Judicial Watch: Court Orders Ban of Brain-Damaging Pesticide
A federal appellate court has ordered the Trump Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to do its job of protecting human health, by banning a pesticide shown to damage children’s brains from being used on food crops.
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned former EPA head Scott Pruitt’s decision to deny a petition to ban the use of chlorpyrifos on food crops. Pruitt had previously reversed an Obama EPA decision to extend a ban on chlorpyrifos for household use to also bar its use on food crops. The Obama EPA’s decision was based on evidence that the pesticide, which has been shown to damage children’s developing brains even at low exposures, was persisting to end users when used on food crops. New York Attorney General Barbara Underwood called the decision “a huge win for our children’s health.”
Erik Olson of the Natural Resources Defense Council agreed: “Some things are too sacred to play politics with—and our kids top the list. The court has made it clear that children’s health must come before powerful polluters. This is a victory for parents everywhere who want to feed their kids fruits and veggies without fear it’s harming their brains or poisoning communities.”
More information on chlorpyrifos and its problems can be found here.
