Arsenic on apples

**P* G* <e*@hamptons.com>**

It's true that back in the 1950s, and a bit later in some, er, less connected areas, lead arsenate insecticides were applied heavily, particularly on apple orchards and to a lesser extent wherever potatoes were grown. The result of this is that hundreds of thousands of acres of ag land in New York State and elsewhere are now contaminated with arsenic, often at levels above what is considered (by some states) safe levels. The feds have "safe" levels for arsenic in water, but not, I believe, for arsenic in soil. 

Arsenic does not leach, and does not degrade, it just sits there. Except for soil removal -- hardly practical on a 500-acre farm -- the only realistic answer is to dilute it with heavy applications of compost. A smart Florida professor patented a plant that greedily takes up arsenic, but it is so expensive that it is not affordable for ag land. It has the added problem that the then-arsenic-filled plants have to be disposed of as toxic waste, which is also very expensive.

Fortunately, few plants take up arsenic from the soil into their leaves or even roots. We have established this to our satisfaction with leaf and root tissue analysis. But "Don't eat the dirt!" is still good advice, and not just for kids.

Peter Garnham
editor@hamptons.com
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