EPA Cancels Carbofuran Uses, Process Allows for Years of Continued Use

Thanks to public pressure and overwhelming scientific data showing harm, EPA is proposing to cancel all uses of the pesticide carbofuran and to revoke the associated tolerances (legal residue limits on food). The agency announced today its conclusion that there are considerable risks associated with carbofuran in food and drinking water, risks to pesticide applicators and risks to birds that are exposed in treated fields. However, if the FMC Corporation, the manufacturer of carbofuran, does not voluntarily withdraw the regustration, it will be allowed to sell the deadly pesticide for years while it fights the decision in court.

Once the cancellation is complete, it is immediately effective for the main uses of carbofuran: alfalfa, corn, cotton, cotton, potatoes, and rice. Its use will be phased out over four years for other minor uses including artichokes, chili peppers in the southwest, cucumbers, spinach for seed, sunflowers, and pine seedlings. The cancellation also applies to use on most major imported agricultural products. This means that countries wishing to export agricultural produce to the United States will not be able to use carbofuran on those crops.

The pesticide, which is sold under the name “Furadan” by FMC Corporation, is one of the most toxic pesticides to birds left on the market. It is responsible for the deaths of millions of birds and wildlife since its introduction in 1967. “Carbofuran has been the greatest chemical threat to wild birds since the pesticides DDT and dieldrin were banned in the early 1970s. In its 2005 ecological risk assessment for carbofuran, EPA stated that there were no legal uses of carbofuran that did not kill wild birds. If a flock of mallards were to feed in a carbofuran treated alfalfa field, EPA predicted that 92% of the birds in the flock would quickly die,” said Michael Fry, Ph.D., Director of ABC’s Pesticides and Birds Campaign.

Beyond Pesticides, American Bird Conservancy (ABC), Defenders of Wildlife, other conservation and worker protection organizations, and the Bird Conservation Alliance had campaigned hard for many years to have carbofuran removed from the market. Carbofuran first came under fire in the 1980s after an EPA Special Review estimated that over a million birds were killed each year by the granular formulation. According to scientists at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service there are “no known conditions under which carbofuran can be used without killing migratory birds. Many of these die-off incidents followed applications of carbofuran that were made with extraordinary care.” The granular formation was cancelled in 1994, but the liquid or “flowable” form remained on the market.

Although uses of the granular formulation were cancelled, states proposed its continued use under EPA's "Emergency Exemption" (FIFRA, Section 18) program. However, Beyond Pesticides and other organizations were able to stop many of these requests in 2002 and 2006.

Carbofuran is one of the most heavily used insecticides in the world, but its extreme toxicity to farm workers and wildlife has made it very dangerous to use. EPA’s cancellation will likely have a domino effect internationally, as other countries frequently follow EPA’s lead.

To view EPA’s information on carbofuran, see http://www.epa.gov/oppsrrd1/reregistration/carbofuran/.