The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday reaffirmed its finding that glyphosate, the world’s most popular herbicide, is not a cancer risk to users. It’s the next step in the EPA’s process to re-register the herbicide. The agency said its scientific findings on human health risk are consistent with the reviews by several other countries and federal agencies. EPA also found no risk to pregnant women and children.
While EPA did not identify public health risks with glyphosate, it did find risks through its ecological assessment. The agency proposes changes in use to protect nearby plants that pollinators, birds and other animals eat. EPA said glyphosate drifting could eliminate food sources for animals, such as milkweed for monarch butterflies. To address those risks, EPA is proposing management measures to help farmers target pesticide sprays on the intended pest, protect pollinators, and reduce the problem of weeds becoming resistant to glyphosate.
In a separate action, EPA is updating label language for pesticide products for herbicides, collaborating with federal, state and other stakeholders on conservation efforts and increasing outreach on spray drift management and integrated pest management.
