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When #pregnant #farmworkers & others are exposed to the #pesticide, their #babies can experience changes to fetal #thyroid hormone levels, which are linked to low #birth weight, impaired #brain development, decreased #IQ & #impaired #MotorSkills later in life.

“#DCPA is so dangerous that it needs to be removed from the market immediately,” Michal Freedhoff, asst admin for the #EPA’s Office of #Chemical Safety & #Pollution Prevention, said.

“It’s #EPA’s job to protect people from exposure to #dangerous #chemicals. In this case, #pregnant women who may never even know they were exposed could give #birth to #babies that experience #irreversible lifelong #health problems.”

The sole manufacturer of the #pesticide, #AMVAC, had sought to avoid the #emergency action. The co had voluntarily pulled all #DCPA products used on turf, reducing the risks to golfers, athletes & workers who maintain turf.

But in a March letter to #AMVAC, #EPA ofcls wrote that this voluntary step was not sufficient to protect #farmworkers & others exposed to the #herbicide. The ofcls wrote that changes to #thyroid hormone levels in the #fetuses of #pregnant rats exposed to #DCPA suggested “serious #risks of concern in #humans.”

…The #EmergencyAction order Tues suspends all registrations of the #pesticide….

Mily Treviño Sauceda, Alianza Nacional de Campesinas, aka the National #Farmworkers #Women’s Alliance exec dir, praised the #EPA’s action.
“As an organization led by farmworker women, we know intimately the harm that #pesticides, including… #DCPA or #Dacthal, can inflict on our bodies & communities….This #emergency decision is a great first step that we hope will be in a series of others that are based on listening to farmworkers, protecting our #ReproductiveHealth, & safeguarding our families.”

@dashrb brave in an era of cowards