Stratospheric Ozone Protection Case Study

The Weyerhaeuser Corporation is a large forest products company operating private bare-root nurseries in the United States and British Columbia, Canada (Littke 1994a). Due to concerns over the continued availability of methyl bromide for tree seedling production, Weyerhaeuser formulated a strategy to identify and investigate potential alternatives to methyl bromide including alternatives that reduce reliance on chemicals. Both alternative chemical fumigants and a variety of cultural and stock selection techniques have been identified for the control of soilborne pests. Based on trial results Weyerhaeuser has determined that Basamid or metham sodium can partially replace methyl bromide in the short term while soil solarization or steaming, cultural technologies and biocontrol may offer non-chemical alternatives in the long term after further research and refinement of the techniques.