California Court Rules on Chlorpyrifos

A federal court in California gave the Environmental Protection Agency two choices on the insecticide chlorpyrifos (Klor-PEER-ah-fahs). The agency has 60 days to write a new rule to allow for the safe use of the insecticide, or it can halt all food residue tolerances of chlorpyrifos, which would basically ban most uses of the product. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco says the EPA has had long enough to respond to a 2007 petition by environmental groups to ban the chemical. The court says, “The EPA has had almost 14 years to publish a legally sufficient response to the 2007 petition.” The court’s ruling also says that, during that delay, the EPA has exposed a generation of America’s children to unsafe levels of chlorpyrifos. “By remanding back to the EPA one last time, rather than compelling the immediate revocation of all chlorpyrifos tolerances, the court is being more than tolerant. But the EPA’s time is now up.” In a statement to DTN, the agency says it’s reviewing all its options. “As the agency pursues its mission to protect human health, including that of children and the environment, EPA is committed to ensuring the safety of pesticides and other chemicals,” the agency says.