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Sierra Club and Allies Act to Stop Use of Toxic Pesticide that will Exacerbate Global Warming

Case Updates:

July 21, 2009

On July 10, 2009, a coalition of environmental groups, including Sierra Club, sent a letter to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, asking the Agency to deny a request from Dow AgroSciences for a permit allowing it to release large amounts of a highly potent greenhouse gas onto farm fields in four states. The chemical, sulfuryl fluoride, is a toxic pesticide whose global warming effects are thousands of times stronger than carbon dioxide.

Dow AgroSciences proposes using the chemical to sterilize soil in farm fields. The permit would allow the release of 32,435 pounds of sulfuryl fluoride on 65 acres of test plots in Florida, Georgia, Texas, and California. Dow intends to sell this chemical to farms across the country if this test goes well.

In addition to being a potent greenhouse gas, sulfuryl fluoride is highly toxic and likely poses significant human health and ecological risks. To date, the Agency has not carefully reviewed the health risks for those exposed to the chemical or considered the impacts of the releases on endangered species and other wildlife. The groups’ letter asks the Agency to take a hard look at these impacts before considering issuing the permit.

Details and Documents: