Tag: epa

Trump Orders EPA Framework to ‘Release Into the Environment’ Modified, Bacteria-Based Mosquito and Tick Technologies Without Informed Consent

President Donald Trump ordered the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to create a regulatory framework for the “planned development and release into the environment” of mosquito- and tick-control technologies, according to a September 29 executive order published by the White House.

The executive order says that framework must consider “sterilization techniques, safe genetic modification, and use of safe, beneficial bacteria.”

  • Where is the informed consent?
  • What exactly will be released?
  • What has been modified?
  • Which bacteria will be used?
  • What else will the resulting products contain or carry?
  • How far can they travel?
  • Who monitors unintended exposure?
  • Who is liable if something goes wrong?
  • And how does an American who does not consent keep a released organism off their body and off their property?

The executive order does not say.

I do not consent.

You can contact the White House here.

Keep reading

Revealed: the undisclosed safety data emerging as weedkiller maker faces Parkinson’s lawsuits in US

Sweden started ringing the alarm bell more than 20 years ago, calling for a ban on the weedkilling chemical paraquat in 2004. One by one, dozens of other countries did the same as evidence of paraquat risks to human health mounted. Even the Chinese government, which owns the longtime paraquat maker Syngenta, halted domestic use of the pesticide a decade ago after conducting its own studies on paraquat safety and finding troubling results.

In the US, two states – Vermont and California – have recently also banned paraquat, citing risks that include an association between paraquat and Parkinson’s disease shown in years of scientific research. And California regulators announced in August that paraquat makers voluntarily agreed to stop selling the chemical after the state identified health concerns in connection with its use in new research. Several federal lawmakers have pushed for a nationwide ban.

Yet amid the global cloud of concern, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) continues to greenlight paraquat use on millions of acres, and has downplayed scientific findings linking paraquat to Parkinson’s, an incurable brain disease. The agency said in June it would hold a round table over the summer to re-examine the “safety challenges” associated with paraquat. But no such event has yet been held or scheduled.

Now, clues to how and why the US remains one of the world’s last large markets for widespread paraquat use are coming to light through troves of internal Syngenta records recently revealed through litigation.

The records show that as paraquat markets around the world started crumbling over concerns for public health, Syngenta, a Swiss-headquartered multinational, fought to keep a tight hold on the US market, where use of paraquat nearly tripled between 2000 and 2018, a time period when dozens of other countries were banning paraquat.

Internal corporate records, depositions and other records show that before and during this time frame, Syngenta did not share certain internal data and other information with the EPA regarding paraquat health effects and risks despite federal legal requirements for companies to report information about “unreasonable adverse effects” of their products.

Among the data not shared by Syngenta were analyses of how quickly the chemical could permeate untreated clothing; how fast it could absorb into an applicator’s skin and bloodstream. The company also did not share some information about how mixing paraquat with surfactants increases the chemical’s absorption. Surfactants are additives commonly used by farm workers to help herbicides overcome the waxy, water-repellent surface of their leaves. Certain information demonstrating dire risks to the brain from exposure was also not shared with the EPA.

In contrast, the company focused on developing and promoting science showing paraquat safety that it could share with regulators, including one published in 2016 that company insiders noted would be “invaluable in supporting our work”.

Keep reading

Trump EPA rolls back PFAS protections as 176 million Americans face contaminated tap water

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) withdrew Biden-era guidance in August 2026 that had encouraged states to use existing Clean Water Act authority to prevent toxic PFAS chemicals from entering drinking water supplies. The move comes as new EPA data reveals 176 million Americans—4 million more than previously known—drink tap water contaminated by these “forever chemicals.” The rollback affects guidance that directed regulators to require industrial facilities like chemical manufacturers to test wastewater for PFAS and implement cleanup technology. This reversal has alarmed public health advocates, who argue that without federal pressure, many facilities will simply halt voluntary testing and discharge reduction efforts. The guidance withdrawal also removes a critical tool for states trying to curb pollution at its source, before it reaches rivers and reservoirs used for drinking water. Experts warn that this decision effectively shifts the burden of proof and cleanup costs onto local water utilities and taxpayers, rather than the industries that produce and release these persistent toxins.

