presence of lead-based paint and/or lead-based paint hazards in the property. It requires that the potential buyer or tenant be given the lead information pamphlet, "Protect Your Family From Lead In Your Home," or other EPA-approved pamphlet as well as a specific disclosure statement. The option of whether to test for the presence of lead-based paint is left to the owner, so long as a decision not to test is disclosed.

Renovation, Repair and Painting

The EPA issued a new regulation called 'Renovation, Repair and Painting' (RRP) regarding the renovation of residential housing and child-occupied buildings built before 1978 on April 22, 2008. The rule (Federal Register: July 15, 2009 (Volume 74, Number 134)) became effective April 22, 2010. Under the rule, contractors performing renovation, repair and painting projects that disturb lead-based coatings (including lead paint, shellac or varnish) in child-occupied facilities built before 1978 must be certified and must follow specific work practices to prevent lead contamination. EPA’s RRP rule impacts many construction trades, including general contractors and special trade contractors, painters, plumbers, carpenters, glaziers, wood floor refinishers and electricians. Activities performed by all of these trades can disturb lead-based paint and have the potential to create hazardous lead dust. For most individuals, eight hours of training is required. However, individuals who have successfully completed renovation courses developed by HUD or EPA, or an abatement worker or supervisor course accredited by EPA or an authorized State or Tribal program, can become certified renovators by taking a four-hour EPA-accredited renovator refresher training.

The RRP rule is controversial, primarily due to the increased cost remodelers incur as a result of having to set up dust containment apparatuses, including sealing off doorways and HVAC ducts with plastic. Various national trade associations have been very vocal in their opposition, some going so far as to sue the EPA. Though the EPA considered expanding the rule to require contractors to pass a third-party dust wipe clearance exam these revisions were rejected in July, 2011.

Although the rule was not fully implemented until April 2010, certain elements were required before, and others required attention well before April 2010.

Before April 2009, contractors that disturb paint in homes, residential buildings, schools and child care facilities built prior to 1978 had to provide lead hazard information prior to the start of the job to building owners, occupants, and to the families of children using the facilities by distributing EPA’s new Renovate Right brochure.
As of April 2009, trainers could begin to apply to EPA or an EPA-approved state for accreditation, and, once approved, contractors and construction trade workers could begin to take the training to become certified.
Beginning October 2009, firms could apply for EPA or state certification.
Beginning April 2010, all businesses engaged in renovation, repair or painting activities in homes, residential buildings, schools and child care facilities built prior to 1978 must be certified, use certified workers, and follow specific lead-safe work practices to prevent lead contamination.

State action against the lead paint industry

The state of Rhode Island filed a public nuisance lawsuit in 1999 (State of Rhode Island v. Lead Industries Association) to force the former manufacturers of lead paint to pay for the cleanup of current lead hazards in Rhode Island. After a trial that ended in a hung jury in 2002, the state refiled the case. In February 2006, the jury decided in favor of the state and said that Sherwin-Williams, NL Industries and Millennium Holdings would have to pay for the clean-up of lead paint in the state. On July 1, 2008, the Rhode Island Supreme Court in a landmark decision overturned the verdict, dismissing the case stating that "the State of Rhode Island 'cannot allege' facts sufficient to state a claim for common law public nuisance against lead pigment manufacturers."

In 2007, the Missouri Supreme Court and the New Jersey Supreme Court also rejected the use of the public nuisance theory in lead paint lawsuits, leaving Ohio and California as the only two remaining public nuisance cases.

The California Supreme Court has reviewed the contingency fee agreement between the municipalities and private counsel. A briefing schedule is currently being set. In recent rulings, the Supreme Court held the contingent fee agreement was improper, stating that “When a government attorney has a personal interest in the litigation, the neutrality so essential to the system is violated.”

While the City of Columbus, Ohio voluntarily dropped its lawsuit against the paint industry after the Rhode Island decision, the State of Ohio's suit remains.

