Immediate Release                                                                            June 29,2000

USEPA CONDUCTS BOGUS MALATHION RISK ASSESSMENT

“In a meeting on June 28, 2000 with the USEPA in Washington it was revealed that our health and environment are not at all a concern to those collecting our hard earned tax dollars to carry out that agency's mission to "Protect the Health and Environment" of the people,” stated Joyce Shepard, President of the Citizens’ Action Committee for Change.

The EPA’s toxicologist, Brian Dementi revealed that “the USEPA NEVER looked at the 600 pathological slides of tissues on rat studies of a 24 month carcinogenic study in the rat provided by the chemical company, Cheminova, that has become one of the focal points of EPA changing its mind on the carcinogenicity of malathion. In fact, it was revealed that EPA Never checks the evidence submitted by the registrant and relies 100 percent on “what the registrant tells them.”

Dr. Brian Dementi, the EPA Toxicologist stated at the meeting, and in internal EPA memos  that he has "concerns" on the reversal and stated "there is clear evidence that malathion is a likely human carcinogen."  Dr. Dementi was also brave enough to voice his concerns on the health risks associated with malathion on the children within this country.

We learned that EPA allowed Cheminova to change their minds about their own pathologist's findings that their product WAS a "likely human carcinogen", and during the final 30 day review of their report hired new pathologists to refute their original decision. During that 30 day "error" period EPA personnel reviewed the Cheminova report for "typo errors" and allowed Cheminova to hire a "new pathologist working group (PWG) to change the opinion of the previous pathologist working group and the EPA.

There were 28 employees from the USEPA in attendance, including three Inspector Generals, and a representative from Carole Browner's office, the head of the USEPA.. Joyce  requested  an investigation into the EPA’s scandalous reversal on the carcinogenicity of this chemical by the USEPA Inspector General. The active members  of the coalition invited to the meeting were Dr. Robert Simon, Toxicologist,  (Fairfax, Va.) Gladstone Jones, Environmental Attorney, (New Orleans, La.) Jay Feldman, Executive Director, Beyond Pesticides, NCAMP ( Washington, DC) Kimberly Lynn, The Environmental Justice Center, ( NYC) and Amanda Ameksraitis, Attorney, SCRAM & COCEP, (Sarasota, Fla.).

Joyce Shepard submitted testimony by the EPA NYC Regional ll representative, Mr. Enache's statements at Senator Frank Padavan's hearing on the West Nile Virus. At that time Mr. Enache reported that malathion "can be stored in temperatures up to 105 degrees Fahrenheit."

This is misinformation, for the labeling warns "do not store above 77 degrees Fahrenheit." If stored above that temperature it degrades and becomes malaoxon, four times more toxic than malathion. The EPA representatives were asked what the allowable temperature was for malathion. Not one EPA employee in that room knew, including the person in charge of ENFORCEMENT. ( contact Joyce Shepard for the list of names and titles)

We question why the USEPA relies on what the registrant tells them and discounts their own toxicologist? We question why we were told some of their meetings are "confidential" with chemical companies, and the tax payer's and stakeholders cannot attend We question why our tax dollars pay for a toxicologist within the EPA, and when he finds that information reveals a chemical to be cancer causing  he is discounted and ignored?

We are urging people throughout the cities and states to contact their Congressional representatives and US Senators to demand that the 600 slides provided to the EPA by Cheminova, and ignored, be reviewed by an external peer review panel with qualified pathologists by academia. We will provide the names of those independent pathologists.

A campaign to question why Al Gore has not overseen this agency since he is a Mentor to Carole Browner and why this practice has allowed to continue by a vice president who poses as our “environmental” vice president.

(Editor's Note:  Okay, at what point do the people start meaning more than profits?  Government officials can be sued for malfeasance... is endangering and killing off the population not considered malfeasance?)

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