{"id":32348,"date":"2023-02-07T00:01:27","date_gmt":"2023-02-07T05:01:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/?p=32348"},"modified":"2023-02-09T10:03:52","modified_gmt":"2023-02-09T15:03:52","slug":"pesticide-reform-bill-reintroduced-in-u-s-senate-advocate-say-important-but-not-transformative-change-needed","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/beyondpesticides.org\/dailynewsblog\/2023\/02\/pesticide-reform-bill-reintroduced-in-u-s-senate-advocate-say-important-but-not-transformative-change-needed\/","title":{"rendered":"Pesticide Reform Bill Reintroduced in U.S. Senate, Advocates Call Changes Major But Not Systemic Ones Needed"},"content":{"rendered":"

(Beyond Pesticides<\/em>, February 7, 2023) U.S. Senator Cory Booker (D-N.J.) reintroduced legislation last week to increase protections against exposure to toxic pesticides. The Protect America\u2019s Children from Toxic Pesticides Act of 2023<\/a> (PACTPA), S.269, addresses many of the controversial issues with the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), which governs the registration and use of pesticides in the U.S. This major reform legislation tackles some of the documented deficiencies in the regulation of pesticides and removes a number of loopholes in the law. The legislation, introduced with Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Bernie Sanders (D-VT), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Brian Schatz (D-HI), also includes a ban on all organophosphate and neonicotinoid insecticides, as well as\u00a0 the weed killer paraquat, which is known to cause Parkinson\u2019s disease and lung fibrosis. Despite these reform provisions, the legislation does not touch the core of FIFRA’s pesticide registration process and chart a path for the systemic, transformative change that Beyond Pesticides says is essential to meet the existential challenges of current times\u2014devastating health threats, biodiversity collapse, and the climate crisis.<\/p>\n

FIFRA, which is under the jurisdiction of the agriculture committees of Congress, has long been criticized for failing to protect the public and workers because of a host of problems that are viewed as untouchable in Congress: a failed risk assessment and risk mitigation process; lack of pesticide essentiality reviews in light of the availability of nontoxic and organic alternatives; incomplete U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reviews that do not consider a wide range of public health diseases caused by pesticides and synergistic effects from multiple chemical exposures; incomplete ecological assessments and protection of threatened and endangered species; and, disproportionate harm to people of color, those with pre-existing health conditions, and workers with cumulative exposure to pesticides in their workplace, community, and home. Beyond Pesticides is calling for a 10-year phase out of petrochemical pesticides and the national transition to organic land management and pest preventive building management practices.<\/p>\n

PACTPA proposes important changes to FIFRA to better protect frontline farmworkers, children and agricultural communities from harmful, potentially lethal, pesticide exposure.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe work with farmworkers who are afraid to report exposure incidents due to fear of retaliation, and more often pesticide handlers aren\u2019t receiving training on just how dangerous their mixing and spraying jobs are,\u201d said Jeannie Economos, coordinator of the Pesticide Safety and Environmental Health Project for the Farmworker Association of Florida.<\/p>\n

The bill would also ensure that state and local governments retain the authority to implement stronger measures to protect against pesticide exposure, including phase-outs and bans. This is crucial because each year the United States uses over one billion pounds of pesticides \u2014 nearly one-fifth of worldwide use.<\/p>\n

Once they are approved, pesticides often remain on the market for decades, even when scientific evidence overwhelmingly shows a pesticide is causing harm to people or the environment. Approximately one-third of annual U.S. pesticide use \u2014 over 300 million pounds from 85 different pesticides \u2014 comes from pesticides that are banned in the European Union.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis legislation upholds the basic democratic right of communities to adopt safety standards that are more protective than federal or state law,\u201d said Drew Toher, community resource and policy director at Beyond Pesticides.<\/p>\n

Specifically, PACTPA would provide some critically-needed improvements to FIFRA to better protect people and the environment, including:<\/p>\n

Bans some of the most damaging pesticides scientifically known to cause significant harm to people and the environment:<\/p>\n