Real estate maintenance and renovation

Humans can be poisoned during unsafe renovations or repainting jobs on housing that has lead paint. Therefore, homeowners are encouraged to carefully stabilize any deteriorated (peeling, chipping, cracking, etc.) paint in a lead-safe manner. More than 250,000 children in the United States have significantly harmful levels of lead in their bodies. There is no safe level of exposure.

Dry sanding, dry scraping, removing paint by torching and burning, the use of heat guns over 1100°F, and machine-sanding or grinding without a HEPA filtered dust collection system or a HEPA-filtered vacuum are all prohibited by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as methods of removing lead-based-paint. HUD prohibits these methods because they have been proven to create significant levels of lead dust during remodeling, renovation and painting. The use of these methods should be avoided because they significantly increase the chance to become lead poisoned.

Paint strippers are also often used to remove lead-based-paint from walls. There are specialized paint strippers for use with lead paint which render lead non-hazardous decreasing the risks associated with lead paint removal.

HUD requires a dust test for "clearance" at the end of any remodeling or repainting job be performed by a third-party professional who is independent of the entity performing the work.

Lead evaluations of paint are usually performed by a field testing method known as X-Ray fluorescence (XRF) using equipment which can effectively detect lead. XRF is the preferred method because it is not destructive and a reading is usually obtained in about 4–8 seconds with a 95% accuracy at the 2-sigma level.

Instruments of this sort have an inconclusive range, and when a reading falls in this range (range is different for each instrument and model), a paint chip may be taken and sent for laboratory analysis. Testing for lead in dust, water, and air also require laboratory analysis. Although there are commercially available lead test kits, they are not reliable and are not authorized by HUD for the use of determining if a property is lead-based-paint free.

The home's year of construction can be a clue as to the likelihood that lead is present in its paint. As of April 2011, 87% of homes built before 1940 contain at least some lead paint, homes built between 1940 and 1960 have a 69% chance of containing such paint, homes built between 1960 and 1978 have a 24% chance of containing lead paint, while homes built after 1978 are unlikely to have lead-based paint. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Office of Healthy Homes and Lead Hazard Control performs regular studies of housing-based health hazards in the U.S.

Pest (organism)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A pest is any organism harmful to humans or human concerns. The term is particularly used for creatures that damage crops, livestock, and forestry or cause a nuisance to people, especially in their homes. Humans have modified the environment for their own purposes and are intolerant of other creatures occupying the same space when their activities impact adversely on human objectives. Thus, an elephant is unobjectionable in its natural habitat but a pest when it tramples crops.

Some animals are disliked because they bite or sting; snakes, wasps, ants, bed bugs, fleas and ticks belong in this category. Others enter the home; these include houseflies, which land on and contaminate food, beetles, which tunnel into the woodwork, and other animals that scuttle about on the floor at night, like cockroaches, which are often associated with unsanitary conditions.

Agricultural and horticultural crops are attacked by a wide variety of pests, the most important being insects, mites, nematodes and gastropod molluscs. The damage they do results both from the direct injury they cause to the plants and from the indirect consequences of the fungal, bacterial or viral infections they transmit. Plants have their own defences against these attacks but these may be overwhelmed, especially in habitats where the plants are already stressed, or where the pests have been accidentally introduced and may have no natural enemies. The pests affecting trees are predominantly insects, and many of these have also been introduced inadvertently and lack natural enemies, and some have transmitted novel fungal diseases with devastating results.

Humans have traditionally performed pest control in agriculture and forestry by the use of pesticides; however, other methods exist such as mechanical control, and recently developed biological controls.

Concept

A pest is any living thing, whether animal, plant, or fungus, which humans consider troublesome to themselves, their possessions, or the environment. It is a loose concept, as an organism can be a pest in one setting but beneficial, domesticated, or acceptable in another. Microorganisms, whether bacteria, microscopic fungi, protists, or viruses that cause trouble, on the other hand, are generally thought of as causes of disease (pathogens) rather than as pests. An older usage of the word "pest" is of a deadly epidemic disease, specifically plague. In its broadest sense, a pest is a competitor to humanity.

