Q. Is Ironite safe to use
in a vegetable garden? I have read somewhere that it’s not, but the label says
you can use it.
 |
| The Ironite sold years ago is not the same product as it is now. |
A. The current Ironite
products are totally different from the original Ironite product but carry the
same name. Ironite was, and still is, a soil amendment/fertilizer used for
correcting yellowing plants growing in alkaline soil. The original Ironite
product did two things; it lowered the soil pH and added iron to the soil. It
created a very good name for itself in the landscape and golf industry.
The original Ironite product came from recycled mine
tailings. These tailings also contained heavy metals; lead and arsenic being
the two that got Ironite into trouble. There was a long controversy regarding
whether the lead and arsenic were problematic for food crops.
The Ironite label was changed to exclude applications to
food crops to circumvent this problem. The old product came to an end when the
mine supplying tailings used by Ironite was declared an EPA Superfund site in
about 2005 and closed.
Ironite is now owned by Central Garden & Pet Company,
through its subsidiary, Pennington. It is a totally different product from the
Superfund site days but carries the same name. Because of its industry
reputation, a line of products carrying the Ironite name has evolved.
So, in a nutshell, Ironite is not the same product as it
was years ago. The Environmental Protection Agency allows the label to include application
to food crops.
Original article from Dallas Morning News on Ironite from the Dirt Doctor
Thanks for your article. I found this recent document from WSDA with ppm metals of many fertilizers including Ironite: https://agr.wa.gov/PestFert/Fertilizers/docs/rptFertHMWebCurrent.pdf
ReplyDeleteCurrent 1-0-1 and 1-0-0 look similar to many other fertilizer products. The 2014 12-10-10 looked a bit high in As and Pb. Keep in mind that not all forms of As or Pb are readily absorbed by plants or human digestion.
So where does Ironite come from now if not from mine tailings? What proof do you have? I am not so sure the source has changed but more the definition of what is "safe".
ReplyDeleteI will share what I can. The EPA is the federal govt arm to establish "safe limits" for potential toxins to humans, other animals and the environment. Some states have established their own "safe limits" which it can as long as its limits are "safer" than the federal limits. In the post above yours someone sent a link to Washington states report on heavy metals in fertilizers. I am guessing here but I think Pennington has probably bought and retained the name "Ironite" for marketing purposes but is most likely making their Ironite product with the same fertilizer supplies as everyone else. That may be why Washington State reported that some Ironite products were similar in heavy metals to other fertilizers.
DeleteIn the meantime, our ability to measure extremely small amounts of anything became more and more precise. 50 years ago when I was in school measuring at the ppb (parts per billion; one part in a billion parts) range was quite a feat. Now we are measuring in the ppt (parts per trillion; pne part in a trillion parts) range and reporting it. 50 years ago the EPA was warning not to use the word "safe" because the what was considered safe was constantly changing with new research and the word "safe" was subjective. Instead, the word "safe" was open for interpretation. We know that nothing in the world is "pure" and free from some sort of contaminant. Our knowledge about toxins comes from science. We have to use this same science to determine our own definition of "safe". Otherwise, how do we compare or judge anything?
I can say with reasonable assurance that the mines used by Ironite decades ago and caused a "stir" that I mentioned above are closed. These mine tailings cannot be used as a fertilizer source because heavy metal levels are just too high. Are companies using other mines and "mine tailings"? Yes. Many fertilizers are still "mined" from the ground. Others are byproducts from industrial processes. There will be a certain amount of "contaminants" in fertilizer because they are derived from "rocks" which contain a host of minerals. None of these minerals are inherently "bad" but some of them at certain levels are "toxic" to us. Those "mined" from industrial processes are more questionable.
What to do? Toxic levels need to be established. Everyone has to decide for themselves what is the level of "toxicity" they are willing to accept and deem these levels as "safe" to use.
