California, Nation’s Top User of Chlorpyrifos, Announces Ban on Brain-Damaging Pesticide

California will ban a brain-damaging pesticide that the Trump administration’s U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has delayed banning at the national level, the state announced Wednesday. Chlorpyrifos , which is used on almonds, citrus, grapes, cotton, walnuts and other crops, has been shown to harm children’s health and neurological development. "Countless people have suffered as a result of this chemical ," California EPA (Cal-EPA) Secretary Jared Blumenfeld told The Guardian . "A lot of people live and work and go to school right next to fields that are being sprayed with chlorpyrifos … It’s an issue of environmental health and justice." “This action represents a historic opportunity for California to develop a new framework for alternative pest manag… https://t.co/vpvqfH5Wlt — California EPA (@CaliforniaEPA) 1557340809.0 The ban will take effect between six months and two years, and is accompanied by $5.7 million in funds from Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom to help transition to safer alternatives, The Washington Post reported . California follows Hawaii and New York in approving a ban on the pesticide, and bills to ban chlorpyrifos are being considered by New Jersey, Connecticut and Oregon. The EPA had recommended banning the pesticide during the Obama administration, but […]

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