A coalition of advocacy groups are panning EPA’s pesticides work and calling on the agency to adopt a number of reforms geared toward bolstering science and minimizing industry input.
In a letter sent today, 37 organizations asked the Biden administration and key officials managing EPA’s pesticides efforts to “to re-think its application of current standards in law to meet the crises of the day” posed by chemicals.
Led by Beyond Pesticides and Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, the broader coalition includes environmental, public health and sustainable agriculture groups. They note that EPA has registered more than 18,000 separate pesticide products and that more than 2 billion pounds of pesticides are sold annually in the United States — all despite significant concerns over the pesticide approval process.
“We know that toxic pesticide use in the United States is widespread,” the groups wrote, adding that “in recent decades the Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) has made a series of crucial regulatory mistakes” resulting in severe impacts. Those include human deaths and diseases with disproportionate implications for people of color, as well as deep harm to animals and contributions to the climate crisis.
