11
Mar
(Beyond Pesticides, March 11, 2024) Inside a recent disagreement between the Office of the Inspector (OIG) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencyâs (EPA) Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP) on the agencyâs review of pet flea and tick collarsâleading to thousands of deaths and poisoningsâis a basic question of the adequacy of pesticide regulation. The disagreement is over the cause of 105,354 incident reports, including 3,000 pet deaths and nearly 900 reports of human injury, and the February 2025 OIG reportâs conclusion that â[EPA] has not provided assurance that they can be used without posing unreasonable adverse effects to the environment, including pets.” While the disagreement focuses on a number of EPA process failures, Beyond Pesticides urges that the findings advance the need for the agency to address a key element of chemical mixtures in pesticide products not currently evaluated, potential synergistic effectsâthe increased toxic potency created by pesticide and chemical combinations not captured by assessing product ingredients individually. Key to the dispute is what many see as a foundational failure of EPA to evaluate the effect of pesticide mixtures and full formulations of pesticide end products, a longstanding criticism of the agencyâs pesticide registration process, which focuses on pesticide productsâ active […]
Posted in Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Flumethrin, Imidacloprid, synergistic effects, Synthetic Pyrethroids, Uncategorized | 10 Comments »
06
Mar
(Beyond Pesticides, March 6, 2024) With over 2,500 pet deaths and 900 reports of adverse effects to people, an Office of Inspector General (OIG) report, published on February 29, 2024, reveals multiple systemic failures by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agencyâs (EPA) Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP), citing inadequate safety reviews of Seresto pet collars. The report, The EPA Needs to Determine Whether Seresto Pet Collars Pose an Unreasonable Risk to Pet Health, concludes, âThe EPAâs response to reported pesticide incidents involving Seresto pet collars has not provided assurance that they can be used without posing unreasonable adverse effects to the environment, including pets.â At the time the animal effects made headlines in 2021, the agency defended the productâs registration, telling the media that, despite these incidents, EPA deemed Seresto collars ââeligible for continued registrationâ based on best available science, including incident data… No pesticide is completely without harm, but EPA ensures that there are measures on the product label that reduce risk.ââŻDespite the scathing criticism, EPA maintains the position that it conducted an adequate review of the two active insecticide ingredients in the pet collarsâthe neurotoxic insecticideâŻflumethrin, and the notorious neonicotinoidâŻimidaclopridâproven to have adverse effects on the endocrine system as […]
Posted in Bayer, behavioral and cognitive effects, Children, Elanco, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Fleas, Flumethrin, Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Groundwater, Imidacloprid, Mosquitoes, Pesticide Regulation, Pets, Repellent, Seresto, synergistic effects, Synthetic Pyrethroids, Ticks, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
01
Apr
(Beyond Pesticides, April 1, 2022) According to reporting by E&Eâs Greenwire, internal emails at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) show that career scientists at the agency expressed worry about pesticide-laced pet collars, such as the notorious Seresto flea and tick collars, but that EPA managers âinstructed them to avoid documenting those worries in publicly accessible records.â The emails were released pursuant to a 2021 FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) lawsuit, brought by the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD), that sought records of internal communications. The documents evidence staff concern about the collars that has not been a part of EPAâs public communications on the subject. EPA staff, in the emails, expressed a range of degrees of outrage at managersâ behavior and at the very registration of the product, given the significant harms. Seresto collars are plastic pet collars embedded with pesticides designed to kill fleas, ticks, and lice; they contain the active ingredients flumethrin and imidacloprid. Flumethrin, a chemical in the pyrethroid class of synthetic neurotoxic insecticides, has been linked repeatedly to neurological issues, such as seizures and learning disabilities in children, to gastrointestinal distress, and to damage to nontarget invertebrates, according to EPAâs own analysis. Imidacloprid is a commonly used pesticide linked to […]
Posted in Fleas, Flumethrin, Imidacloprid, Pets, Seresto, Ticks, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
08
Mar
(Beyond Pesticides, March 8, 2021) In the face of 1,700 pet deaths linked to Serestoâs flea and tick collarâas reported March 2, 2021 by USA Today, based on EPA recordsâEPA has taken no action. This unconscionable inaction is defended by an EPA spokesperson who told the media that, despite these incidents, the agency has deemed Seresto collars ââeligible for continued registrationâ based on best available science, including incident data. . . . No pesticide is completely without harm, but EPA ensures that there are measures on the product label that reduce risk.â Seresto is developed by Bayer and sold by Elanco. Tell EPA and Members of Congress to take responsible and immediate action to stop the death of dogs and cats by stopping the sale of Seresto flea collars. Beyond Pesticides is calling on EPA to recognize, finally, that the label on flea collars is not adequately protective, as evidenced by the number of deaths and 75,000 incidents. âEPA has the authority to act now, and it should use its powers to protect the health and lives of pets,â said Jay Feldman, executive director of Beyond Pesticides. âEPA should act on the deaths immediately, not wait for further study, just […]
Posted in Bayer, Elanco, Flumethrin, Imidacloprid, Pets, Synthetic Pyrethroid, Take Action, Uncategorized | 9 Comments »
05
Mar
(Beyond Pesticides, March 5, 2021) Pet owners will be alarmed to read the report, by USA Today, that a popular flea and tick collar â Seresto, developed by Bayer and sold by Elanco â has been linked to nearly 1,700 pet deaths, injuries to tens of thousands of animals, and harm to hundreds of people. At the time of publication, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which regulates pesticides, had issued no informational alert to let the public know about these risks to pets â despite many hundreds of incident reports in its Office of Pesticide Programs Incident Report database. Beyond Pesticides and other advocates have warned of the toxicity of pet pesticide treatments, not only to the animals themselves, but also, to children and other household members. There are nontoxic ways to protect pets from fleas and other pests, and to protect human family members at the same time. Beyond Pesticides is calling on EPA to recognize, finally, that the label on flea collars is not adequately protective, as evidenced by the number of deaths and 75,000 incidents. âEPA has the authority to act now, and it should use its powers to protect the health and lives of pets,â […]
Posted in Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Fleas, Flumethrin, Imidacloprid, Pets, Synthetic Pyrethroids, Uncategorized | 4 Comments »
