The International Agency for Research on Cancer, which ignited a global debate by rating glyphosate as probably carcinogenic to humans, has advised experts not to release documents requested under U.S. public records laws, said Reuters. In a letter and an email, IARC says it is “the sole owner of such materials” and “IARC requests you and your institute not to release any (such) documents,” reports the news agency.
Glyphosate is the most widely used weedkiller in the world. Use of the herbicide soared with the adoption of crops genetically engineered to tolerate spraying with the chemical. Monsanto, a leader in developing the biotech crops and in selling the herbicide, says the product is safe. A paper prepared for a panel of experts by EPA says glyphosate is unlikely to cause cancer at the dosages people would normally come into contact with.
The Energy and Environment Legal Institute, which says it practices “free-market environmentalism through strategic litigation,” says it is pursuing a legal challenge of whether the documents belong to scientists who took part in the IARC review or belong to IARC. The WHO agency says all working drafts and documents belong to it and that its monographs, which describe its decisions, are publicly available. By refusing to release working drafts and other documents, IARC says it is assuring that the experts in its working groups can debate scientific evidence without interference.
Meanwhile, the House Science Committee chairman, Republican Lamar Smith, said EPA’s decision to delay a meeting of a panel of experts does “not instill confidence that EPA will fairly assess glyphosate based on sound science.” The EPA has said it wanted to recruit more epidemiologists for the panel. Smith has questioned repeatedly any interplay between EPA and IARC on conclusions of carcinogenicity of the weedkiller.