Pesticides

Reregistration Delays Jeopardize Success of Proposed Policy Reforms Gao ID: T-RCED-94-48 October 29, 1993

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will not be able to reregister all pesticides by 1998, though required by law. As of September 1993, EPA had reregistered only 250 of the 20,000 older pesticides now registered. EPA estimates that it may not complete reregistration until 2006. Moreover, EPA has been slower than expected in reregistering pesticides used on food. Finally, EPA has not included all costs in its estimate of the $20 million deficit it has projected to complete reregistration. EPA's schedule for reregistering lawn care pesticides has slipped, by as much as four years. But even after these substances have been reregistered, their safety may still be in doubt. Until EPA has set guidelines for assessing the health effects of pesticides applied to lawns, the agency will not be able to guarantee the safety of persons exposed to them--particularly children, who tend to have more contact with treated lawns than do adults.



The Justia Government Accountability Office site republishes public reports retrieved from the U.S. GAO These reports should not be considered official, and do not necessarily reflect the views of Justia.