Soundkeeper Victory in 6th Circuit Court of Appeals - EPA Pesticide Rule Vacated

 

On November 27, 2007, the EPA issued the final rule which states that pesticides applied in accordance with the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, or FIFRA, are exempt from the Clean Water Act's permitting requirements. Soundkeeper Backer said that the EPA final rule was overturned by the agency, stopping a 30 year practice of requiring pesticides to be treated as pollutants and subject to the Clean Water Act.

Soundkeeper Terry Backer said, "Pesticides have found their way into our food chain, into our bodies, and into mother's milk. The full affect on the environment and human health is not known.  What we do know is that these are dangerous compounds that should not be dispersed into our waters without the consent of the people through the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination permit system."

In its decision the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals wrote, "We cannot agree. The Clean Water Act is not ambiguous. Therefore, we hold that the EPA's Final Rule is not a reasonable interpretation of the Act and vacate the Final Rule."  According to Soundkeeper Backer it could not be any plainer than that.  "This is an important victory in protecting the Sound, its rivers, and our drinking water sources.  We managed for 30 years with the current system that provides this layer of protection for our environment and our children."

Backer said he could not hazard a guess as to why EPA would attempt to change the rule.  However, Backer did point out that the industry petitioners in the case included were:  Agribusiness Association of Iowa, BASF Corporation, Bayer CropScience, CropLife America, Delta Council, Eldon C. Stutsman, Inc., FMC Corporation, Illinois Fertilizer & Chemical Association, The National Cotton Council of America, Responsible Industry for a Sound Environment, Southern Crop Production Association, and Syngenta Crop Protection, Inc.

Backer also said that there are many tens of thousands of chemical compounds used in industry and daily life every day.  He said that of all of these we may have the actual toxicology on only ten thousand or so.  He added, "At that we have no idea of the synergy of these chemicals in the human body, many impossible to measure particularly if you don't know what to look for in the first place."

This decision is added to a growing list of Soundkeeper victories in the Federal court system that include recent victories on power plant water withdrawal permits (316b) and EPA's Mercury ruling.

1/8/2009