Based on charges that the atrazine pesticide causes deformities in frogs and that it may cause cancer in people, the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) filed a petition two weeks ago asking the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to remove the chemical from the market. However, Syngenta representatives continue to support the product’s use, claiming that atrazine clearly does not lead to cancer and that further tests must be performed before directly labeling the product as hazardous to certain wildlife.
“Basically, we don’t agree with what the NRDC is bringing forward, and we’re still standing behind atrazine and its current use,” said Tim Pastoor, head of global risk assessment for Syngenta, Greensboro, N.C. “It’s the best studied compound in the history of pesticides and because it has been around for a long time, we have confidence that the product will be on the market for a number of years to come.” Atrazine was first introduced to the market in 1958, Pastoor noted. Today, six manufacturers make the product and 38 companies sell atrazine in a variety of products. “It has a significant demand,” he pointed out.
The NRDC states on its Web site that a Syngenta study shows that Syngenta employees have “markedly elevated incidence rates of prostate cancer” and that the company’s handling of this information is “suspicious.” In addition, the site claims research by a professor at the University of California at Berkeley shows that “frogs exposed to low levels of atrazine were suffering from severe sexual deformities.” The site then asks visitors to tell the EPA to ban atrazine by submitting their agreement to an online petition (see sidebar).
Despite these accusations, Syngenta maintains that past atrazine studies reveal that the product cannot be labeled as a carcinogen, Pastoor remarked. “In February of 2001, the EPA said that atrazine poses no carcinogenic hazards to humans,” he said. “This conclusion was drawn from many years of effort, and in our opinion, the cancer classification part of this is a done deal.”
| SIGNATURES WANTED |
The NRDC petition to ban atrazine appears on its Web site, http://www.nrdc.org The petition reads as follows: I urge the EPA to remove atrazine from the market as soon as possible. Studies show that this dangerous chemical causes cancer in animals, interferes with numerous hormones, and has adverse effects on reproduction and development. Atrazine-exposed people also have been shown to have higher rates of breast and blood cancer. Laboratory studies on frogs exposed to atrazine at a level one-thirtieth of the EPA's current drinking water standard revealed that the chemical caused severe sexual deformities. Also, workers in an atrazine manufacturing facility developed prostate cancer at an alarmingly high rate. As perhaps the most extensively used herbicide in the United States, atrazine frequently contaminates water bodies, and millions of people nationwide drink the chemical in their tap water. More than one million of these people receive their water from suppliers that have violated the EPA's safety standard for atrazine in drinking water. I expect the EPA to protect my family and me from public health threats, and the fact that millions of Americans are consistently drinking atrazine-laced water certainly qualifies as such a threat. Again, I urge the EPA to ban atrazine now. |
As for the supposed effects on frogs, Pastoor said that since this situation requires unique and unusual types of studies, more tests, in addition to those done in Berkeley, must be performed to determine the truth. “These claims have not been verified in any follow-up studies, so you can make no conclusions as to what is or is not going on in frogs,” he said.
The NRDC also supports its stance by citing that atrazine is currently banned in some European countries, including France, Germany and Italy. Yet, Pastoor noted that these countries regulate pesticides and similar products based on detection, and not health reasons. “The legislation in those countries is strictly on the basis of detection, and the detection limit is extraordinarily low,” he said. “But in the United States, an evaluation of health and safety is made, and the EPA looks at health-based criteria.”
Regardless, atrazine is up for review by the EPA this summer, and by August, the agency will either remove the product, leave the product labeled for its current uses, or make moderate changes in the product’s registration eligibility document. Pastoor stressed that Syngenta expects the product’s registration to stay intact or change only slightly, and that atrazine’s history within the industry will guarantee its longevity. “For over 40 years atrazine has been registered and is an excellent label across a variety of products and outlets, including lawn, turfgrass and landscape,” he said. “We believe that all the studies we’ve submitted will support the ongoing registration of atrazine.”
The author is Assistant Editor – Internet of Lawn & Landscape magazine and can be reached at kmohn@lawnandlandscape.com.