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Pesticide News Story: EPA Publishes Final Rules to Update and Clarify Data Requirements for Pesticides
For Release: November 8, 2007
EPA has published final rules to update and clarify the data requirements for conventional pesticides (40 CFR Part 158) and for biochemical and microbial pesticides (40 CFR Part 158 subparts U & V). The provisions contained in the final rules will be effective on December 26, 2007.
The revisions will standardize data requirements and provide greater certainty and predictability to registrants of conventional, biochemical, and microbial pesticides. These final rules will improve the Agency’s ability to make regulatory decisions about the human health and environmental effects of these pesticide products.
Since data requirements were first codified in 1984, EPA’s scientific understanding of the potential hazards and other characteristics of pesticides has changed. The former data requirements, which were outlined in a series of tables in 40 CFR Part 158, in many cases no longer reflect the current practices for registration. Additionally, the Agency’s legislative mandate has broadened to address new concerns, such as differential exposure of population subgroups. These final rules codify current practices, improve the information describing when data are required, and introduce a few additional requirements.
Data requirements contained in the final rules cover an array of scientific studies for evaluating whether a pesticide has the potential to cause harmful effects on humans and non-target organisms or enter surface water or ground water from leaching, runoff, and spray drift.
The Federal Register Notices announcing these actions are available for Conventional Pesticides are now available; and for Biochemical and Microbial Pesticides. EPA has established a docket for these actions available at regulations.gov Web site. The docket identification number for Conventional Pesticides is EPA-HQ-OPP-2007-0938, and for Biochemical and Microbial Pesticides is EPA-HQ-OPP-2004-0415.
As part of this action, EPA established a new section, called Part 161, to contain the existing antimicrobial data requirements until those requirements are also updated, see the Federal Register Notice for further information.