Date: 10/3/2017

To: Environmental Protection Agency

From: Adham E Kassem
Subject: Adverse effects of pesticide use on the environment; advocating ant use.
Reference:
Action Required: Action needed by 11/3/2017
Distribution List: EPA personnel, Environmental Science students, entomologists, general public
enthusiasts

Introduction
While pesticide use in modern day agriculture has boosted the quality and quantity of
human agriculture, it has also caused many environmental issues. As the human population
increases, the demand for food grows exponentially. It is evident that human civilization will
have to continue maintaining crops while also limiting adverse effects to ecosystems caused by
pesticides. To accomplish this, other eco-friendly methods must be considered. However, it is
imperative for these methods to maintain modern farming standards. This technical reports goal
is to advise the EPA to research and advocate a better method and eventually form regulations
that will gradually reduce pesticide use. The method this report will discuss thoroughly is ant
use.
Ants are one of the most populous organisms that exist on Earth. As a result, ants
contribute towards many ecosystems. This establishes various forms of relationships between
ants and other organisms. This report will aim to inform the EPA that sophisticated use of ants in
our agriculture will not only reduce the effects of nationwide pesticide use, it will also contribute
towards crop protection from actual pests. This report will discuss:
Adverse effects of pesticide use in agriculture
Ant colony/social structure
The use of ants in modern day agriculture

Summary
Pesticides have exponentially enhanced the production of crops the past century. Despite
that being the case, pesticide use has proven to adversely affect many aspects of the
environment. The three main ways that pesticides indirectly effect ecosystems are: water soluble
pesticides breaching water systems through run offs, fat soluble pesticides penetrating
throughout the food chain, and pesticide use limiting biodiversity. One method that can limit
pesticide use is the use of ants to fend off and regulate pests. The intricate social structure of ants
allows ants to be a candidate to defend against pests in farmland. Thirteen thousand different
species of ants exist and therefore imperative to research the potential use of each individual
species to form an established understanding on the use of ants for agriculture.
 Discussion

Adverse effects of pesticide use in agriculture

The introduction of pesticides in modern day agriculture enhanced the production of food
exponentially. Pesticides allowed a sustainable and exponential growth of the human population.
For example, in India, food production was at 50 million tons between 1948-1948. However, it
increased fourfold by 1996-1997 to 198 million tons due to pesticides (Aktar 1). Similar results
occurred in the US for corn production and in the UK for wheat yields. It is obvious that
pesticides have played a major role in the evolution of human civilization the past century.
However, pesticides also have adverse effects on the environment. Many local ecosystems that
interact with farmland are indirectly affected. There are 3 main ways pesticides are indirectly
introduced into ecosystems:

o Water Solubility
o Fat Solubility
o Reduction in biodiversity
(farhanwarsi)

Water Soluble
Pesticides that are water soluble are introduced to ecosystems by
water transportation such as run offs from rain. The water from these run
offs gradually makes its way to rivers, underground water systems and
lakes. Any local ecosystem that relies on these water systems are thus
affected. Aquatic organisms such as fish, birds and mammals are
indirectly poisoned as a result. According to BeyondPesticides, a 2015
study shows that pesticide exposure through water contamination resulted
in swimming abnormalities as larvae grew [1].

Fat Soluble
Pesticides that are fat soluble are introduced to ecosystems by the
food chain. Fat soluble pesticides are absorbed by insects that have direct or indirect contact to
these pesticides. These insects are then eaten by organisms above them in the food chain such as
birds. These fat soluble pesticides then remain in the lipids of the organism. As a result, these
pesticides remain present throughout the food chain as a result. A good example of this was the
use of the DDT pesticide. This pesticide was brought up the food chain until it gradually reached
the bald eagle. The bald eagles reproductive system was adversely affected by DDT. DDT
interfered with ability for bald eagles to produce strong egg shells.
 Reduction in Biodiversity
The goal of pesticide use is to eliminate a certain organism that interferes with crop
growth, whether the organism is an insect or a plant. Regardless, this goal reduces biodiversity
by vastly targeting a certain organism. This reduction of biodiversity may contribute towards
instability and natural balance disruption in an ecosystem. Reduction of biodiversity and
ecosystem instability can also occur due to indirect exposure to pesticides. For example, an
insect population may grow exponentially with no control if a bird population declines due to
pesticides.
Ant social structure
The social structure of ants is very intricate when considering their size. The key to
understanding the potential ants have for helping us with our agriculture is the complicated social
structure and caste system that ants possess. A sole ant is useless; however, an ant colony can
perform outstanding tasks, such as hunting organisms much larger than them. Ants communicate
with each other by releasing pheromones. This allows an established societal structure within the
ant colony and allows the colony to be a superorganism that can solve difficult problems for the
wellbeing of the colony (Holbrook 1). The ant colony also has a home base that the ants always
return to and operate around.
Use of ants in modern day agriculture
If an ant colony is situated on farmland, it is possible to have ants regulate and control
pests that destroy crops. Ants naturally fend off insects of all sizes to defend their territory. It is
also possible to influence where ants situate their home base/nest to prevent ants from fighting
each other while also strategically positioning ant colonies to fend off pests. According to Becky
Allen, this process may be done by feeding ants sugar to influence the nest location. In Vietnam,
many farmers use ants to help them grow cashews (Pennisi 1). The Chinese used ant farms as
protection on their citrus groves as long as 1700 years ago (Pennisi 1). Using ants to protect our
agriculture is not new, however it has not been vastly implemented in modern day agriculture
though its potential in providing sufficient pest control is present. Research needs to be done to
be able to fully understand the potential of over 13000 different ant species. A certain species
may be able to more effectively fend off pests of a certain food being produced. Therefore, a
better understanding on each one of these species is imperative for the success of using ants in
our agriculture.

Conclusion
Regardless of how effective pesticides are for the protection of our crops, it is irrefutable
that it also causes adverse effects towards many ecosystems and the environment. If our agency
puts more resources in the research of using ants towards our agriculture, a more natural method
that could potentially be just as effective can revolutionize modern agriculture.

Recommendation
I highly advise the EPA to invest resources into researching ants and ant species for
agricultural use that can potentially protect crops as effectively as pesticides. After a decent
foundation is implemented on this study, our agency should establish regulations that limit
unnecessary pesticide use while encouraging the use of ants.

Attachments/Sources

Warsi, Farhan. How do Pesticides affect ecosystems and the environment?,

www.farhanwarsi.tripod.com/id9.html

[1] Fish. Beyond Pesticides,

www.beyondpesticides.org/programs/wildlife/fish
Allen, B. and Troelsen, C. (2017). Ants are as effective as pesticides. Scitech.au.dk.
http://scitech.au.dk/en/roemer/5-2015/ants-are-as-effective-as-pesticides/
Danovich, T. (2017). One Farmers Pest Is Another Farmers Pesticide: Ants Excel at Killing Other
Bugs. TakePart. Available at: http://www.takepart.com/article/2015/09/04/ants-pesticides
Holbrook, T., Clark, R. and Haney, B. (2017). Secrets of a Superorganism. Askabiologist.asu.edu.
Available at: https://askabiologist.asu.edu/explore/secrets-superorganism/
Pennisi, E. (2017). Tiny ant takes on pesticide industry. sciencemag. Available at:
http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2015/08/tiny-ant-takes-pesticide-industry