Creators Syndicate

FIGHT BACK!  BY DAVID HOROWITZ 

New Pesticide Rules Before Congress 

        The long-running battle over pesticide residues in food  has
moved to Congress as lawmakers debate the merits of three  competing
regulatory bills. All sides seem to agree that it's  time the current
maze of different standards for different  chemicals and food products
was replaced with a single,  nationwide standard. But they're a long
way from agreeing on  what that standard should require. 
        The Environmental Protection Agency is backing the  Clinton
administration's bill, which would set a single  "negligible risk"
standard based on all known and potential  health risks from all
pesticides approved for use on crops.  The Clinton bill also sets
specific deadlines for eliminating  the use of chemicals that cannot be
proven safe and requires  comprehensive studies on the effects of
pesticides on  children and infants. Chemical manufacturers would be 
forbidden from exporting pesticides that are banned in the  United
States. 
        The new "negligible risk" standard called for in the  Clinton
bill would allow detectable levels of cancer-causing  pesticides in
food. But such levels would have to be  extremely low. A residue would
be banned if it is found to  cause one additional case of cancer per
million. 
        The administration's proposal falls somewhere between a  bill
favored by the food industry, which would give the  government wide
discretion in balancing health risks against  economic impact of
pesticide controls, and a zero-tolerance  bill that would flatly ban
cancer-causing substances in  processed foods. The stricter measure,
introduced by Rep.  Henry Waxman of California, is based on the belief
that there  is no safe level of exposure to carcinogens. Waxman's bill 
would phase out use of all such chemicals within five years.  It
includes those known to be highly toxic or can cause  reproductive or
developmental disorders in humans. 
        The food industry is fighting both measures. Growers and 
processors object to any wholesale ban on pesticides. They  don't like
giving the Food and Drug Administration authority  to embargo or recall
food products. The Clinton bill would  also allow states to enact
stricter standards than the EPA's.  Food industry spokesmen say such
restrictions would cripple  food production and marketing. 
        Environmental groups fault the Clinton bill for being  long on
promises and short on public safety. They are  especially critical of
any provisions that limit, but do not  ban, the use of cancer-causing
chemicals on food crops. They  also doubt that the government has the
resources to enforce  the standards it proposes. That's why groups like
Greenpeace  and the National Coalition Against the Misuse of Pesticides
are backing the Waxman bill. 
        It's a tough issue, but it's one Congress cannot put off  any
longer. The EPA recently released a study that most fresh  fruits and
vegetables sold in this country contain traces of  pesticides -- even
when they are washed, peeled or cored.  Government labs tested 5,750
food samples and found that 61  percent contained residues of 49
different agricultural  chemicals. Residue levels were almost all below
current  "safe" standards. But those standards do not account for the 
effect of several different chemicals found in a single food  -- or
their effect on small children. It's time those rules  were updated. 
        If you have questions or comments, please write to David 
Horowitz at 72662,1775. COPYRIGHT 1994 CREATORS SYNDICATE, INC.