EPA Pesticide Program Update
from EPA's Office of Pesticide Programs 01/17/02
http://www.epa.gov/pesticides
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IN THIS UPDATE:
1) REVISED GUIDANCE ON PESTICIDE CUMULATIVE RISK ASSESSMENT AVAILABLE
2) TOLERANCE REVOCATIONS PROPOSED FOR NICOTINE
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1) REVISED GUIDANCE ON PESTICIDE CUMULATIVE
RISK ASSESSMENT AVAILABLE
EPA has released "Guidance on Cumulative Risk Assessments of
Pesticide Chemicals That Have a Common Mechanism of Toxicity."
This guidance, a revised version of guidance published for public
comment in June 2000, describes the methods EPA is using in
conducting cumulative assessments. It takes into account the
knowledge and methods available now for assessing cumulative risk
and provides flexibility for completing risk assessments with various
amounts and types of data. The guidance is informed by the
experience of applying the principles of the draft guidance to actual
data on pesticides that share a common mechanism of toxicity, as
well as by the Agency's experience in applying actual data sets and
consideration of comments from the public and an independent
scientific expert review panel. Not all cumulative assessments need
to be of the same depth and scope. In some cases, a screening level
assessment using relatively conservative assumptions may be
conducted, while in others a more comprehensive assessment may be
appropriate, using more extensive data and producing a more refined
estimate of exposures. EPA expects methods and knowledge to
continue to evolve in this area and will update specific procedures
with peer-reviewed supplementary technical documentation as
needed. If extensive changes to this guidance become necessary,
EPA will issue a revised version. The guidance is available on
EPA's web site at www.epa.gov/pesticides/trac/science. The
Federal Register notice, published January 16, 2002, is available
at www.epa.gov/fedrgstr.
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2) TOLERANCE REVOCATIONS PROPOSED FOR
NICOTINE
On January 16, 2002, EPA published a proposed rule to revoke
66 specific tolerances for residues of the insecticide nicotine.
This pesticide is in the second priority group for tolerance reassess-
ment. The 66 tolerances are proposed for revocation because all
registrations for these pesticide uses have been canceled. The only
remaining food uses for nicotine are cucumbers, lettuce, and
tomatoes. The notice proposing these revocations is available on
EPA's web site ( www.epa.gov/fedrgstr). It includes details about
the registration status of nicotine and reasons for proposed revoca-
tion. (See www.epa.gov/pesticides/tolerance for status and other
information on tolerance reassessment.)
Comments on these proposed tolerance revocations will be
accepted until March 18, 2002, and must be submitted as
described in the Federal Register notice. If EPA receives a
request to retain a tolerance, the Agency will publish a notice
regarding data that must be submitted to demonstrate that the
current safety standard is met and the schedule for submission
of the data. Commodities containing pesticide residues not
covered by a tolerance are considered to be adulterated and
are subject to seizure. A tolerance must meet the current safety
standard established under the Food Quality Protection Act if it
is to be retained.
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EPA distributes its Pesticide Program Updates to external
stakeholders and citizens who have expressed an interest
in OPP activities and decisions. We have established
an electronic list serve for people who want to keep abreast of
pesticide issues and decisions. This update service is part
of EPA's continuing effort to improve public access to
Federal pesticide information.
For general questions on pesticides and pesticide
poisoning prevention, contact the National Pesticide
Information Center (NPIC), toll-free, at:
1-800-858-7378, by e-mail at npic@ace.orst.edu,
or by visiting their Web site at:
http://npic.orst.edu
For information about ongoing activities in the
Office of Pesticide Programs, visit our homepage
at: http://www.epa.gov/pesticides
Or call or write us directly at:
Communication Services Branch
Office of Pesticide Programs (7506C)
US Environmental Protection Agency
Ariel Rios Building
1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20004-2403
703-305-5017