Chipnology(TM) Named To Participate In EPA's New Pesticide Educational Outreach Pilot Program For Nation's Schools

ARCHIVED 2002–2016: Originally distributed via the eWire press wire service. Preserved as historical record.

SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE |

Conservation & Wildlife

Corporate Responsibility

Science & Technology

Syndication Partners

**************************************************************************

E-WIRE PRESS RELEASE E-WIRE PRESS RELEASE E-WIRE PRESS RELEASE

**************************************************************************

TO BUSINESS AND ENVIRONMENTAL EDITORS:

Chipnology(TM) Named To Participate In EPA's New Pesticide Educational Outreach Pilot Program For Nation's Schools

FLORIDA, ORLANDO, Feb. 1 -/E-Wire/-- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is inviting interested parties to participate in a new pesticide educational outreach pilot program to be developed with Orlando-based Chipnology, Inc., which will create and distribute educational kits for use in schools throughout the country using some of Chipnology's unique talking technologies.

Entitled, the Pesticide Audio Technology Initiative (PATI), the highly interactive kits will be used to teach about the Consumer Labeling Initiative's (CLI) national educational campaign to "READ the Label First!" and the importance of safe and proper use, storage, and disposal of pesticides and household cleaners.

"Chipnology is pleased and excited to participate with EPA and other interested organizations to help develop the educational kits to use in our nation's schools to reduce Americans' unnecessary exposure to common household poisons," said Chipnology's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Ben Everidge.

"We believe CLI and the READ the Label First! Program will be as important a community service in 2001 and beyond as was the EPA's Recycle the Waste program in the latter half of the 20th century," said Everidge.

"We are happy to lend our particular technologies to this effort and are deeply honored to have been invited to participate with EPA and our CLI industry partners in this important project."

EPA has three stated primary objectives for the PATI pilot program according to a recent notice published in the U.S. Federal Register on December 26, 2000:

(1) To develop an effective educational program to teach school age children about the importance of first reading the label before any member of the household uses a pesticide or household cleaner; (2) promoting household safety to reduce children's exposure to potentially harmful chemicals; and (3) utilizing this pilot program as an opportunity to foster partnerships among EPA, state and local agencies, industry, and other potential stakeholders.

In March 1996, EPA announced the CLI after finding that label information is often difficult for the general public to read and understand. CLI is a voluntary, cooperative partnership among federal, state, and local government agencies, industry, and other interested groups working to improve product labels on indoor insecticides, outdoor pesticides, and household cleaners. Chipnology is a formal industry partner in the EPA's CLI initiative and actively participates in regular meetings which include industry leaders such as Amway, Bayer-Pursell, Bonide, Clorox, Colgate-Palmolive, Monsanto, Olin, Procter & Gamble, SC Johnson, Scotts, and United Industries. CLI's educational goals are to foster pollution prevention and to improve consumer understanding of information on consumer products, particularly pesticides and cleaners. To bring these new labels to the attention of the public, the CLI developed a national consumer education campaign entitled "READ the Label FIRST! (RtLF!)."

According to the American Association of Poison Control Centers, 36 children age 14 and under died from poisoning in 1997. More than 1 million children were victims of accidental poisoning. Introducing school age children to the RtLF! campaign and child safety issues via the PATI pilot program will allow them to become better-informed consumers and reduce their risks of accidental poisonings. In turn, they can carry this knowledge back to their families.

The PATI pilot program will begin January 25, 2001, according to the U.S. Federal Register notice.

Formerly known as SpaceMark Talking Technologies, Chipnology is a privately-held corporation that embeds microchip components into the housing of most products, allowing the manufacturer, distributor, and/or retailer to communicate through highly targeted audio messages important facts that inform the consumer about their products.

In late 2000, the company unveiled a talking bottle of the popular weed- killer, Round-Up, recently developed in cooperation with the EPA and Round- Up's manufacturer, Monsanto. Chipnology's talking Round-Up bottle communicates the risk of misusing the product through a short audio message contained in the product's lid that vocally urges users in English, French and/or Spanish to read the label first before applying.

Laura Dye, Chipnology, Inc., [REDACTED-PHONE]

http://www.everidge.com

**************************************************************************

To Transmit Your News Over E-Wire, visit http://www.ewire.com or

call 1-[REDACTED-PHONE]. E-Wire Is Broadcast To Millions Of Readers Worldwide

**************************************************************************