EPA Seeks Comments on Endocrine Disrupters

Endocrine disruptors have been found to migrate from effluents of sewage plants and stormwater runoff into lakes, streams, creeks and other bodies of water. Photo courtesy of University of Missouri

 

The EPA is calling for comments about draft policies and procedures for the initial screening of pesticide chemicals under the agency’s Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program. The comments should focus on the specific policies and related procedures that EPA will follow to impose data requirements, minimize duplicate testing, promote equitable cost-sharing, and protect confidential business information.

The EDSP was established in response to the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, which requires EPA to develop a screening program to identify pesticide chemicals that may have effects on the endocrine system. This provision was enacted in response to growing scientific evidence that humans, domestic animals, and fish and wildlife species have exhibited adverse health consequences from exposure to environmental chemicals that interact with their endocrine systems. Health effects attributed to endocrine disrupting compounds include a range of reproductive problems and skewed male/female sex ratios, changes in hormone levels; brain and behavior problems; impaired immune functions; and various cancers.

EPA will require the use of validated assays to screen pesticides, commercial chemicals, and environmental contaminants in relation to estrogen, androgen, and thyroid hormones.

For more information: www.epa.gov/scipoly/oscpendo/pubs/regaspects/index.htm.