The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today proposed a total ban on the insecticide chlorpyrifos for agricultural uses, saying it has been unable to make a safety finding as required under the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA) by a court-imposed Oct. 31 deadline.

 

The agency opened a 60-day comment period on its proposed rule and said it will make a final decision based on stakeholder comments, including from farmers who rely on chlorpyrifos-containing products to protect their crops from destructive insect pests.

 

EPA said that, based on its current analysis, “there do not appear to be risks from exposure to chlorpyrifos from food, but, when that exposure is combined with estimated exposure from drinking water in certain watersheds, EPA cannot conclude that the risk from the potential aggregate exposure meets the FFDCA safety standard.” The agency banned chlorpyrifos for residential use 15 years ago

 

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