Appeals court orders EPA to ban pesticide that harms children

A federal appeals court has directed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to ban the use of the agricultural pesticide chlorpyrifos.

“Today’s decision is a huge win for our children’s health, blocking the Trump administration from allowing continued exposure to this toxic pesticide,” said New York Attorney General Barbara D. Underwood. “The EPA’s most fundamental responsibility is to protect the health and safety of New Yorkers and all Americans — especially our children. Yet the Trump EPA continues to put corporations before people.”

Six attorneys general intervened in the case.

Chlorpyrifos, a widely-used pesticide on food crops — including those consumed by infants, young children, and pregnant women — is shown to negatively impact the proper development and functioning of the central nervous system and brain. The court decision directs the EPA to revoke all tolerances and cancel all registrations for chlorpyrifos within 60 days.

Chlorpyrifos is one of the most widely used insecticides in the United States. It’s used on many food crops such as apples, strawberries, bananas, pears, peaches, nectarines, and cherries. Residues of the pesticide have been repeatedly documented in baby foods and juices. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Pesticide Data Program shows that detection of chlorpyrifos residues is common on many foods. For example, residues were found on over 42 percent of almonds sampled in 2007 and 2008, the only two years almonds were tested.

The pesticide acts by inhibiting an enzyme that is key to the proper development and functioning of the central nervous system and brain. Several studies have shown that children born to women exposed to chlorpyrifos during pregnancy had cognitive and motor development delays in the first three years, and structural changes in the brain, lower working memory and IQ scores at age 7, and movement disorders, including arm tremors, by age 11.