In historic move, EPA bans pesticide; cites alarming setbacks for fetuses

For the first time in 40 years, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has taken emergency action to suspend the use of a pesticide found to cause irreversible damage to fetuses when they're exposed in utero.  

The pesticide, dimethyl tetrachloroterephthalate, also known as DCPA or Dacthal, has been linked to low birth weight babies who later in life have been shown to have decreased IQ and impaired brain development and motor skills.

“DCPA is so dangerous that it needs to be removed from the market immediately," Michal Freedhoff, assistant administrator for the EPA's Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention, said in a statement Tuesday. 

According to an EPA report, the pesticide was first introduced in 1958 to control weeds in agricultural and non-agricultural settings, primarily for crops like broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage and onions. Pregnant women in many cases may not have known they were exposed, Freedhoff said. 

The emergency action comes after the sole manufacturer of the pesticide, AMVAC Chemical Corporation, failed to provide sufficient data on DCPA and its health risks, according to the statement. The company did not immediately respond to USA TODAY's request for comment. 

The EPA first identified this pesticide as potentially causing harm to the thyroid in the 1990s, according to the advocacy organization the Environmental Working Group. By then, the agency reported that 80% of DCPA use occurred on turf grass, like golf courses and private lawns. 

In 2023, the EPA released an assessment of the pesticide, concluding it was linked to health risks, especially for pregnant women, even when people exposed to it were using personal protective equipment. The agency said pregnant women may have been exposed to levels of DCPA up to 20 times greater than what the EPA estimates are safe for fetuses.

Although the manufacturer AMVAC proposed changes, the EPA said those changes did not “adequately address” the serious health risks for people who work with and around DCPA.

Mily Treviño Sauceda, executive director of Alianza Nacional de Campesinas, an organization representing women farmworkers, said the group is pleased to see the EPA make this historic decision as a "great first step" to protecting farmworkers. 

"EPA knew that DCPA was harming farmworkers and their children, and we're glad that EPA recognized that that harm to this population group required immediate suspension or removal of this toxic pesticide," said Sylvia Wu, an attorney with the Center for Food Safety, which has advocated for the EPA to stop the use of DCPA.

Adrianna Rodriguez can be reached at adrodriguez@usatoday.com.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: EPA bans Dacthal, herbicide harmful to fetuses in emergency action