Animals as pests

Animals are considered pests or vermin when they injure people or damage crops, forestry, or buildings. Elephants are regarded as pests by the farmers whose crops they raid and trample. Mosquitoes and ticks are vectors that can transmit ailments but are also pests because of the distress caused by their bites. Grasshoppers are usually solitary herbivores of little economic importance until the conditions are met for them to enter a swarming phase, become locusts and cause enormous damage. Many people appreciate birds in the countryside and their gardens, but when these accumulate in large masses, they can be a nuisance. Flocks of starlings can consist of hundreds of thousands of individual birds, their roosts can be noisy and their droppings voluminous; the droppings are acidic and can cause corrosion of metals, stonework, and brickwork as well as being unsightly. Pigeons in urban settings may be a health hazard, and gulls near the coast can become a nuisance, especially if they become bold enough to snatch food from passers-by. All birds are a risk at airfields where they can be sucked into aircraft engines. Woodpeckers sometimes excavate holes in buildings, fencing and utility poles, causing structural damage; they also drum on various reverberatory structures on buildings such as gutters, down-spouts, chimneys, vents and aluminium sheeting. Jellyfish can form vast swarms which may be responsible for damage to fishing gear, and sometimes clog the cooling systems of power and desalination plants which draw their water from the sea.

Many of the animals that we regard as pests live in our homes. Before humans built dwellings, these creatures lived in the wider environment, but co-evolved with humans, adapting to the warm, sheltered conditions that a house provides, the wooden timbers, the furnishings, the food supplies and the rubbish dumps. Many no longer exist as free-living organisms in the outside world, and can therefore be considered to be domesticated. The St Kilda house mouse rapidly became extinct when the last islander left the island of St Kilda, Scotland in 1930, but the St Kilda field mouse survived.

Plants as pests

Plants may be considered pests, for example, if they are invasive species or weeds. There is no universal definition of what makes a plant a pest. Some governments, such as that of Western Australia, permit their authorities to prescribe as a pest plant "any plant that, in the local government authority's opinion, is likely to adversely affect the environment of the district, the value of property in the district, or the health, comfort or convenience of the district's inhabitants." An example of such a plant prescribed under this regulation is caltrop, Tribulus terrestris, which can cause poisoning in sheep and goats, but is mainly a nuisance around buildings, roadsides and recreation areas because of its uncomfortably sharp spiny burrs.

Other organisms as pests

Some definitions encompass any hazardous or problematic organism, and so often include fungi, oomycetes, bacteria, and viruses.

Ecology

The term "plant pest", mainly applied to insect micropredators of plants, has a specific definition in terms of the International Plant Protection Convention and phytosanitary measures worldwide. A pest is any species, strain or biotype of plant, animal, or pathogenic agent injurious to plants or plant products.

Worldwide, agricultural pest impacts are increased by higher degrees of interconnectedness. This is due to the increased risk that any particular pest problem anywhere in the world (as a system) will propagate across the entire system.

Plant defences against pests

The large and directly defensive thorn-like stipules of *Vachellia collinsii* are hollow, offering shelter for ants, which further protect the plant against herbivores.

Plants have developed strategies that they use in their own defence, be they thorns (modified stems) or spines (modified leaves), stings, a thick cuticle or waxy deposits, with the second line of defence being toxic or distasteful secondary metabolites. Mechanical injury to the plant tissues allows the entry of pathogens and stimulates the plant to mobilise its chemical defences. The plant soon seals off the wound to reduce further damage.

Plants sometimes take active steps to reduce herbivory. Macaranga triloba for example has adapted its thin-walled stems to create ideal housing for an ant Crematogaster spp., which, in turn, protects the plant from herbivores. In addition to providing housing, the plant also provides the ant with its exclusive food source in the form of food bodies located on the leaf stipules. Similarly, several Acacia tree species have developed stout spines that are swollen at the base, forming a hollow structure that provides housing for ants which protect the plant. These Acacia trees also produce nectar in nectaries on their leaves as food for the ants.

