An agreement between pesticide manufacturers and the California EPA will cut off sales of the insecticide chlorpyrifos on Feb. 6 and ban virtually all use of the chemical in the state after next Dec. 31. It offers a much speedier schedule for withdrawing the chemical from the market in the No. 1 agricultural state than initially expected. “This is a big win for children, workers, and public health in California,” said Gov. Gavin Newsom, referring to evidence that the pesticide can impair brain and neurological development in children.
Even as California was moving against the organophosphate pesticide this year, the EPA decided in July to allow the continued use of chlorpyrifos in agricultural.
Chlorpyrifos is used on dozens of crops, including corn, soybeans, fruits, and some vegetables, and to kill insects on golf courses, in greenhouses, and on utility poles, according to the EPA. Manufacturers agreed in 2000 to eliminate most homeowner uses and to restrict the pesticide’s use on some crops. Environmental groups have pressed for years for a total ban on sales of the chemical.
California regulators announced on May 8 that they would cancel state approval of chlorpyrifos, a process that was expected to take up to two years. Under the agreement with Corteva, the largest producer of the insecticide, and other pesticide manufacturers, sale of the chemical to growers will end on Feb. 6 and use of chlorpyrifos will end next Dec. 31. In the interim, restrictions such as a ban on aerial spraying and quarter-mile buffer zones will remain in place.
There are a few products that contain chlorpyrifos in granular form. They represent less than 1 percent of agricultural use of the insecticide, and will be allowed to remain on the market, said the California EPA. “These products are not associated with detrimental health effects,” it said.
“The swift end to the sale of chlorpyrifos protects vulnerable communities by taking a harmful pesticide off the market,” said California EPA secretary Jared Blumenthal. “This agreement avoids a protracted legal process while providing a clear timeline for California farmers as we look forward to developing alternative pest management practices.”
State lawmakers approved more then $5 million for grants to develop alternatives to chlorpyrifos for pest management and biologically integrated farming systems that reduce the need for chemical insecticides.
“This is a landmark victory for the health of California’s farmworkers, rural families, and children across the country,” said the Natural Resources Defense Council. “Chlorpyrifos poisons the people who live and work in agricultural communities, and threatens the brain development of children everywhere who eat the fruits and vegetables grown with it. … We will continue to push EPA to extend these protections beyond California’s borders to people nationwide.”
Some 900,000 pounds of chlorpyrifos were used by California growers in 2017, less than half of the 2 million pounds used in 2005, said the state EPA.