"Trump EPA officials purposely veered from the agency's principles of scientific integrity to approve continued use of the weedkiller dicamba on genetically modified crops, the agency has admitted.
In a written response to an internal watchdog report, issued today, the agency said it bypassed normal procedures in approving dicamba in 2018 because "past senior leadership consciously chose to advance a policy outcome in a manner inconsistent with the Scientific Integrity Policy."
At issue is EPA's decision that year to extend the registration of three dicamba products in certain uses despite its reputation for drifting into neighboring fields and killing crops that aren't genetically modified to withstand it. Several million acres of soybeans and other crops and plants have been damaged this way, according to groups fighting its continued use.
More recently, some researchers have linked dicamba to liver cancer and other types of cancer. The EPA Office of Inspector General report focuses on spray drift, however, which was the main point of debate during the renewal process.
According to the report, the agency extended the registrations without the required scientific peer review and with more involvement than usual from senior staff in the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention."
Marc Heller reports for E&E News May 24, 2021.
SEE ALSO:
"EPA Deviated from Typical Procedures in Its 2018 Dicamba Pesticide Registration Decision" (EPA OIG)
"Trump Officials Changed Scientific Analyses In Pesticide Reapproval: EPA Watchdog" (The Hill)
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