What about fertilizers produced by China or other countries that do not share the same set of values? I mention China because it probably represents 95% of all the emails sent to me. Yes, they must submit a sample for analysis but what about the thousands of "chemicals" that are not even on the radar? As a consultant for a horticulture supply company, I probably average 3 - 4 emails each week wanting to sell "fertilizers" produced outside the US.
ReplyDeleteI am a DIY lawn care guy with a lawn care YouTube channel that has been working on improving my lawn over the past few years. I am part of many online lawn care groups and one of the topics that tend to get brought up a lot is the use of Ironite.
ReplyDeleteFor quite some time, I have been strongly against the use of Ironite in lawns due to the high lead and arsenic levels and have strongly voiced my opinion in the lawn care community with links to Cincinnati’s EPA report stating their concerns with the arsenic levels.
However, there have been some that have stated that Ironite was reformulated, but I have been unable to find any definitive analysis reports that proves this . During my searching, I did come across your article in the Las Vegas Review-Journal titled Ironite has changed from original product, now safe for crops. You stated that the original mine has shut down since a subsidiary of Pennington purchased the Ironite brand. I was wondering if you had any analysis reports that show what the new levels of lead and arsenic are. I would greatly appreciate any analysis reports or any direction as to where else to look so I can pass the information onto others via my YouTube channel as well as the lawn care sites.
I wanted to make sure that people, like myself, who had some older ideas about the reputation of Ironite had them updated. There is a very old idea that Ironite had levels of arsenic and lead that were found to be too high for vegetable gardens and maybe other uses as well depending on your ideas about what was or was not “safe”. A lot of that is personal opinion and the laws. I know that the Ironite that was processed from mine tailings had some very high levels of heavy metals years ago after a legal battle. That mine was shut down and the company sold to Pennington. I got this information from an article I was reading from the Dirt Doctor Link below.
Deletehttps://www.dirtdoctor.com/garden/Ironite-Story_vq373.htm
I also attached for you a report from Washington state regarding heavy metals tested for in fertilizer products sold in the state. Ironite is on the list in two different locations in that report with some of the heavy metals tested for and results. I highlighted them for you. I dont think it is in the document anywhere else. I do believe that the company has to provide these analyses to anyone who asks for them by law.
One of the few states that makes that info available is Washington state which has a reputation for being conservative about what is allowed to be sold in the state and what is not. I think you could maybe put states in the West in the order of Oregon, Washington and California about how tough they are in what is and is not allowed for public use. States can have more conservative levels of allowable heavy metal levels but those levels cannot exceed federal limits set by the EPA.
I am not here to tell people what they can and cannot use on their properties for personal use because I think that is their prerogative. I would certainly not recommend something that violated federal heavy metal maximum levels. But if people ask me, I have my personal opinion but I don’t share that unless I am asked. But I think if you are applying fertilizers/chemicals to private property you must comply with labels, federal limits. Anything more conservative than this is between the applicator and the homeowner and their own opinions. And I think you have every right to express your opinion about what you think is safe and you should express that as an applicator. I hope more would get informed and do the same.
This is a very lengthy, academic and scientific publication on metals and toxicity that you may want to glance at.
https://www.epa.gov/sites/production/files/2013-09/documents/metals-risk-assessment-final.pdf
Metals in soils are different from metals that are in contact with skin, in drinking water or inhaled so maximum levels vary with the type of exposure.
This publication from federal NRCS is a little clearer and easier to understand but not much.
https://www.nrcs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DO
This one from Vermont Extension is a bit easier to understand.
https://www.uvm.edu/vtvegandberry/factsheets/interpreting_heavy_metals_soil_tests.pdf
But I think you have to set your sites at what you believe is safe for your customers as long as it doesn’t go above federal EPA limits. The bag will tell you what you can apply it to and meet the federal limits. The fertilizer bag MUST comply with federal law and if the state has more restrictive limits it must also comply with state laws if it is sold in the state. That is why there are state fertilizer laws in most states. If not, then it must comply with federal law or face very heavy fines. Nevada fertilizer laws I think comply with federal laws in the case of fertilizer sales and metal limits I believe.
UMENTS/nrcs142p2_053279.pdf