Democrats challenge EPA ruling on human testing of pesticides

EPA spokeswoman Jennifer Wood said the agency always works to ensure the health and safety of the most vulnerable populations, including pregnant women and children.

Congress in July 2005 imposed a one-year moratorium on testing pesticides on humans and gave EPA six months to issue a new rule to prevent testing on pregnant women and children.

That occurred after Boxer and Nelson demanded that EPA cancel an industry-backed pesticide study on the families of 60 children in Duval County, Fla. They had been due to receive children's clothes, a camcorder and $970 for participating.

EPA in January for the first time established criteria for tests by pesticide makers on human subjects and said it would not approve any new such testing involving pregnant women and children. Wood said Thursday, however, that in rare cases EPA would accept pesticide test data involving pregnant women and children, but only if that data indicated that a more stringent health standard is needed to further restrict use of the pesticide.

NRDC then sued EPA over the new rule for what the group called 'unethical, illegal human pesticide testing.'

In a friend-of-the-court brief, Nelson, Boxer and Solis urged a federal appeals court to order EPA to create a new rule that complies with Congress's intent to ban testing on pregnant women, infants and children.

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