(AGENPARL) – lun 01 aprile 2024 Issued: Apr 1, 2024 (2:33pm EDT)
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EPA warns farmworkers about risks of Dacthal
Agency developing next steps to address risks
WASHINGTON — Today, April 1, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is
announcing its next steps to protect people from the herbicide dimethyl
tetrachloroterephthalate (DCPA, or Dacthal). EPA is warning people of the
significant health risks to pregnant individuals and their developing babies
exposed to DCPA and will be pursuing action to address the serious, permanent,
and irreversible health risks associated with the pesticide as quickly as
possible. EPA has also issued a letter to AMVAC, the sole manufacturer of
DCPA, restating the risks the agency found and stating that due to the serious
risks posed by DCPA, the agency is pursuing further action to protect workers
and others who could be exposed. EPA is taking this rare step of warning
farmworkers about these concerns while it works on action to protect workers
because of the significant risks the agency has identified.
“DCPA exposure represents a serious risk to pregnant workers and their
children, so it’s imperative that we warn people about those risks now,”
said Assistant Administrator for the Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution
Prevention Michal Freedhoff. “We’re committed to taking action to protect
the health of children, workers, and others who are exposed to DCPA.”
DCPA is an herbicide registered to control weeds in both agricultural and
non-agricultural settings, but is primarily used on crops such as broccoli,
Brussels sprouts, cabbage and onions.
DCPA is currently undergoing registration review, a process that requires
reevaluating registered pesticides every 15 years to ensure they cause no
unreasonable adverse effects on human health or the environment. In May 2023,
EPA released its assessment on the risks of occupational and residential
exposure to products containing DCPA, after the agency reviewed data that it
compelled AMVAC to submit, which had been overdue for almost 10 years. The
assessment found concerning evidence of health risks associated with DCPA use
and application, even when personal protective equipment and engineering
controls are used. The most serious risks extend to the developing babies of
pregnant individuals. EPA estimates that some pregnant individuals handling
DCPA products could be subjected to exposures from four to 20 times greater
than what current DCPA product label use instructions indicate is considered
safe. EPA is concerned that pregnant women exposed to DCPA could experience
changes to fetal thyroid hormone levels, and these changes are generally
linked to low birth weight, impaired brain development, decreased IQ, and
impaired motor skills later in life.
Also of concern are risks to developing babies of pregnant individuals
entering or working in areas where DCPA has already been applied (especially
post-application workers involved in tasks such as transplanting, weeding and
harvesting). Current product labels specify that entry into treated fields
must be restricted for 12 hours after application. However, the evidence
indicates that for many crops and tasks, levels of DCPA in the previously
treated fields remained at unsafe levels for 25 days or more. EPA also
identified potential risks for individuals using golf courses and athletic
fields after DCPA was applied. Spray drift from pesticide application could
also put developing babies at risk for pregnant individuals living near areas
where DCPA is used.
Since the release of EPA’s 2023 assessment, AMVAC has proposed several
changes to the DCPA registrations, including the recent cancelation of all
DCPA products registered for use on turf. Those cancelations eliminate
exposures to DCPA from recreational activities on and around turf. However,
according to EPA’s analysis, other proposals submitted by AMVAC do not
adequately address the serious health risks for people who work with and
around DCPA. EPA is therefore preparing to take further action under the
Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA) as quickly as
possible to protect people from the risks of DCPA.
When serious risks are identified, EPA can take action under FIFRA to suspend
or cancel a pesticide. These actions are resource-intensive and take time to
implement, partly due to the procedural requirements of FIFRA. A cancelation
proceeding would take at least several months (if uncontested by the
registrant), and potentially several years to accommodate a potential
administrative hearing and any subsequent appeal of an order of cancelation
(if the registrant contests the action). FIFRA also allows EPA to seek a
suspension of a pesticide product while cancelation proceedings are ongoing if
the Administrator determines it is necessary to prevent an imminent hazard. An
administrative hearing and final order on a suspension proceeding (if the
action is contested) would likely take several months to conclude. However,
the Administrator may also issue an order of suspension—effective
immediately on issuance—if he determines that an emergency exists such that
an administrative hearing cannot be held before suspending. Any final order of
suspension would remain in effect until cancelation proceedings end.  EPA is
considering these tools as it moves forward with the DCPA registration review,
but in light of the serious risks posed by DCPA, chose to warn the public of
them at this time as it continues its work.
Background on EPA’s Review of DCPA 
In 2013, the agency issued a Data Call-In (DCI) to AMVAC, requiring it to
submit more than 20 studies to support the existing registrations of DCPA. The
data required by EPA included a comprehensive study of the effects of DCPA on
thyroid development and function in adults and in developing babies before
birth. Several of the studies submitted by AMVAC from 2013-2021 were
considered insufficient to address the DCI, while the thyroid study and other
studies were not submitted at all. In April 2022, EPA issued a Notice of
Intent to Suspend the DCPA technical-grade product (used to manufacture
end-use products) based on AMVAC’s failure to submit the complete set of
required data for almost 10 years, including data on DCPA’s thyroid
toxicity. On Aug. 22, 2023, the agency suspended the registration for the DCPA
technical-grade product, a rare but necessary step given AMVAC’s delay in
providing the data EPA requested nearly a decade before. In November 2023 the
suspension was lifted after AMVAC submitted sufficient data. DCPA use on turf
was voluntarily canceled by AMVAC in December 2023, but unacceptable risks
from agricultural use remained.  
Supporting documents are available in the DCPA registration review docket
EPA-HQ-OPP-2011-0374 on the Regulations.gov page.
Read EPA’s Response to AMVAC’s Mitigation Proposal.
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