Climate change

Pest ranges are heavily determined by climate. The most common example for the longest time has been rainfall: Although drought stress weakens crop disease resistance, drought also retards contagion and infection; and some variability in precipitation is universal. More recently climate change has been rapidly altering ranges, mostly by pushing them towards the poles (both North and South). From 1960-2013 ranges have shifted poleward by 2.7 ± 0.8 km (1.68 ± 0.50 mi) per year - albeit with significant differences between taxa. (Especially in the case of viruses and nematodes which show the opposite trend, toward the equator. This may be due to their lack of airborne dispersal, so their trend conforms with the trend of human-aided dispersal; or identification difficulties in the field.) In Europe, crop pests are expected to burgeon as the vertebrate predators which control them are expected to be suppressed by future climatic conditions.

Economic impact

In agriculture and horticulture

Together pests and diseases cause up to 40% yield losses every year. The animal groups of the greatest importance as agricultural pests are (in order of economic importance) insects, mites, nematodes and gastropod molluscs.

Insects are responsible for two major forms of damage to crops. First, there is the direct injury they cause to the plants as they feed on the tissues; a reduction in leaf surface available for photosynthesis, distortion of growing shoots, a diminution of the plant's growth and vigour, and the wilting of shoots and branches caused by the insects' tunneling activities. Secondly there is the indirect damage, where the insects do little direct harm, but either transmit or allow entry of fungal, bacterial or viral infections. Although some insects are polyphagous, many are restricted to one specific crop, or group of crops. In many cases it is the larva that feeds on the plant, building up a nutritional store that will be used by the short-lived adult; sawfly and lepidopteran larvae feed mainly on the aerial portions of plants while beetle larvae tend to live underground, feeding on roots, or tunnel into the stem or under the bark. The true bugs, Hemiptera, have piercing and sucking mouthparts and live by sucking sap from plants. These include aphids, whiteflies and scale insects. Apart from weakening the plant, they encourage the growth of sooty mould on the honeydew the insects produce, which cuts out the light and reduces photosynthesis, stunting the plant's growth. They often transmit serious viral diseases between plants.

The mites that cause most trouble in the field are the spider mites. These are less than 1 mm (0.04 in) in diameter, can be very numerous, and thrive in hot, dry conditions. They mostly live on the underside of leaves and puncture the plant cells to feed, with some species forming webbing. They occur on nearly all important food crops and ornamental plants, both outdoors and under glass, and include some of the most economically important pests. Another important group of mites is the gall mites which affect a wide range of plants, several mite species being major pests causing substantial economic damage to crops. They can feed on the roots or the aerial parts of plants and transmit viruses. Some examples are the big bud mite that transmits the reversion virus of blackcurrants, the coconut mite which can devastate coconut production, and the cereal rust mite which transmits several grass and cereal viruses. Being exceedingly minute, many plant mites are spread by wind, although others use insects or other arthropods as a means to disperse.

The potato cyst nematode can cause serious reductions in crop yield.

The nematodes (eelworms) that attack plants are minute, often too small to be seen with the naked eye, but their presence is often apparent in the galls or "knots" they form in plant tissues. Vast numbers of nematodes are found in soil and attack roots, but others affect stems, buds, leaves, flowers and fruits. High infestations cause stunting, deformation and retardation of plant growth, and the nematodes can transmit viral diseases from one plant to another. When its populations are high, the potato cyst nematode can cause reductions of 80% in yield of susceptible potato varieties. The nematode eggs survive in the soil for many years, being stimulated to hatch by chemical cues produced by roots of susceptible plants.

Slugs and snails are terrestrial gastropod molluscs which typically chew leaves, stems, flowers, fruit and vegetable debris. Slugs and snails differ little from each other and both do considerable damage to plants. With novel crops being grown and with insect pests having been brought more under control by biological and other means, the damage done by molluscs becomes of greater significance. Terrestrial molluscs need moist environments; snails may be more noticeable because their shells provide protection from desiccation, while most slugs live in soil and only come out to feed at night. They devour seedlings, damage developing shoots and feed on salad crops and cabbages, and some species tunnel into potatoes and other tubers.

