June 5, 2009

From the United Farm Workers:

Last year more than ten thousand United Farm Workers supporters signed our petition asking the EPA to ban endosulfan--an antiquated and dangerous pesticide. We've got their attention, but so far
nothing has happened.

However, the new Obama EPA has just re-opened the public comment period regarding this deadly pesticide. The UFW is again working with a coalition of our environmental friends to turn in a joint petition on June 24 to show the EPA how concerned the American public is.

The EPA's own analysis concluded that endosulfan poses unacceptable risks to the health and safety of farmers and fieldworkers who use it and that it poisons the environment downstream from where it's sprayed.

Endosulfan is one of the most commonly detected residues in our
national food supply. It persists for years in the environment,
traveling great distances and accumulating in the food chain as
it moves about the planet, impacting communities and ecosystems
far from where it's used. It is acutely toxic and easily
absorbed by the human body. Low levels of exposure in the womb
have been linked to autism, male reproductive harm and other
birth defects. The lethal chemical has been linked to dozens of
accidental deaths. Endosulfan has already been banned in 60
countries. It's time for the U.S. to do the same and protect
farm workers, our communities and the environment from this
toxic pollutant.

Sign the petition to ban endosulfan

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