EPA - banning pesticides poisons... Dursban

Subject:   To "Ban" Or Not TO Ban----That IS The Question!
Date:        Fri, 09 Jun 2000 14:04:00 -0400
From:        Stephen Tvedten <steve@getipm.com>
Organization:     Get Set Inc. (www.getipm.com)

To:     Lyndon Hawkins <hawkins@empm.cdpr.ca.gov>
          Senior Research Scientist
          State of California, Department of Pesticide Regulation - Integrated Pest Management

Dear Lyndon, I thought you might like to read an article entitled: EPA To Ban Common ("Registered") Pesticide - The Associated Press - By H. JOSEF HEBERT.

WASHINGTON (AP) - Citing health risks to children, the Environmental Protection Agency today banned one of the most common pesticides for use in gardens and homes, while curtailing its application in agriculture.

The agency, after a lengthy review, has concluded that the pesticide, chlorpyrifos - sold under the trade names Dursban and Lorsban - poses a risk to children because of its potential effects on the nervous system and possibly brain development.

``We are turning off the manufacturer of this chemical ... for garden and home uses,'' said EPA Carol Browner. She said the widely used insecticide is expected to be largely off store shelves by the end of the year, although the agency did not require a product recall and some retail sales may be allowed until December, 2001.

Dow AgroSciencen, a subsidiary of the Dow Chemical Co., which is the leading manufacturer of the pesticide, said it remains convinced the chemical is safe if used properly, but that ``it no longer made business sense in the current regulatory environment'' to continue making the chemical for other than agricultural uses. (I thought it was "illegal" to say any POISONS was "safe"".)

For decades one of the most widely used insecticides, chlorpyrifos is found on everything from pet flea collars to garden and lawn chemicals and indoor bug sprays. It also has been used widely in agriculture to protect fruits, vegetables and grains from insects.

Under an agreement that heads off further regulations, Dow Chemical Co., and five other lesser producers will immediately halt production of chlorpyrifos for virtually all nonagricultural uses. The EPA also will impose tighter restrictions on its use on some agricultural products, specifically apples and grapes, and ban its use on tomatoes. These restrictions are designed to eliminate the chemical's residues on foods often consumed by children.

The decision not to remove products containing chlorpyrifos from the shelves prompted complaints from some environmental and health advocates.

``When the EPA identifies hazards it should stop their use,'' said Jay Feldman, executive director of the National Coalition Against the Misuse of Pesticides.

``There's concern that these products are going to remain on the shelves'' and that the insecticide will continue - although at much reduced levels - be used in agriculture, said David Wallinga, a scientist for the Natural Resources Defense Council. He said that under the EPA phase-out, existing stocks of Dursban may continue to be sold for household and garden use for 18 months.

Hundreds of consumer products contain the chemical compound and many people can be expected to buy the products - bug sprays and lawn and garden insecticides, for example - this summer not knowing of the health risks, said Wallinga, who nevertheless called the EPA action ``a good step.''

Manufacturers in lengthy negotiations strongly opposed a recall. Browner said that getting a voluntary agreement to halt production was ``the fastest possible action that we could have taken'' to phase out the chemicals use in homes, gardens, parks, schools and other areas frequented by children. Any other approach would have resulted in years of litigation, Browner maintained.

Elin Miller, a Dow AgroScience vice president, said that under the agreement the company will continue to supply the pesticide until October. She said retail sales of existing stocks will continue to be allowed until the end of 2001. But Browner said the halt in production and the availability of alternatives will largely dry up the market by the end of the year.

Chlorpyrifos is among a family of 45 pesticides known as organophosphates that attack the nervous system and are under review by the EPA because of their potential health effects on children. Congress passed a law four years ago requiring the review to be completed by October, 1999, but so far only a handful of the chemicals have been examined.

Last year the agency banned the use of the pesticide methyl parathion on fruits and many vegetables and restricted the use of azinphos-methyl. Like chlorpyrifos, they are in the organophosphate family.

Last month, an EPA draft study concluded that another insecticide, diazinon, which is also that family, may pose a greater health risks than previously thought. This pesticide also is widely used in homes and gardens. A final review on diazinon is expected before the end of the year.

Under the 1996 Food Quality Protection Act, the EPA is required to restrict or ban a pesticide's use if it poses a specific threat to children. The increased concern about chlorpyrifos emerged after studies - some conducted by Dow Chemical Co. - found that the compound causes brain damage in fetal rats, whose mothers were given the pesticide.

No such direct link has been established in humans, but the animal tests were enough to trigger a finding that the pesticide should not be used where children might become exposed, scientists said.

Copyright 2000 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without prior written authority of The Associated Press.

Lyndon, I thought you might like to read an example of the environmental communities' initial response to the latest proposed "Ban":

Victims of Third Most Commonly Used Home-Use and Commercially Applied Pesticide, Chlorpyrifos (DursbanTM), Want It Fully Banned.

With EPA's June 8 decision on the future of the third most commonly used home-use and commercially applied pesticide, chlorpyrifos (DursbanTM), pending, victims express concern that the agency will not fully stop public exposure and will continue to compromise the public's health.

(Washington, D.C., June 7, 2000) As the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) prepares to release its long-awaited decision on new restrictions for the widely used insecticide chlorpyrifos (DursbanTM), those who have been poisoned are saying that the agency should stop compromising with the public's health. With 11 million pounds of the chemical active ingredient chlorpyrifos applied annually, this insecticide ranks third among all pesticides applied by homeowners and commercial applicators. It is used extensively in commercial buildings, schools, daycare centers, hotels, restaurants, hospitals, stores, warehouses, food manufacturing plants, vehicles (i.e. buses, planes, trains), and agriculture. In agriculture, 13 million pounds are applied annually, which ranks chlorpyrifos thirteenth among all agricultural pesticides. EPA released a risk assessment of chlorpyrifos in October, 1999.

