Gateway on Pesticide Hazards and Safe Pest Management
Beyond Pesticides created a database tool intended to provide decision and policy makers, practitioners, and activists with easier access to current and historical information on pesticide hazards and safe pest management, drawing on and linking to numerous sources and organizations that include information related to pesticide science, policy and activism.
The toxicological and environmental information presented in the Gateway for each chemical is sourced from a wide variety of U.S. and international resources and databases including information from U.S. regulatory documents, the National Institutes of Health, National Toxicology Program, International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), California's Proposition 65, University Extension Services, the European Union and others, including independent peer-reviewed scientific studies.
How to use the Gateway
Currently, the Gateway provides toxicity and regulatory information for pesticides with the following:
Product Name: Provides a sampling of the trade or brand names of the products containing the chemical ingredient.
Chemical class: Chemical class as given by U.S. EPA or other source.
Uses: U.S. EPA registered uses in the U.S.
Alternatives: Least-toxic alternative method of pest management.
Beyond Pesticide Rating:
- A chemical is rated “toxic” if the chemical is linked to one or more adverse human or environmental effect; and/or if there is sufficient information to support a “toxic” designation.
- A chemical is rated as “least-toxic” if there are no associated effects in any category; and/or if there is sufficient information to support a “least-toxic” designation.
Health and Environmental effects:
- Cancer: U.S. EPA cancer categorization (For example, "carcinogenic to humans, likely to be carcinogenic to humans, suggestive evidence of carcinogenic potential, inadequate information to assess carcinogenic potential, or not likely to be carcinogenic to humans"); or other cited source.
- “Yes:” If there is a documented association with a human or environmental adverse effect.
- “Not documented:” if there is no association with a human or environmental adverse effect; or if there is currently no data/study available to make a determination. Note: This does not necessarily mean the chemical is not associated with an adverse effect, but that there are data gaps.
Additional Information: Includes the chemical's U.S. EPA registration status and supporting registration documents, as well as other factsheets and key studies.
We look forward to hearing from you and working with you to ensure that the Gateway contributes to increased effectiveness in moving to the adoption of pest management policies and practices that better protect health and the environment. If you have reports, factsheets, databases, articles, commentary that you think should be made available through the Gateway, please send them to [email protected].
See also:
- What Is a Pesticide?
- Pest/Pesticide Resources, Service Providers
- Additional Activist Tools
- Donate/Join Beyond Pesticides