NRDC Report Takes a Hard Look at Atrazine

Following weekend reports from the New York Times and the Huffington Post about the levels of atrazine found in tap water, the Natural Resources Defense Council released a report (PDF) yesterday showing dramatic spikes in atrazine levels found in tap water in the Midwest and South during the summer, when farmers spray fields.

From the Washington Post:

"The Environmental Protection Agency looks at annual average levels of the chemical in drinking-water systems, but the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) says this misses spikes likely to occur after rain and springtime application of the herbicide."

The NRDC is calling on the EPA to ban the herbicide, as the Europeans did in 2004, but beyond that, they're asking for increased testing and more transparency.

"[P]eople who live downstream of atrazine-treated fields have a right to know about high levels of atrazine contamination in their watersheds or drinking water systems. A publicly available website posting sampling data as it is analyzed and regular reports about spikes of atrazine contamination would be a strong step in the right direction, providing accessible information to the public."

Below are two graphics that accompanied a recent New York Times article (note that Arizona is mislabeled).

-Mark

Comments

[Tyrone Hayes]

The Environmental Protection Agency looks at annual average levels of the chemical in drinking-water systems, but the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) says this misses spikes likely to occur after rain and springtime application of the herbicide.