Chlorpyrifos is in the family of approximately 40 widely used organophosphate pesticides, known neuro-toxic chemicals that together can cause cumulative adverse effects. Because of its high volume and common uses, chlorpyrifos represents one of the most significant sources of organophosphate exposure in non-occupational settings. Between the years 1993-1996, the most recent reporting years, 17,771 cases of unintentional residential chlorpyrifos exposures were reported to poison control centers. EPA's pesticide program, which disbanded its Pesticide Incident Monitoring System in 1981, does not collect adverse effects reports of pesticide poisoning, except those reported by the chemical industry.

"Nothing short of a ban of all uses of chlorpyrifos will protect the public from the chemical's adverse effects to the nervous system," said Jay Feldman, Executive Director of Beyond Pesticides/National Coalition Against the Misuse of Pesticides. "Since less toxic and non-toxic alternatives are available for all chlorpyrifos uses, it is wrong and unnecessary to allow chlorpyrifos uses to continue," said Mr. Feldman. EPA has a history of striking compromises on chemicals like chlorpyrifos. In 1999, despite headlines indicating the banning of two organophosphate pesticides, methyl parathion and azinphos-methyl, EPA's decision left on the market many uses that account for a significant portion of the chemicals' overall poundage.

If reports of an EPA ban of over-the-counter chlorpyrifos products are correct, Beyond Pesticides remains extremely concerned about the continued commercial and agricultural uses, exposure through residues in and on food, farmworker exposure, and direct public exposure from mosquito control and termite applications made by pesticide applicators. A decision limited to over-the-counter uses is inadequate to the protection of the public's health, according to Beyond Pesticides. "EPA should be in the business of preventing harm rather than calculating acceptable risk levels that allow people to be hurt, despite the availability of safer alternatives," said Mr. Feldman.

Dow AgroSciences and predecessor chlorpyrifos producers have received thousands of poisoning reports. Victims of chlorpyrifos poisoning want EPA to stop the pesticide poisoning of all people.

Beyond Pesticides maintains a database of people who are willing to share their stories associated with the tragedy of chlorpyrifos and other pesticide poisoning. The chlorpyrifos data base has been developed with assistance from the Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides. The list, representative of a larger group, includes 108 people from 33 states who have been hurt as a result of chlorpyrifos use in homes, offices, schools, and agriculture.

The following are examples of chlorpyrifos poisonings from the Beyond Pesticides/NCAMP data base. Please contact Beyond Pesticides/NCAMP if you would like to contact these or other people.

Raymond and Lois Flory, Lafayette, Louisiana, were exposed to chlorpyrifos in 1993 when their home was treated for termites by a professional pesticide applicator, who told Mr. and Mrs. Flory that the chemical was safe and they could stay in the house while the treatment occurred. While the applicator trenched around their home with the chemical, the fumes overcame Mr. and Mrs. Flory. They suffer from continuing medical problems including chemical encephalopathy, visual and strength loss, mood swings, and depression.

Janie Emerson, La Jolla, California, was exposed to chlorpyrifos in her home in 1993. Medical test results indicated cholinesterase levels affected her health and chlorpyrifos residues were found in her urine. Her health was severely affected by the exposure and continues today. Emerson is chemically sensitized as a result of this particular pesticide poisoning incident.

Middle school students, Charleston, South Carolina, in 1998 were exposed to chlorpyrifos applied in a classroom, soaking carpets and desks where students sat the next morning. The school did not notify parents until more than a month had passed and did not do a thorough cleanup until months after the application. The school has now notified all parents in an effort to monitor students’ health, which parents had urged them to do from the beginning. At least 40 children were affected by the pesticide exposure. Some are still ill. The most common health effects experienced were aggravated asthma and coughing, peeling hands and feet, headaches and nausea.

Jane Thomassen, Gouldsboro, Pennsylvania, continues to have numerous health effects due to routine monthly spraying that occurred at the school where she taught in the 1980's. One of the routine treatments occurred while she was in her classroom preparing for school to open. The commercial applicator sprayed pesticides in the halls and rooms of the school, including her classroom. As a result of this exposure, she has become intolerant to chemicals, has had muscle, bone and joint problems, and reproductive and immune system dysfunction. She is now disabled and no longer able to work. Dr. Zamm of Kingston New York identified the cause of her illness to be related to pesticide exposure while at school.

The Trimper family, Rotterdam, New York, was exposed to Dursban TC and LO in 1996 on two separate occasions when the pesticide was applied to their home. Following the second treatment, their three-year-old son became ill with high fevers and respiratory problems. Mrs. Trimper had two miscarriages after the exposure. An investigation found that after each treatment, injected through/in cinder blocks, they had leakage of the chemical the following day and a strong odor that is still present in their home. No ventilation was installed or plastic covering laid in an elevated sub-floor area to prevent the chemicals from coming up into their living quarters. Air testing found levels as high as 720 ppm of chemicals like benzene, xylene and toluene.

Well Lyndon, What do you think? If a "registered" POISON is finally found to be BAD enough to be "BANNED", don't you feel that it would be in the best interests of the public not to sell MILLIONS OF MORE POUNDS OF JUST THE ACTIVE POISON INGREDIENT before you FINALLY TAKE THE "REGISTERED" POISON OFF THE MARKET? It is interesting that the mark of the beast is 666 or if you add them up 18 months.

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