Malathion, the Benefits of its Application Outweighs the Validated Risk - Article Example

They further assured that the chemical application is safe because it degrades to harmless materials rapidly after application (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, 2005, Section 1).But the opponents argued that some sector of Genericville City community may be susceptible to the potential hazards of Malathion contamination. They estimated there could be as many as 90 cases of Malathion related illnesses from the proposed application program with four that may be fatal according to reports (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, 2005, Section 3).

At stake in this situation, aside from the safety of the residents and its ecosystem is the economy of the city, which depended on tourism. Without the pesticide application, tourists would be hesitant to come to the city. With the use of the chemical the ecosystem that is the best asset for tourism may be affected. Choosing the best option, therefore, requires weighing the benefits against the risk and finding a win-win solution.To obtain a rational decision let us examine the veracity of the arguments presented by both the proponents and opponents of using Malathion and equate them with information at hand.

The arguments revolve around the fact that Malathion is toxic to humans and useful insects within the ecosystem. The pros assured that the toxicity hazard is negligible while oppositions insisted it can cause the fatality. Let us, therefore, examine what authorities and studies have to say. As far as toxicity of the chemical is concerned, there are several ways of human exposure to the hazard either ingestion, inhalation, or through dermal means. Sources of exposures are through the air during and after spraying, on residues remaining on leaves and materials, and on contaminated water.

The chemical dose that may be fatal to human is far greater than the possible exposure caused by both ground and aerial spraying using approved levels. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the EPA allow a maximum amount of 8 parts per million (ppm) of Malathion to be present as a residue on specific crops used as foods.The risk associated with overdose or fatal dose is non-existent if proper safety precautionary measures are strictly followed. Much of the residues can be removed by washing.

In fact, the US FDA approved the use of Malathion as a prescription drug for the treatment of head lice on humans (APHIS, 2006). The Environment Protection Agency (EPA) classifies Malathion as having "suggestive evidence of carcinogenicity, but the evidence is not sufficient to assess human carcinogenic potential" (APHIS, 2006).