27
Jun
(Beyond Pesticides, June 27, 2024) Earlier this month, Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on behalf of a group of ranchers and farmers in Texas harmed by biosolids contaminated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The plaintiffs charge that their health and livelihoods were severely damaged due to contaminated biosolids leaching from neighboring properties onto their land. Despite EPA’s responsibility under the Clean Water Act (Section 405(d) and 40 CFR Part 503) to identify toxic pollutants in biosolids and regulate them to protect human health and the environment, the agency has not effectively addressed the dangers posed by PFAS in biosolid fertilizers. EPA’s failure has dramatic impacts on farmers as well as the public, who are eating or drinking PFAS-contaminated crops, dairy milk, beef, or other meat products. The shortcomings of federal regulations underscore the urgent need for a shift in how federal and state agencies approach these issues, prioritizing precaution to prevent future harm. The persistence of these legacy or “forever” chemicals in the environment illustrates the severe consequences of a historically lax regulatory framework in the U.S. The National Association of State Departments of Agriculture (NASDA) has identified […]
Posted in 3M, Biosolids, Biosolids/Sewage Sludge, Birth defects, Brain Effects, Cancer, Cardiovascular Disease, Chronic Kidney Disease, Colorado, compost, contamination, Death, Disease/Health Effects, Dow Chemical, Drinking Water, DuPont, Endocrine Disruption, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Fertilizer, Groundwater, Herbicides, Inhance Technologies, Kidney failure, Liver Damage, Liver failure, Maine, Metabolic Disorders, metabolic syndrome, Michigan, Miscarriage, NOSB National Organic Standards Board, Office of Inspector General, Pesticide Regulation, PFAS, Plastic, Reproductive Health, Sewage Sludge, State/Local, Synthetic Fertilizer, Texas, Toxic Waste, US Department of Agriculture (USDA), Water, Water Regulation | 1 Comment »
17
Apr
(Beyond Pesticides, April 17, 2024) With headlines drawing public attention to the contamination of drinking water after years of federal government neglect, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on April 10 new standards to reduce public exposure to PFAS, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly referred to as “forever chemicals” because of their persistence. EPA has finalized a National Primary Drinking Water Regulation (NPDWR) for six PFAS, including PFOA and PFOS, which EPA has recognized have no safe level of exposure, regulating new chemicals for the first time since the 1996 amendments to the Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). PFAS persistence and bioaccumulation in humans, wildlife, and the environment is due to the strength of a resulting fluorine–carbon atom bond. PFAS contamination of drinking water, surface and groundwater, waterways, soils, and the food supply—among other resources—is ubiquitous worldwide. PFAS is used in everyday products, including cookware, clothes, carpets, as an anti-sticking and anti-stain agent, in plastics, machinery, and as a pesticide. The action was welcomed by environmentalists and public health advocates as an important step but left many concerned that any level of exposure to these chemicals is unacceptable and critical of EPA’s ongoing failure to act despite years […]
Posted in Agriculture, Alternatives/Organics, Announcements, Arkansas, Biosolids, Birth defects, Brain Effects, California, Cancer, Cardiovascular Disease, Chemicals, Connecticut, contamination, Developmental Disorders, Disease/Health Effects, Drinking Water, Endocrine Disruption, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Farmworkers, Fertilizer, Groundwater, Hawaii, Herbicides, Illinois, Infertility, Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), Inhance Technologies, Lawns/Landscapes, Liver Damage, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Metabolic Disorders, metabolic syndrome, metabolic syndrome, Michigan, Minnesota, Motor Development Effects, Motor neuron disease, National Organic Standards Board/National Organic Program, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, NOSB National Organic Standards Board, Obesity, Ohio, Oregon, Parks for a Sustainable Future, Pennsylvania, Pesticide Mixtures, Pesticide Regulation, PFAS, Plastic, Reproductive Health, Rhode Island, Sewage Sludge, soil health, Synthetic Fertilizer, Take Action, Thyroid Disease, U.S. Geological Survey, Uncategorized, Vermont, Washington, Water, Water Regulation, Wisconsin | No Comments »
18
Oct