Weeds

A weed is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation; the term has no botanical significance. Often, weeds are simply those native plants that are adapted to grow in disturbed ground, the disturbance caused by ploughing and cultivation favouring them over other species. Any plant is a weed if it appears in a location where it is unwanted; Bermuda grass makes a good lawn plant under hot dry conditions but become a bad weed when it out-competes cultivated plants.

A different group of weeds consists of those that are invasive, introduced, often unintentionally, to habitats to which they are not native but in which they thrive. Without their original competitors, herbivores, and diseases, they may increase and become a serious nuisance. One such plant is purple loosestrife, a native of Europe and Asia where it occurs in ditches, wet meadows and marshes; introduced into North America, it has no natural enemies to keep it in check and has taken over vast tracts of wetlands to the exclusion of native species.

In forestry

In forestry, pests may affect various parts of the tree, from its roots and trunk to the canopy far overhead. The accessibility of the part of the tree affected may make detection difficult, so that a pest problem may already be far advanced before it is first observed from the ground. The larch sawfly and spruce budworm are two insect pests prevalent in Alaska and aerial surveys can show which sections of forest are being defoliated in any given year so that appropriate remedial action can be taken.

Some pests may not be present on the tree all year round, either because of their life cycle or because they rotate between different host species at different times of the year. The larvae of wood-boring beetles may spend years excavating tunnels under the bark of trees, and only emerge into the open for brief periods as adults, to mate and disperse. The import and export of timber has inadvertently assisted some insect pests to establish themselves far from their country of origin. An insect may be of little importance in its native range, being kept under control by parasitoid wasps, predators, and the natural resistance of the host trees, but be a serious pest in a region into which it has been introduced. This is the case with the emerald ash borer, an insect native to north-eastern Asia, which, since its arrival in North America, has killed millions of ash trees.

In buildings

Termites can cause serious structural damage.

Animals able to live in the dry conditions found in buildings include many arthropods such as beetles, cockroaches, moths, and mites. Another group, including termites, woodworm, longhorn beetles, and wood ants cause structural damage to buildings and furniture. The natural habitat of these is the decaying parts of trees. The deathwatch beetle infests the structural timbers of old buildings, mostly attacking hardwood, especially oak. The initial attack usually follows the entry of water into a building and the subsequent decay of damp timber. Furniture beetles mainly attack the sapwood of both hard and soft wood, only attacking the heartwood when it is modified by fungal decay. The presence of the beetles only becomes apparent when the larvae gnaw their way out, leaving small circular holes in the timber.

Carpet beetles and clothes moths cause non-structural damage to property such as clothing and carpets. It is the larvae that are destructive, feeding on wool, hair, fur, feathers and down. The moth larvae live where they feed, but the beetle larvae may hide behind skirting boards or in other similar locations between meals. They may be introduced to the home in any product containing animal fibres including upholstered furniture; the moths are feeble fliers but the carpet beetles may also enter houses through open windows. Furniture beetles, carpet beetles and clothes moths are also capable of creating great damage to museum exhibits, zoological and botanical collections, and other cultural heritage items. Constant vigilance is required to prevent an attack, and newly acquired items, and those that have been out on loan, may need quarantining before being added to the general collection.

There are over four thousand species of cockroach worldwide, but only four species are commonly regarded as pests, having adapted to live permanently in buildings. Considered to be a sign of unsanitary conditions, they feed on almost anything, reproduce rapidly and are difficult to eradicate. They can passively transport pathogenic microbes on their body surfaces, particularly in environments such as hospitals, and are linked with allergic reactions in humans.

Various insects attack dry food products, with flour beetles, the drugstore beetle, the sawtoothed grain beetle and the Indianmeal moth being found worldwide. The insects may be present in the warehouse or maybe introduced during shipping, in retail outlets, or in the home; they may enter packets through tiny cracks or may chew holes in the packaging. The longer a product is stored, the more likely it is to become contaminated, with the insects often originating from dry pet foods.

