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EPA Sued Over Pesticides' Effects on Kids
.c The Associated Press
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - The government has failed to protect the children of farmworkers from the harmful effects of pesticides, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday by farmworkers, environmentalists and public health advocates.
The suit alleges that the Environmental Protection Agency has ignored scientific evidence that children who grow up near farms face increased health risks from exposure to hazardous pesticides from air, soil, water, food and clothing.
In the United States, more than 1 million children of farmworkers live near farms, including more than 300,000 children younger than 6 years old who are especially vulnerable to pesticide exposure, the suit says. Plaintiffs included the Pesticide Action Network, United Farm Workers of America and Natural Resources Defense Council.
The plaintiffs filed suit because the EPA allegedly failed to respond to their 1998 petition to recognize the special needs of farmworkers' children when setting pesticide tolerance levels, as required by the 1996 federal Food Quality Protection Act.
``The EPA has turned a blind eye to this problem, which has left another generation of our children at risk,'' said Michael Wall, an attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council.
In a statement, the EPA said it believed its ``decisions are protective of children's health and fully meet the toughest scientific and legal standards under the Food Quality Protection Act.''
06/07/05 23:58 EDT
Copyright 2003 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. All active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.
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