New York Passes Bill to Ban Dow’s Brain-Damaging Pesticide Chlorpyrifos

April 30, 2019

ALBANY, N.Y. – The New York Legislature today passed a bill (S.5343/A.2477B) banning all use of the toxic pesticide chlorpyrifos by Dec. 1, 2021. New York’s deadline for ending the use of chlorpyrifos will make it the first state to stop use of the chemical. Hawaii was the first state to pass a ban on chlorpyrifos, but New York’s legislation will end all uses more than a year before Hawaii.

Tiffany Finck-Haynes, pesticides and pollinators program manager, issued the following statement in response:

In banning this dangerous chemical, New York legislators are prioritizing public health and the environment. Gov. Cuomo should protect New Yorkers from Dow’s brain-damaging pesticide by signing this legislation into law.

When Trump’s EPA allowed the continued use of toxic chlorpyrifos despite the advice of its scientists, states like New York were compelled to take action. New York and Hawaii have put the health of our nation’s children ahead of chemical industry profits. We hope other states will do the same.

During the legislative session, more than 100 New York scientists and academics sent a letter to the legislature in support of the legislation. Dozens of public health, farmer, farmworker and environmental organizations endorsed the bill and thousands of New Yorkers called and emailed their legislators in support of the legislation.

In 2015, after extensive study, Environmental Protection Agency scientists confirmed that chlorpyrifos could not be considered safe at any detectable level. In 2017, the Trump administration overrode the recommendations of EPA’s own scientists to ban the use of chlorpyrifos.

Last week, federal courts ruled that the EPA has 90 days to decide whether to discontinue its use.

Chlorpyrifos is highly toxic and is linked to brain damage in children, autism, cancer and Parkinson’s disease. It also poses a risk to roughly 1,800 critically threatened or endangered species and is the second most harmful pesticide for pollinators.

Expert contact: Tiffany Finck-Haynes, (202) 222-0715, [email protected]

Communications contact: Patrick Davis, (202) 222-0744, [email protected]