(Beyond Pesticides, October 18, 2023) A meta-analysis published in Toxics finds an association between exposure to organophosphate pesticides (OPs) and respiratory diseases and diabetes mellitus (DM). Specifically, wheezing and asthma are the most common respiratory manifestations of OP exposure, while fluctuation in weight and fat/glucose levels are the most common metabolically related manifestations. Organophosphorus pesticides have a wide range of biological uses—from insecticides to flame retardants—that make these chemicals ubiquitous, significantly contributing to ecosystem contamination. Thus, OP compounds have a global distribution, with evaporation and precipitation facilitating long-range atmospheric transport, deposition, and bioaccumulation of hazardous chemicals in the environment. Many studies show OPs are highly toxic, and residues are consistently present in human and animal urine, blood, tissues, and milk. Considering 90 percent of Americans have at least one pesticide compound in their body, primarily stemming from dietary exposure, including food and drinking water, advocates maintain that current restrictions on their use must adequately detect and assess total chemical contaminants. This study investigated the effects and possible mechanisms involved in adverse health outcomes associated with OP exposure. Reviewing studies from Web of Science, PubMed, Embase, OVID, and the Cochrane Library, researchers systematically searched for articles on OP exposure and respiratory, DM, and cardiovascular disease (CVD) outcomes until 2022. […]
Posted in Cardiovascular Disease, Diabetes, Metabolic Disorders, organophosphate, Respiratory Problems | No Comments »
13
Jul
(Beyond Pesticides, July 13, 2023) A study published in Environmental Science and Pollution Research finds exposure to p-Dichlorobenzene (p-DCB), a chlorophenol compound with uses as an insecticide, disinfectant, repellent, fumigant, fungicide, and deodorizer, can increase the risk of common endocrine (hormone)-mediated reproductive cancers (i.e., breast, uterine, and ovarian) in women. P-DCB or paradichlorobenzene has carcinogenic (cancer-causing) properties and the chemical has been banned in the European Union (EU) since 2005 for air fresheners and 2008 for mothballs. Being a chlorinated aromatic hydrocarbon (with benzene) compound (chlorobenzene), in addition to its cancer-causing properties, p-DCB can cause acute illnesses like headaches, numbness, sleepiness, nausea and vomiting and chronic effects like nervous system disorders leading to depression, and impact on the brain, birth outcomes, reproductive system, liver, and kidneys. Pesticides have a long history associated with endocrine-disrupting properties that induce various molecular changes, prompting disease development. Adding to the science, a similar review published in Environmental Exposure, Biomonitoring, and Exposure Assessment highlights how specific estrogen-mimicking pesticides increase the risk of disease, particularly hormone-related cancers among women (e.g., breast, ovarian, and endometrial cancer) and men (i.e., testicular, prostate cancer).PDCB, also known as para-dichlorobenzene, contains the carcinogen benzene and is chlorine-based (a chlorinated aromatic hydrocarbon compound), which in December 2019 […]
Posted in Endocrine Disruption, Metabolic Disorders, Para-dichlorobenzene (PDCB), Reproductive Health, Women's Health | No Comments »
26
Jan
(Beyond Pesticides, January 26, 2023) A study published in Food Safety and Toxicology finds that the widely used fungicide azoxystrobin (AZO), used in food production and turf management, can disrupt the function of the intestinal (colonic) barrier responsible for the absorption of nutrients and defense against harmful substances. This and other similar data are important because the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), with its required pesticide testing protocol, says that the chemical has “low acute and chronic toxicity to humans, birds, mammals, and bees,” and speaks to the need for the agency to modernize its registration requirements. [The agency does note that AZO is “is highly toxic to freshwater fish, freshwater invertebrates, and estuarine/marine fish, and very highly toxic to estuarine/marine invertebrates.] AZO is a broad-spectrum chemical used in wheat, barley, oats, rye, soya, cotton, rice, strawberry, peas, beans, onions, and a long list of other vegetables, as well as on lawns and golf courses, on a range of fungal diseases. The intestinal (colonic) barrier prevents the internal environment from damage caused by exogenous toxins to ensure internal homeostasis, impeding incidences of systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), sepsis, and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS). The intestines host a group of microorganisms that form […]
Posted in Azoxystrobin, Gut Dysbiosis, Metabolic Disorders, Microbiata, Microbiome | No Comments »
