|
Reproductive
and developmental toxicity
Some pesticides
are known to cause birth defects or interfere with normal development.
Weight-of-the-evidence
evaluations of this type of toxicity have been conducted by the
State of California and by the
U.S. EPA under its
Toxics Release Inventory program. Many pesticides that disrupt endocrine
functions also cause reproductive and developmental harm, as well
as other adverse effects. The absence of a chemical on any of these
lists does not necessarily mean it is not a reproductive or developmental
toxicant. It may mean that it has not yet been evaluated.
 California Proposition
65 List
U.S.
EPA Toxics Release Inventory List
California
Proposition 65 List
Pesticides determined by the
state of California to cause reproductive and developmental harm,
e.g., birth defects, infertility, sterility and impairment of normal
growth and development. A list of chemicals "known to the State
to cause reproductive and developmental toxicity" is maintained
by the State of California under the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic
Enforcement Act of 1986 (Proposition 65).
The absence of a chemical on
this list does not necessarily mean it is not a reproductive or developmental
toxicant. It may mean that it has not yet been evaluated by the
agencies responsible.
More detail is given in the "About the Data" section.
About
the Data
Top
of page
U.S.
EPA Toxics Release Inventory List
In 1986, Congress
passed the Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act (EPCRA)
and the Pollution Prevention Act (PPA), with the intent of increasing
the transparency of the use and disposal of chemicals in manufacturing,
mining, and other activities. Section 313 of the EPCRA and section
6607 of the PPA required companies that release toxic materials
to provide information to U.S. EPA on the identity and amounts of
these toxic chemicals they are releasing to air, land and water.
This information is made available to the public through U.S. EPA
as the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI), providing valuable information
on the release and transport of toxic chemicals in the U.S.
U.S. EPA publishes
a list of chemicals that must be reported. A chemical is placed
on the list if it is toxic to humans or damaging to the environment.
The current TRI toxic chemical list contains approximately 650 individually
listed chemicals and 30 chemical groups. Of this group, only 350
individual chemicals and 25 chemical groups are pesticides or related
compounds. Of these pesticide chemicals, only 222 have been formally
ranked through the TRI program for their toxicity.
Toxicity categories
evaluated for the TRI list of chemicals includes acute toxicity,
carcinogenicity, reproductive and developmental toxicity, environmental
toxicity and toxicity to organ systems including cardiovascular,
liver, gastrointestinal, kidney, immune, hematological, and respiratory
systems.
Environmental
Defense maintains a web site called Scorecard,
at which you can find information on the TRI chemicals being released
in your neighborhood, with a map showing the location of the responsible
facilities.
References:
- Toxics
Release Inventory and Community Right to Know, U.S. EPA.
Viewed on June 13, 2005.
- What
is the Toxics Release Inventory?, U.S. EPA, Viewed on
June 13, 2005.
- Hazard
Information on Toxic Chemicals Added to EPCRA Section 313 Under
Chemical Expansion, U.S. EPA, Viewed on June
13, 2005.
Top
of page
Last updated
June 13, 2005
.
|
