The EPA surprised health advocates yesterday by proposing to ban carbofuran on both domestic and imported food. That's good news for all of us. Carbofuran is one of the most toxic insecticides still in wide use and poisons our food supply and our drinking water. EPA is accepting comments for 60 days on the proposed ban and needs to hear your voice that this is a good thing. Carbofuran's manufacturer, FMC, has vowed to fight the ban.Of course EPA is an agency run by lawyers and not known for making public comment an easy task. So here's a sample letter with all of the relevant docket numbers and authority codes. Just click here to download the letter.
About 1 million pounds of carbofuran are used in the U.S. each year and it's even more widely used outside of the U.S. What's more, studies showed that when birds wandered into a field sprayed with carbofuran, 84% of them died . . . yet we allow farm workers to be exposed to this same chemical as part of their work!
As health advocates, we need to raise the noise level on this issue. The Washington Post did a half page story, but its gotten scant coverage elsewhere. The New York Times today only did a small blurb.
So make this a "must do" and save a life. Write today to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and let them know you support the proposed ban of carbofuran.
