Panel Questions EPA's Pesticide Review

Date: July 25, 2002

Source: News Room

A report by a panel of scientific advisers calls into question whether the Environmental Protection Agency's review of a group of pesticides will be adequate to protect children's health. The independent panel suggested the EPA prematurely concluded 28 pesticides were safe without an adequate review of whether they are particularly harmful when combined. The five-member panel found that the EPA used an inadequate margin of safety for fetuses, infants and children when it reached its preliminary decision to approve the use of all but two of 30 organophosphorus pesticides. The EPA, prompted by a settlement agreement from a lawsuit brought by Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group, has been reviewing the cumulative risks of organophosphorus pesticides.

Sign up to receive our free Weekly News Bulletin