Si Se Puede! EPA Makes a Move to Ban Toxic Pesticide Chlorpyrifos
We want to extend a huge thank you to the thousands of supporters who have responded to the various alerts we have sent you if our efforts to try to get the EPA to ban the toxic pesticide chlorpyrifos. We are thrilled to share some great news with you.
On Friday, 15 years after the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) banned chlorpyrifos from residential use, the agency proposed to ban the neurotoxic pesticide from use in agricultural fields.
This is a very important victory for farm workers. The EPA’s own findings show that chlorpyrifos causes brain damage to children and poisons workers and bystanders. We know children are particularly vulnerable to pesticides in the first seven years of life; farm worker children bear the heaviest burden. Farm workers and their children often live in areas surrounded by fields where this pesticide drifts into the air and water. Banning this toxic chemical can make a huge difference.
This announcement came after recent Court of Appeals decisions gave EPA a deadline to take meaningful action on a 2007 legal petition to ban the chemical.
The EPA is now proposing to revoke agricultural uses of chlorpyrifos. This action would prevent: chlorpyrifos residue on food, contamination of drinking water, and drift to schools and homes. The next step will be a public comment period. We will be sure to inform you when this happens and update you on how you can help.