U.S., 11 other countries will continue methyl bromide use in 2005

U.S., 11 other countries will continue methyl bromide use in 2005    The international community approved the continued use of methyl bromide fumigations in limited quantities for the United States and 11 other countries through 2005.
   Under the 1995 Montreal Protocol agreement, the largest industrial countries were supposed to phase out the use of methyl bromide, except for approved phytosanitary purposes, by 2005. Methyl bromide is considered a major contributor to the earth’s ozone depletion.
   “Due to the lack of technically and economically feasible alternatives, which have taken much longer than anticipated to develop, methyl bromide remains an essential pesticide for the production of a number of important crops, including tomatoes, strawberries and peppers,” said the U.S. State Department in a March 27 statement.
   The Montreal Protocol meeting was held March 24-26. The international community vowed to continue its development of feasible pest treatment alternatives to methyl bromide.