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beyond pesticides
Biodiversity Group Wins Deal With Biden Admin to Protect Wildlife From Pesticides
"For over a decade, federal agencies have ignored how spraying pesticides into the water harms bull trout, pallid sturgeon, and dozens of other protected species," said one advocate. "That changes today."
Aug 01, 2023
The Center for Biological Diversity said Tuesday that a legal agreement it has reached with two federal agencies will help mitigate damage done to wildlife in United States waterways, where endangered species have been harmed over the past decade by the government's failure to assess the environmental impact of pesticide applications.
Under the deal, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) must complete assessments under the Endangered Species Act to ensure wildlife is protected from the spraying of pesticides.
According to CBD, the FWS and EPA have both failed to conduct endangered species consultations in recent years before issuing a nationwide pesticide general permit, which the EPA issues every five years.
The permit establishes requirements for the spraying of pesticides directly into waterways to control mosquito populations, aquatic weeds, and forest canopy pests.
"This agreement is important progress for improving the health of our rivers and streams and the incredible critters that rely on them."
CBD filed a lawsuit in 2021 in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit, arguing that the EPA had failed to assess the impact on wildlife when it issued the permit that year and in 2016 when the previous permit was approved.
The group said Tuesday that the FWS has also failed to conduct assessments "in three previous instances... even when requested [to] by the EPA."
"For over a decade, federal agencies have ignored how spraying pesticides into the water harms bull trout, pallid sturgeon, and dozens of other protected species. That changes today," said Hannah Connor, an attorney at CBD. "This victory will help endangered species across the country, along with the rivers and streams we all depend on."
The U.S. Geological Survey showed in 2021 that on average, 17 pesticides were found at least once in 74 river and stream sites that were sampled 12-24 times per year between 2013 and 2017.
According to Beyond Pesticides, pesticide exposure is linked to cancer, hormonal disruption, reproductive problems, liver and kidney damage, and other health issues in a wide range of species. Reproductive deformations have been detected in frogs and fish in rivers throughout the U.S. after exposure to pesticides.
The agreement requires the FWS to complete consultations on the impact to endangered wildlife before the next permit is finalized, no later than 2025. The EPA will also be required to take additional steps to improve pollution monitoring under the Clean Water Act to protect freshwater species from pesticide applications prior to the next pesticide general permit.
"This agreement is important progress for improving the health of our rivers and streams and the incredible critters that rely on them," said Connor in a statement. "My hope is that it will be a wake-up call for the Fish and Wildlife Service to fully embrace its critical role in preventing harm from pesticides to protected species."
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'Major Victory': Court Orders EPA Review of Glyphosate's Cancer and Endangered Species Risks
"While it comes too late for many farmworkers and landscapers who suffer after glyphosate exposure, we are grateful for the court's ruling," said a representative for one plaintiff.
Jun 17, 2022
A federal appeals court on Friday issued a ruling on the weedkiller glyphosate that the coalition involved with the case called "a historic victory for farmworkers and the environment."
"EPA's failure to act on the science... has real-world adverse health consequences for farmworkers, the public, and ecosystems."
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ordered the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to review its conclusions about the safety of glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup, a popular herbicide created by Monsanto--which Bayer acquired in 2018.
The EPA "recently assessed whether glyphosate poses 'any unreasonable risk to man or the environment' and answered, for the most part, 'no,'" the 54-page opinion explains, referring to the agency's widely criticized decision from January 2020.
"A group of petitioners challenged EPA's decision, arguing, among other things, that EPA did not adequately consider whether glyphosate causes cancer and shirked its duties under the Endangered Species Act," the ruling continues. "We agree and remand to the agency for further consideration."
The organizations behind the challenge celebrated the court's 3-0 ruling, which Amy van Saun--a senior attorney with Center for Food Safety and lead counsel in the case--said "gives voice to those who suffer from glyphosate's cancer, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma."
"EPA's 'no cancer' risk conclusion did not stand up to scrutiny," she added. "Today is a major victory for farmworkers and others exposed to glyphosate. Imperiled wildlife also won today, as the court agreed that EPA needed to ensure the safety of endangered species before greenlighting glyphosate."
