Gil asked if it may be the air conditioning and not the spray that would affect someone in an airplane.
Studies have shown that the quality of the air inside airplanes can be lacking. Poor indoor air can be due to many reasons, one is insufficient air exchange. On the ground in houses or buildings, fresh air is introduced and stale air is taken out. In airplanes, the fresh air would be supplied from pressurized sources, which I imagine would be more limited . The air inside the plane is largely re-circulated. Inside, there are a number of pollutant sources - people, the fragrances they wear, exhaust fumes carried over from before takeoff , food odors, air fresheners used to mask odors, residual chemicals used for cleaning, etc. etc. The more sensitive passengers can notice the effect of the poor air quality. Flight crew who spend a large fraction of their time in planes have higher exposure to the contaminants. The pest control chemicals sprayed in planes are in a different league from the contaminants typically found in indoor air. Now you have insecticides that are intended to kill pests. Our central nervous system is just as vulnerable as the nervous system of the pests being targeted. In addition to the active ingredients (the insecticides), carrier solvents are used. These are mostly xylenes, whose effects are known: respiratory, skin and eye irritation; affects central nervous system; repeated exposure can damage bone marrow; and may damage liver and kidney (these info are in manufacturers' Material Safety Data Sheets). Thirdly, there are the so-called inert ingredients, many of which are more toxic than the active ingredients. Given all of the above, who wants to be sprayed on the plane? After the sprays are applied, the residuals will further contaminate the indoor air. Virginia Salares (chemist and indoor air researcher) ----- Original Message ----- From: "Gil Robertson" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Friday, January 18, 2002 6:20 PM Subject: Re: Spraying in airplanes etc > Hi! Hugh and the List, > The spraying of aircraft coming to OZ and NZ is part of our quarantine system. > > I am explaining, not apologizing. > > We have the major problem Down Under, that our life forms are mainly quite > different from much of the rest of the world. Thus any new import comes without > it's predators and something which is not a problem at home, just goes haywire > here. Just as some out our exports take over in other people areas, vis our > Melaleucas in the Everglades and some of our Acacias in South Africa. Some of > our really big problems have been started by scientists bringing in Biological > Controls that got away. Example: the Cane Toad was introduced to control a > beetle in the sugar cane and is now a major problem across most of tropical > Australia, having taken out most local species of native frog in the process. > > Our Customs and Quarantine is only going to be tougher, as other counties become > more polluted. We see an obligation to try and keep our countries (Australia and > New Zealand) as free as possible of diseases and other problems, if for no other > reason to provide clean plant and animal stock for other country's breeding > programs. For example, we have the only stock of disease free camels and export > them to breeding programs in the lands they came from. > > You will have heard about our efforts to track down and discourage "Boat > People", coming from other countries. Our major concern is what they bring with > them as the countries through which they travel have Foot and Mouth, New Castle > Disease etc, which we do not want. We burn all their possessions along with > their boats etc. > > Within Australia, we have internal road blocks and we can't move fruit between > some areas. We even have four men employed to shoot a particular bird on the > boundary between two Bioregions. This is a European bird that goes to huge > numbers here, but is not in one area. > > Are you sure it is the spray that effects you, or the air conditioning? I have > lots of problems in air conditioned buildings. > > Regards > > Gil >
