On March 3 Rep. Carolyn Comitta (D-Chester) appeared before the Department of Agriculture’s Pesticide Advisory Board to urge the Department to ban the pesticide chlorpyrifos because it is toxic to the human nervous system, endangers the unborn and infants as a potent developmental toxin and threatens wildlife and pollinators.

She urged the Board to support legislation introduced by Rep. Mike Zabel (D-Delaware)-- House Bill 2091-- which would ban the pesticide.

Click Here for a copy of the statement.

Rep. Comitta’s appearance before the Advisory Board was a follow up to questions she asked Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding during a budget hearing on February 26.

At that time, Secretary Redding made a commitment to review chlorpyrifos, which he called a “deadly chemical,” to determine if it should be banned in Pennsylvania.  Click Here for more.

Pesticide Board Chair Larry Shrawder, who owns Stony Run Vineyards in Berks and Lehigh Counties, told Rep. Comitta and Board members he is also committed to reviewing chlorpyrifos and making a recommendation to the Department of Agriculture.

He noted chlorpyrifos has a long track record and its use has been declining for some time.

Personally, he said his vineyards do not use the pesticide, even though it has been shown to be effective at killing spotted lanternfly eggs.  He said there are alternatives and it is not essential to their control, in his view. 

He said he uses Integrated Pest Management techniques that are very effective in dealing with spotted lanternflies, adding that even Dawn liquid detergent in water can kill them at some stages.

No official actions could be taken at the March 3 meeting, Shrawder said, because the Board did not have a quorum, but the Board will be taking up the issue at its next meeting on June 2.

Accepting Public Comments

Shrawder said the Board, through the Department of Agriculture, will be continuing to accept comments on whether or not to ban chlorpyrifos until the next meeting.

Comments should be sent to Daniel Duer, Department of Agriculture, Bureau of Plant Industry - Pesticide Registration, 2301 North Cameron Street, Harrisburg, PA 17110-9408 or send them by email to: daduer@pa.gov.

Rep. Comitta/Rep. Zabel Statement

The following is the text of the statement supporting a chlorpyrifos ban and House Bill 2091 presented to the Board By Rep. Comitta on behalf of herself and Rep. Zabel--

Chlorpyrifos-- Dursban-- or as Secretary Redding called it-- CPS-- is one of a group of neurotoxin insecticides registered in 1965 prior to the establishment of U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. 

According to the National Pesticide Information Center, researchers have studied the blood of women who were exposed to CPS and the blood of their children from birth through the following three years.

Children who had CPS in their blood had more developmental delays and disorders than children who did not have CPS in their blood. Exposed children also had more attention deficit disorders and hyperactivity disorders.

When CPS gets into the soil, it can take weeks to years for all of the CPS to break down. Once CPS is in the soil, it sticks very strongly to soil particles. CPS also washes into rivers or streams if erosion moves the treated soil.

Children are more likely to be exposed to pesticides because when playing they may put their dirty hands in their mouths coming in contact with contaminated soil particles.

CPS is also very toxic to many bird species.  Of all birds, robins are most often found dead following accidents involving CPS use.

CPS is also very toxic to fish and aquatic invertebrates. It may build up in the tissues of fish and other animals that eat smaller animals.

CPS is very toxic to bees. It can poison non-target insects for up to 24 hours after it is sprayed.

EPA did cancel the residential uses of CPS in 2000 as well as uses in schools and parks where children may be present, but that was not enough.

In 2015, EPA recommended a complete ban on its use. [Click Here and Here for EPA background] The ban was challenged in court and in August of 2018 the Ninth Federal Circuit Court of Appeals ordered EPA to finalize its proposed ban within 60 days.  In September 2018 the Trump Administration requested the full court rehear the case which it is now in the process of doing.

Other states have taken action to ban the use of CPS.

California, the state that produces the most food by value in the United States, took action  in October of 2019 to virtually end all agricultural use of CPS by December 31, 2020. 

According to the California Department of Pesticide Regulation, recent research, cited in findings by the state's independent Scientific Review Panel on Toxic Air Contaminants, has shown that CPS is a developmental neurotoxin in children and sensitive populations.

Dow AgroSciences reached an agreement with the state to withdraw all CPS products from California at about the same time.

The state of Hawaii has also banned the use of pesticides containing CPS as an active ingredient beginning January 1, 2019.

The state of New York has banned most uses of CPS by December 2020.

Based on the original findings by EPA and the actions of three other states who made similar findings, I recommend the Department of Agriculture ban all uses of CPS and support House Bill 2091 introduced by Rep. Zabel.

In addition, the Department of Agriculture should communicate its support to EPA and the U.S. Department of Agriculture for the original Ninth Federal Circuit Court of Appeals decision to cancel the registration of this pesticide.

Pennsylvania’s Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding was right when he called chlorpyrifos a “deadly chemical,” because it is not only toxic to the human nervous system, but endangers the unborn and infants as a potent developmental toxin as well as threatens wildlife and pollinators that are vital to millions of dollars worth of Pennsylvania’s agricultural products.

Click Here for a copy of the statement.

For available information, visit Agriculture’s Pesticide webpage.  Questions should be directed to Nada Manmiller by calling 717-772-5201 or send an email to: nmanmiller@pa.gov.

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Related Article:

Pesticide Advisory Board Now Accepting Public Comments On Banning “Deadly” Pesticide Chlorpyrifos At March 3 Meeting

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