13
Oct
Stop Continued Degradation of Science: Tell Congress to Insist that EPA Thoroughly Test All Pesticides for Health Hazards
(Beyond Pesticides, October 13, 2020) As the prestigious journal Nature publishes an article titled “How Trump Damaged Science — and Why It Could Take Decades to Recover,” the Trump Administration’s EPA is again damaging science, particularly science used to protect our health.
EPA is proposing to drop toxicity tests that look at lethal effects of acute exposures to pesticides through the skin. Given pesticide exposure patterns, this represents a dramatic step backwards in determining the harmful effects of pesticide products on the market and in wide use. The move is part of EPA’s effort to eliminate animal testing of pesticides—a move that should be replaced by the ban of unnecessary toxic pesticides. Reducing toxicity testing must take place only with the use of the precautionary principle.
TAKE ACTION: Tell Congress to Insist that EPA thoroughly test all pesticides for health hazards.
Aly Cohen, MD, FACR and Fred vom Saal, PhD point out in their new book, Non-Toxic Guide to Living in a Chemical World, “Human skin is the largest organ in the human body; it acts like a sponge, absorbing substances directly through its many intricate layers right into the bloodstream.” Farmworkers are routinely exposed to pesticides on their skin, and children playing on athletic fields sprayed with pesticides are also exposed through their skin.
Jeffrey Shaman, PhD, an epidemiologist at Columbia University in New York City, who was interviewed for the Nature article said of Trump’s actions concerning the coronavirus, “He has sabotaged efforts to keep people safe.” The article summarizes the effects of this administration, “As he seeks re-election on 3 November, Trump’s actions in the face of COVID-19 are just one example of the damage he has inflicted on science and its institutions over the past four years, with repercussions for lives and livelihoods. The president and his appointees have also backpedalled on efforts to curb greenhouse-gas emissions, weakened rules limiting pollution and diminished the role of science at the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Across many agencies, his administration has undermined scientific integrity by suppressing or distorting evidence to support political decisions, say policy experts.”
With the damage done by the executive branch, Congress must assert its oversight role to prevent laws that protect public health and the environment—laws that, after decades, have cleaned up our air, water, and land—from being completely undone.
TAKE ACTION: Tell Congress to Insist that EPA thoroughly test all pesticides for health hazards.
Letter to Congress
I am writing to ask you to assert oversight over the actions of the executive branch that continue to disregard science and threaten our health.
As the prestigious journal Nature publishes an article titled “How Trump Damaged Science — and Why It Could Take Decades to Recover,” the Trump Administration’s EPA is again damaging science, particularly science used to protect our health.
EPA is proposing to drop toxicity tests that look at lethal effects of acute exposures to pesticides through the skin. Given pesticide exposure patterns, this represents a dramatic step backwards in determining the harmful effects of pesticide products on the market and in wide use. The move is part of EPA’s effort to eliminate animal testing of pesticides—a move that should be replaced by the ban of unnecessary toxic pesticides. Reducing toxicity testing must take place only with the use of the precautionary principle.
Aly Cohen, MD, FACR and Fred vom Saal, PhD point out in their new book, Non-Toxic Guide to Living in a Chemical World, “Human skin is the largest organ in the human body; it acts like a sponge, absorbing substances directly through its many intricate layers right into the bloodstream.” Farmworkers are routinely exposed to pesticides on their skin, and children playing on athletic fields sprayed with pesticides are also exposed through their skin.
Jeffrey Shaman, PhD, an epidemiologist at Columbia University in New York City, who was interviewed for the Nature article said of Trump’s actions concerning the coronavirus, “He has sabotaged efforts to keep people safe.” The article summarizes the effects of this administration, “As he seeks re-election on 3 November, Trump’s actions in the face of COVID-19 are just one example of the damage he has inflicted on science and its institutions over the past four years, with repercussions for lives and livelihoods. The president and his appointees have also backpedalled on efforts to curb greenhouse-gas emissions, weakened rules limiting pollution and diminished the role of science at the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Across many agencies, his administration has undermined scientific integrity by suppressing or distorting evidence to support political decisions, say policy experts.”
With the damage done by the executive branch, Congress must assert its oversight role to prevent the undoing of laws intended to protect public health and the environment—laws that, after decades, have cleaned up our air, water, and land.
Thank you for your attention to this important issue.
PLEASE! We don’t need anymore poisons.
October 16th, 2020 at 10:31 am