ABSTRACT
This chapter provides an overview of the PAM eradication operation by identifying key events in the case, including the following: (1) the moth’s initial detection in May 1999; (2) the government’s unsuccessful initial attempt to eradicate PAM; (3) its subsequent decision to pursue an aerial spraying campaign; (4) the start of aerial spraying in January 2002; (5) the 2003 release of critical health reports by Meriel Watts and then Hana Blackmore, which put considerable pressure on the government to assess the spraying’s human health impact; (6) the Ministry of Health’s commissioning of researchers, in March 2003, to assess those health effects and the Ministry’s efforts to delay the production and release of that knowledge; (7) the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry’s decision to re-extend the spraying operation beyond the extended May 2003 end date; and (8) the end of spraying in May 2004. Beyond mapping the key events in this story, this chapter introduces readers to some of the key players in this case, while also identifying the environmental and health concerns associated with pursuing an extensive aerial pesticide spraying operation over urban neighborhoods.
