A helicopter flown by a company contracted by Florida Power and Light to eliminate vegetation beneath power lines running through East Milton is suspected of killing more than just the brush it was apparently targeting.
The owners of Chunn Farms reported on social media having lost more than 50 chickens after a helicopter from Louisiana-based Industrial Helicopters LLC sprayed in the vicinity of their property.
“We have lost a significant amount of money in both investment and future income by the loss of all these birds but also had to throw out hundreds of dollars in possibly contaminated feed,” the Facebook post said.
Melissa Kalis, president of the Santa Rosa County Beekeepers Association, reported losing thousands of bees to what she has confirmed as chemical poisoning.
On March 12, prior to Kalis learning about the ongoing herbicidal spraying in the area of her home, she sent an email to Santa Rosa Commissioners Kerry Smith and Colten Wright bemoaning the demise of multiple beehives. She and her husband had spent considerable money locating the apiaries in a secure, healthy environment and worried at the time a nearby landowner might be responsible.
“They were in excellent condition, most of them fairly large colonies with all new boxes and equipment, until something happened and now I have piles of dead bees,” it said.
Now she seems fairly well convinced the vegetation removal caused the crisis.
“I have not been able to connect the dots, but after I heard about the helicopter incident and saw a map, my apiary is, I don’t know mileage-wise, but in the same area,” Kalis told the Pensacola News Journal.
Kalis said that an investigator from the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ Division of Agricultural Environmental Services had visited the Harold-area property where she keeps her bees and taken samples of the dead bees and the hives.
“It’s generally agreed they came in contact with chemicals,” Kalis said “It’s going to take about six months to find out what kind of chemicals.”
She said she knows of two other beekeepers who have lost bees under similar circumstances.
Having been contacted by Kalis and others, the office of state Sen. Don Gaetz has gotten involved in coordinating an investigation into what has happened.
Gaetz said he had spoken to David Peaden, the external affairs manager for FPL in Pensacola, and Peaden had confirmed FPL had contracted with Industrial Helicopters to conduct the spraying at issue.
FPL spokeswoman Sarah Gatewood confirmed the utility had contracted with Industrial Helicopters for vegetation removal in the impacted area. It is something the company does year-round to prevent outages.
“We make sure we do it responsibly and in strict compliance with state and federal regulations,” Gatewood said. “The herbicide being utilized is an industry-approved herbicide considered not harmful to animals.”
FPL is presently gathering information about what has happened and has shut down any further spraying activity until it finds out what transpired.
“If FPL or the contractor are in any way responsible we want to work with these families to make this right,” she said. “If we find we did have an impact, we will determine how are we going to change and what we need to do moving forward.”
Gaetz told the News Journal he has also contacted Wilton Simpson, the state’s commissioner of agriculture, and Simpson had agreed to look into the matter. The senator also confirmed that representatives of the federal Environmental Protection Agency are going to be involved in the investigation.
Gaetz said in correspondence to Simpson that the incidents of herbicidal spraying that impacted property owners in East Milton occurred on May 8 and again on May 20.
“Serious concerns have been raised regarding flight path, chemical dispersal practices, and resulting impacts on surrounding agricultural property and livestock,” his letter said.
Most concerning, Gaetz said, are the reports of animal fatalities and suspected environmental contamination at farms and apiaries following the aerial spraying activity.
“Given these allegations and the potential implications for public safety, agricultural compliance, environmental protection, and aviation regulation, a full and transparent investigation may be warranted,” it said.
The letter specifically calls for the Department of Agriculture to review the flight path and operational activities of the helicopter involved and verify the pilot’s licensing status.
It also seeks identification of whatever chemicals were being utilized on the days in question and for the Department of Agriculture to look into reports of animal deaths, crop damage or environmental harm.
Lastly, Gaetz calls for Simpson’s team to take whatever regulatory action against FPL or its aerial contractor is deemed necessary.
It was largely due to watchful area residents that Industrial Helicopters was quickly identified as the party responsible for the spraying.
Photos were taken that provided not only evidence of the presence of a helicopter and a company pickup truck at the impacted sites, but also tail numbers and motor vehicle identifications that could be easily traced back.
Industrial Helicopters is a 55-year-old company, according to its website, capable of delivering “precision serial herbicide application.” It also states its pilots are capable of “operating in close proximity to energized infrastructure with a focus on safety, consistency and operational discipline.”
A photo was even put out on social media alongside the truck and helicopter pictures showing a bag of Tahoe 3A herbicide, though whether that is the herbicide utilized in the East Milton spraying could not be confirmed.
Nufarm, a global crop protection and seeds technologies company, identifies Tahoe 3A as “a perfect solution for treating near sensitive sites.”
“It eliminates unwanted vegetation while leaving the surrounding desirable plants and grasses unaffected,” according to the site.
Jerry Couey a Milton area resident who had conducted some investigation of his own into the dead livestock incidents, said that he had seen first hand grass and sensitive vegetation killed off, he believes, as a result of the spraying.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: East Milton residents blame FPL helicopter herbicides for rash of animal deaths
Reporting by Tom McLaughlin, Pensacola News Journal / Pensacola News Journal
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