\u201cNo kidding: "EPA\u2019s determination that glyphosate was not likely to be carcinogenic was not supported by substantial evidence" See the 9th Circuit decision here @EPA @wheatworld @ASA_Soybeans @Bayer https://t.co/jGmnRTaj2f\u201d— carey gillam \u270d\ufe0f \ud83d\udcd3 (@carey gillam \u270d\ufe0f \ud83d\udcd3) 1655496948
Jeannie Economos, Pesticide Safety and Environmental Health Project coordinator at the Farmworker Association of Florida, a plaintiff in the case, also applauded the "significant decision."
"While it comes too late for many farmworkers and landscapers who suffer after glyphosate exposure," she said, "we are grateful for the court's ruling, and hope that now EPA will act quickly to protect future workers from illness and disease resulting from this toxic pesticide."
Leaders at other groups that took on the EPA over what the court concluded was a "flawed" analysis of glyphosate expressed hope that the ruling will lead to safer farming practices.
"EPA's failure to act on the science, as detailed in the litigation, has real-world adverse health consequences for farmworkers, the public, and ecosystems," said Jay Feldman, executive director of Beyond Pesticides.
"Because of this lawsuit, the agency's obstruction of the regulatory process will not be allowed to stand," Feldman added, "and EPA should start shifting food production to available alternative non- and less-toxic practices and materials that meet its statutory duty."
Rural Coalition chairperson John Zippert declared that "we need to halt glyphosate's devastating impact on the farmworkers and farmers who suffer the deepest consequences of exposure."
"This decision," he added, "will hopefully hasten the transition to farming and gardening methods and practices that increase resilience, protecting our children, our planet, and all those who feed us."
As E&E Newsnoted Friday:
EPA's finding on the human health risk of glyphosate is at the heart of Monsanto Co.'s Supreme Court petition asking the justices to overturn a landmark $25 million jury verdict in favor of a California resident who developed non-Hodgkin's lymphoma after years of using Roundup.
The Supreme Court could accept or reject the petition from Monsanto, now owned by Bayer AG, as soon as next week. A grant and subsequent ruling in the company's favor in Monsanto v. Hardeman could potentially upend thousands of similar lawsuits over the company's failure to warn about the product's cancer risks.
In a lengthy statement responding to the appelate court ruling on Friday, Bayer said that "we believe that the U.S. EPA will continue to conclude, as it and other regulators have consistently concluded for more than four decades, that glyphosate-based herbicides can be used safely and are not carcinogenic, and we are committed to working with the agency to minimize the environmental impacts of our products."
The company pledged to "continue to participate in EPA's public process to help ensure the agency can make fully informed science-based decisions that are protective of listed species and critical habitats."
Bayer announced in July 2021--just over three years after acquiring Monsanto--various moves to "help close the door on this litigation and ensure that any claims brought by individuals who use Roundup in the future are few in number and unlikely to succeed."
Those steps include ending the sale of glyphosate-based products such as Roundup for the U.S. residential lawn and garden market beginning in 2023--a development that the Center for Food Safety and other groups also welcomed as a huge win.
This post has been updated with comment from Bayer.
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80 Groups Blast US Interference in Mexico's Phaseout of Glyphosate and GM Corn
"We call on Secretary Vilsack and Trade Representative Tai, as key leaders in the new administration, to respect Mexico's decision to protect both public health and the integrity of Mexican farming."
Apr 29, 2021
A coalition of 80 U.S. agricultural, consumer, environmental, public health, and worker groups sent a letter Thursday to key figures in the Biden administration calling for them to "respect Mexico's sovereignty and refrain from interfering with its right to enact health-protective policies"--specifically, the phaseout of the herbicide glyphosate and the cultivation of genetically modified corn.
"It is completely unacceptable for U.S. public agencies to be doing the bidding of pesticide corporations like Bayer."
--Kristin Schafer, PANNA
"Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador quietly rocked the agribusiness world with his New Year's Eve decree," Timothy A. Wise of the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy (ITAP) noted earlier this year. "His administration sent an even stronger aftershock two weeks later, clarifying that the government would also phase out GM corn imports in three years and the ban would include not just corn for human consumption but yellow corn destined primarily for livestock."
