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Nuke the bedbugs

When the one-time benefits far outweigh the costs

Published on Sunday, Nov 15, 2009

Bedbugs aren't known to carry diseases. But they are most annoying, attacking their targets (often the human kind) as they sleep, their bites leaving little red bumps, leading to furious itching. Many Ohioans know the story, the state suffering lately from an accelerated infestation, notably at Ohio State and other colleges.

Ordinarily, the counterattack involves a common household insecticide. Now the state Department of Agriculture has concluded that the moment requires heavy reinforcement. Officials have asked the federal Environmental Protection Agency for an emergency exemption that would permit the use of Propoxur, an industrial insecticide, or the residential equivalent of a nuclear weapon.

Oh, the stuff isn't that dangerous, though it was removed from homes in the 1990s, and WalMart requested that suppliers discontinue its use a few years ago. Here is a classic case of costs weighed against benefits. If Propoxur can cause nausea and vomiting, it's not like agriculture officials want the product to become a steady part of the diet. They know that Propoxur has a kill rate of 100 percent while the alternative delivers as low as 16 percent.

Now parents, university presidents and deans could urge students to do more to keep sheets clean and to apply powerful vacuums. That doesn't really sound like a practical remedy. Time to push back hard, or sweep the landscape clean. Time for the EPA to declare: Go get those bloodsuckers!

Bedbugs aren't known to carry diseases. But they are most annoying, attacking their targets (often the human kind) as they sleep, their bites leaving little red bumps, leading to furious itching. Many Ohioans know the story, the state suffering lately from an accelerated infestation, notably at Ohio State and other colleges.

Ordinarily, the counterattack involves a common household insecticide. Now the state Department of Agriculture has concluded that the moment requires heavy reinforcement. Officials have asked the federal Environmental Protection Agency for an emergency exemption that would permit the use of Propoxur, an industrial insecticide, or the residential equivalent of a nuclear weapon.

Oh, the stuff isn't that dangerous, though it was removed from homes in the 1990s, and WalMart requested that suppliers discontinue its use a few years ago. Here is a classic case of costs weighed against benefits. If Propoxur can cause nausea and vomiting, it's not like agriculture officials want the product to become a steady part of the diet. They know that Propoxur has a kill rate of 100 percent while the alternative delivers as low as 16 percent.

Now parents, university presidents and deans could urge students to do more to keep sheets clean and to apply powerful vacuums. That doesn't really sound like a practical remedy. Time to push back hard, or sweep the landscape clean. Time for the EPA to declare: Go get those bloodsuckers!



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bubblehead
Tallmadge, OH

Posted 06:56 AM, 11/15/2009

Did someone say nuke?
















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