anuary 3rd, 2011 03:31pm
UF researchers take heat for fertilizer study
by Nathan Crabbe
University of Florida researchers are under fire for a study critical of policies banning fertilizers in the rainy season.
Sarasota County and 40 other municipalities in the state have passed such policies. UF researchers have been lambasted for their fertilizer industry-funded study that suggests the bans do more harm than good in keeping pollutants out of waterways, the Sarasota Herald-Tribune reported.
“It’s tobacco science,” Sarasota County Commissioner Jon Thaxton told the paper. “At best, it’s an unsubstantiated opinion piece, but that’s not what they’re using it for.”
The study has been used at government meetings statewide to slow regulation, according to the paper. UF environmental science professor George Hochmuth, a member of the UF Institute for Food and Agricultural Studies research team that conducted the study, defended the research.
“I think it’s unfair and unprofessional to be charging good scientists who have their heart in the right place,” he told the paper. “The science is almost being held hostage.”
State lawmakers tried but failed to pass a law last year to pre-empt local ordinances and weaken restrictions on fertilizer use. The legislation is expected to be introduced again. In the meantime, Thaxton is trying to compel researchers to release documents associated with the study.
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