"Mexico imports about 30% of its corn each year, overwhelmingly from the United States," Wise added. "Almost all of that is yellow corn for animal feed and industrial uses. Lopez Obrador's commitment to reducing and, by 2024, eliminating such imports reflects his administration's plan to ramp up Mexican production as part of the campaign to increase self-sufficiency in corn and other key food crops."
The groups' letter on the Mexican policies and U.S. interference--published in English (pdf) and Spanish (pdf)--is addressed to recently confirmed U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai. Its lead author is Kristin Schafer, executive director of Pesticide Action Network North America (PANNA).
"We call on Secretary Vilsack and Trade Representative Tai, as key leaders in the new administration, to respect Mexico's decision to protect both public health and the integrity of Mexican farming," Schafer said in a statement. "It is completely unacceptable for U.S. public agencies to be doing the bidding of pesticide corporations like Bayer, who are solely concerned with maintaining their bottom-line profits."
\u201cBREAKING: 80 orgs deliver letter to @USDA, @USTradeRep opposing U.S. interference in Mexico's glyphosate phaseout https://t.co/m7M2o4sFmB\u201d— PAN North America (@PAN North America) 1619722728
Fernando Bejarano, director of Pesticide Action Network in Mexico, explained that "we are part of the No Maize No Country Campaign, a broad coalition of peasant organizations, nonprofit NGOs, academics, and consumers which support the presidential decree and fight for food sovereignty with the agroecological transformation of agricultural systems that guarantee the right to produce and consume healthy, nutritious food, free of pesticides and transgenics."
"We reject the pressure from corporations such as Bayer-Monsanto--and their CropLife trade association--which are working in both the United States and Mexico to undermine the presidential decree that phases out the use of glyphosate and transgenic corn," Bejarano said.
The letter highlights Guardian reporting on U.S. government documents obtained by the Center for Biological Diversity through a Freedom of Information Act request. The documents revealed that CropLife America and Bayer AG--which acquired glyphosate-based herbicide developer Monsanto in 2018--worked with U.S. officials to lobby against Mexico's plans.
According to journalist Carey Gillam's mid-February report:
The emails reviewed by the Guardian come from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) and other U.S. agencies. They detail worry and frustration with Mexico's position. One email makes a reference to staff within Lopez Obrador's administration as "vocal anti-biotechnology activists," and another email states that Mexico's health agency (Cofepris) is "becoming a big time problem."
Internal USTR communications lay out how the agrochemical industry is "pushing" for the U.S. to "fold this issue" into the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) trade deal that went into effect July 1. The records then show the USTR does exactly that, telling Mexico its actions on glyphosate and genetically engineered crops raise concerns "regarding compliance" with USMCA.
Citing discussions with CropLife, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) joined in the effort, discussing in an inter-agency email "how we could use USMCA to work through these issues."
The Guardian also noted correspondence involving the Foreign Agricultural Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA).
As the letter to Vilsack and Tai points out: "This interference and pressure from the agrochemical industry is continuing. On March 22nd, industry representatives sent a letter directed to your attention as leaders of USTR and USDA, identifying Mexico's planned phaseout of glyphosate and genetically modified corn as a 'leading concern' for agribusiness interests and the pesticide industry (represented by the pesticide industry's trade group, CropLife America)."
"We strongly object to any interference by U.S. government officials or agribusiness interests in a sovereign state's right to enact policy measures to protect the health and well-being of its people," the letter states. "We urge your agencies to resist and reject these ongoing efforts."
"We welcome the administration's stated commitment to listening to the science, improving public health, protecting the environment, and limiting exposure to dangerous chemicals and pesticides, while holding polluters accountable and prioritizing environmental justice, particularly for communities of color and low-income communities," it adds. "We trust that these stated commitments, as well as your dedication to 'fairness for farmers,' extend equally to other countries and include respect for other nations' and peoples' rights to self-determination."
Other signatories to the letter include the American Sustainable Business Council, Beyond Pesticides, Center for Biological Diversity, Friends of the Earth, Greenpeace USA, Indigenous Environmental Network, ITAP, and Organic Consumers Association.
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