Some mites, too, infest foodstuffs and other stored products. Each substance has its own specific mite, and they multiply with great rapidity. One of the most damaging is the flour mite, which is found in grain and may become exceedingly abundant in poorly stored material. In time, predatory mites usually move in and control the flour mites.

Countermeasures

Pest control in agriculture and horticulture

The control of pests in crops is as old as civilisation. The earliest approach was mechanical, from ploughing to picking off insects by hand. Early methods included the use of sulphur compounds, before 2500 BC in Sumeria. In ancient China, insecticides derived from plants were in use by 1200 BC to treat seeds and to fumigate plants. Chinese agronomy recognised biological control by natural enemies of pests and the varying of planting time to reduce pests before the first century AD. The agricultural revolution in Europe saw the introduction of effective plant-based insecticides such as pyrethrum, derris, quassia, and tobacco extract. The phylloxera (a powdery mildew) damage to the wine industry in the 19th century resulted in the development of resistant varieties and grafting, and the accidental discovery of effective chemical pesticides, Bordeaux mixture (lime and copper sulphate) and Paris Green (an arsenic compound), both very widely used. Biological control also became established as an effective measure in the second half of the 19th century, starting with the vedalia beetle against cottony cushion scale. All these methods have been refined and developed since their discovery.

Pest control in forestry

Forest pests inflict costly damage, but treating them is often unaffordable, given the relatively low value of forest products compared to agricultural crops. It is also generally impossible to eradicate forest pests, given the difficulty of examining entire trees, and the certainty that pesticides would damage many forest organisms other than the intended pests. Forest integrated pest management therefore aims to use a combination of prevention, cultural control measures, and direct control (such as pesticide use). Cultural measures include choosing appropriate species, keeping competing vegetation under control, ensuring a suitable stocking density, and minimizing injury and stress to trees.

Pest control in buildings

Pest control in buildings can be approached in several ways, depending on the type of pest and the area affected. Methods include improving sanitation and garbage control, modifying the habitat, and using repellents, growth regulators, traps, baits and pesticides. For example, the pesticide Boron can be impregnated into the fibres of cellulose insulation to kill self-grooming insects such as ants and cockroaches. Clothes moths can be controlled with airtight containers for storage, periodic laundering of garments, trapping, freezing, heating and the use of chemicals. Traditional mothballs deter adult moths with strong-smelling naphthalene; modern ones use volatile repellents such as 1,4-Dichlorobenzene. Moth larvae can be killed with insecticides such as permethrin or pyrethroids. However, insecticides cannot safely be used in food storage areas; alternative treatments include freezing foods for four days at 0 °F (−18 °C) or baking for half an hour at 130 °F (54 °C) to kill any insects present.

In mythology, religion, folklore, and culture

Pests have attracted human attention from the birth of civilisation. Plagues of locusts caused devastation in the ancient Middle East, and were recorded in tombs in Ancient Egypt from as early as 2470 BC, and in the Book of Exodus in the Bible, as taking place in Egypt around 1446 BC. Homer's Iliad mentions locusts taking to the wing to escape fire. Given the impact of agricultural pests on human lives, people have prayed for deliverance. For example, the 10th century Greek monk Tryphon of Constantinople is said to have prayed "Snails, earwigs and all other creatures, hurt not the vines, nor the land nor the fruit of the trees, nor the vegetables ... but depart into the wild mountains." The 11th-century Old English medical text Lacnunga contained charms and spells to ward off or treat pests such as wid smeogan wyrme, "penetrating worms", in this case requiring a charm to be sung, accompanied by covering the wound with spittle, pounded green centaury, and hot cow's urine. The 20th century "prayer against pests" including the words "By Your power may these injurious animals be driven off so that they will do no harm to any one and will leave our fields and meadows unharmed" was printed in the 1956 Rural Life Prayerbook.

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