Sustainable Agriculture Literature Review - Boulder County

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7.2 Application Rates of Pesticides
The majority of U.S. farmers rely on chemical pesticides for their pest management. 559 A
Cornell entomologist estimated that only about one tenth (0.1) percent of all applied
pesticides reach the intended target pests, leaving the bulk of pesticides in the
environment as a potential hazard and representing a significant financial investment from
the farmer. 560
Of all agricultural pests, weeds are by far the most pervasive pests in U.S. agriculture in
terms of the share of herbicide treatments used to control them. Most herbicides are used
to treat weeds in corn and soybean production systems, while the main uses of
insecticides and fungicides are for cotton and potato crops. 561
Studies have shown a general decrease in pesticide use since 1995, which can be seen in
Graph 18. Although the use of herbicides for soybeans increased slightly between 1995
and 2002, corn herbicides and insecticides have decreased and cotton herbicides have
decreased slightly (Graph 18). 562 The overall decrease in pesticide use is due, in part, to
the increase of GE adoption since 1996. 563
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Graph 18: Pesticide Use in Major Field Crops 564
Adoption of GE Crops and Pesticide Use
U.S. farmers have widely adopted genetically engineered crops since their introduction in
1996, notwithstanding uncertainty about consumer acceptance and economic and
environmental impacts. Soybeans and cotton with GE herbicide-tolerant traits have been
the most widely and rapidly adopted in the U.S., followed by insect-resistant cotton and
corn. 565 Since 1996, the percentages of U.S. farmers who have adopted specific GE crops
have increased dramatically (Graph 19). 566
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