The program had many users and supporters in academia, industry, environmental and community groups, and government agencies. ?EUR??,,????'??The industry and the people who do dietary risk assessments in companies could not be more upset by this,?EUR??,,????'?? says Leonard Gianessi, director of the Crop Protection Research Institute at the CropLife Foundation.
Mark Miller, who heads the NASS environmental and demographic section, says the program fell victim to a shrinking budget. NASS prioritized programs that provide data for national economic indicators, such as commodity prices, or that directly impact commodity markets such as the Chicago Board of Trade, he says. Chemical usage did not meet these criteria. After a flurry of protests by agriculture and environmental groups, in July the Senate Appropriations Committee recommended that USDA reinstate the chemical usage reports in the 2009 budget and directed the department ?EUR??,,????'??not to disrupt ongoing market analysis reporting and to notify the committee in advance of any termination of other ongoing NASS activities.?EUR??,,????'?? It remains unclear whether the Senate and the House of Representatives will agree to keep this language in the bill before it is passed into law.

Many scientists say that the NASS data are essential for their research. For pesticides, the other major data sources are the California EPA?EUR??,,????'???s statewide data and a national data set produced by the private company Doane Marketing Research (doing business as dmrkynetec but often referred to as Doane, a former parent company). However, Doane?EUR??,,????'???s collection methods differ from NASS?EUR??,,????'???s, and there are strict limits on how data can be publicly released to protect the company?EUR??,,????'???s proprietary information. And Doane?EUR??,,????'???s price tag?EUR??,,????'??+about $500,000 per year for a full national data set?EUR??,,????'??+is too steep for most academic and nonprofit users.

California is the only state requiring agricultural pesticide users to report to the government their chemical use on a monthly basis, detailing where, when, how much, and on what crop a pesticide was used. In contrast, the Doane data sets were not originally intended for public use or research purposes, but rather as a business tool for agricultural chemical manufacturers. As a private entity, Doane?EUR??,,????'???s data collection methods are not entirely transparent, but they combine surveys with expert opinion to provide data on all major crops every year. Because researchers do not know exactly how the data were collected and cannot publicly release Doane?EUR??,,????'???s raw numbers, many consider Doane?EUR??,,????'???s data to be unreliable and inappropriate for their work.

The loss of data puts ongoing research programs at risk. Scientists studying integrated pest management (IPM), a set of strategies that reduce pesticide use, use NASS data. Programs that monitor U.S. water quality will also suffer, says Janice Ward, who directs agricultural programs for the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). For example, the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) program at USGS relies largely on NASS data to understand the sources of pesticides and nutrients found in streams and groundwater.

?EUR??,,????'??What we really need is something like the California system nationwide, with complete reporting from the point of use instead of a survey,?EUR??,,????'?? says Robert Gilliom, who directs the Pesticide National Synthesis Project at USGS, which assesses pesticides in the nation?EUR??,,????'???s streams and groundwater. ?EUR??,,????'??It?EUR??,,????'???s the Cadillac of pesticide use data in the country. ?EUR??,,????'??

Charles Benbrook, chief scientist for the nonprofit research group the Organic Center, regularly probes the NASS database for trends in pesticide use that USDA does not analyze. His work has contradicted industry claims that genetically modified crops reduce pesticide use. ?EUR??,,????'??I will update my 2000 report [on pesticide use] soon, and it will be a lot harder for me to do it [without NASS data],?EUR??,,????'?? Benbrook says. He adds that the lack of publicly available information hurts the public the most. ?EUR??,,????'??Without NASS data, all the policy issues and debates that have been going on for the last 15 or 20 years over pesticide use would be based largely on speculation.?EUR??,,????'??

Several groups sent letters to USDA and Congress, urging both to restore funding for the chemical-use survey program. The NRDC sent a letter May 20 signed by 44 environmental, sustainable-agriculture, and health-advocacy groups.

The U.S. EPA and state governments also use NASS data, in combination with Doane?EUR??,,????'???s data, to evaluate pesticide risk and set pesticide-use policies and regulations. The director of EPA?EUR??,,????'???s Office of Pesticide Programs, Debra Edwards, recently sent a letter expressing concern about the NASS cuts to NRDC.