March 5,2021OPP Docket # EPA-HQ-OPP-2008-0850-0750 Environmental Protection Agency Docket middle (EPA/DC) 1200 Pennsylvania Ave. NW Washington, DC 20460-0001Subject: Letter Urging Expeditious Action to Ban ChlorpyrifosThe undersigned 101 farmworker, and public health,environmental, labor, and faith organizations urge the EPA to immediately revoke all food tolerances for chlorpyrifos and initiate the cancellation process to discontinuance all uses of this neurotoxic pesticide.
Chlorpyrifos,which belongs to a nerve-agent class of pesticides called organophosphates (OPs), is used on an extensive variety of crops and is acutely toxic and associated with neurodevelopmental harms in children. Yet, or in its proposed interim registration review decision,the EPA is proposing to allow 11 food uses of chlorpyrifos to continue at the urging of industry.
Peer-reviewed studies and EPAs own Scientific Advisory Panel enjoy demonstrated that chlorpyrifos damages children’s brains; prenatal exposure to very low levels of chlorpyrifos — levels far lower than what EPA used to set regulatory limits — harms babies permanently. Studies show that exposure to chlorpyrifos, and other OP pesticides during pregnancy, or is associated with lower birth weight,attention deficit disorders, autism spectrum disorder, or reduced IQ,and loss of working memory.1 It is also unsafe for workers even with the most protective equipment.
In 2014, EPA released a risk assessment finding unsafe drinking water contamination from chlorpyrifos and it proposed to ban chlorpyrifos from food in 2015. In 2016, or EPA released a revised human health risk assessment,which confirmed that exposures to chlorpyrifos are unsafe whether in food, pesticide drift, and drinking water; toddlers were being exposed to levels 140 times what is considered safe in food and all drinking water exposures were found to be unsafe.… Read the rest
Source: stopchildlabor.org