The scale of contamination

Independent research from the Environmental Working Group (EWG) estimated in 2020 that more than 200 million Americans could have PFAS in their drinking water at concentrations of 1 part per trillion (ppt) or higher—a level that independent scientists and EWG consider the maximum safe threshold. The new EPA data confirms contamination is worsening, with 2,230 locations across 49 states now known to have PFAS contamination. The chemicals have been detected in major metropolitan areas including Miami, Philadelphia and New Orleans. Furthermore, a peer-reviewed study published in Environmental Science & Technology Letters analyzed data from the EPA, U.S. Geological Survey and multiple states, concluding that PFAS are likely detectable in all major U.S. water supplies, especially those using surface water. The study’s lead author emphasized that drinking water remains a significant source of exposure, and that the new findings show PFAS pollution affects even more Americans than previously estimated.

A pattern of regulatory reversal

The August memo represents the third major PFAS rollback under the current administration. In May 2026, the EPA proposed rescinding federal limits for four PFAS chemicals—GenX, PFBS, PFNA and PFHxS—that the Biden administration had set in 2024. The agency also abandoned a risk assessment of PFAS-contaminated sewage sludge used as fertilizer, despite its own 2026 analysis finding that even low levels of PFOA and PFOS in sludge could elevate cancer risk. Critics note a troubling disconnect: While the EPA’s own interim safety levels previously acknowledged that “new science” indicates negative health effects may occur with PFOA or PFOS concentrations “near zero,” the agency’s current regulations propose limits considerably higher than what its own scientists deemed safe. This shift, according to advocacy groups like EWG, reflects undue influence from the chemical industry, which continues to fight stringent regulation of the 12,000 PFAS chemicals in commercial use.

Health costs of inaction

PFAS, used since the 1940s in nonstick cookware, food packaging, firefighting foam and countless industrial applications, never break down in the environment—earning them the name “forever chemicals.” The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has found these chemicals in the blood of virtually every American, including newborns. Peer-reviewed studies link very low doses—even below 1 ppt—to suppressed immune systems, elevated cancer risk, reproductive and developmental harm, and reduced effectiveness of medications in children. A 2018 CDC review challenged the EPA’s earlier safety determinations, finding health threats at levels far below what the agency had considered safe. Despite this growing body of evidence, the EPA has only issued an inadequate lifetime health advisory of 70 ppt for PFOA and PFOS, a level many scientists consider dangerously high. With no national drinking water standard currently enforceable, communities remain exposed to a cocktail of toxic chemicals that accumulate in their bodies over a lifetime.

Keep reading

EPA fast-tracks fluoride review as evidence of harm to children mounts

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has taken a major step toward determining whether the fluoride added to most Americans’ tap water poses a danger to children’s developing brains, announcing a new scientific protocol that will examine links between fluoride exposure and reduced IQ. The move comes as mounting research—including studies funded by the National Institutes of Health and a landmark federal court ruling—has forced regulators to accelerate a review originally not due until 2030.

EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced the release of the Protocol for Developing the Fluoride Human Health Toxicity Assessment on August 3, calling it a milestone in the agency’s expedited review under the Safe Drinking Water Act.

“Every American should be able to count on safe and healthy drinking water, plain and simple,” Zeldin said. “In light of new science and real concerns from the public, the Trump EPA is working in lockstep with HHS to expedite our review of fluoride under the Safe Drinking Water Act.”

What the protocol covers

The new protocol lays out how the agency will conduct a dose-response analysis to pin down what levels of fluoride exposure cause harm. The review will look specifically at children’s brain development, including effects on IQ, along with dental fluorosis — the staining and pitting of tooth enamel linked to fluoride overexposure.

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. framed the review as a matter of parental rights and scientific transparency.

“Parents deserve the truth about fluoride in drinking water—not assumptions, not politics, but rigorous science,” Kennedy said. “That is why HHS is working side by side with EPA to ensure this assessment focuses on the health risks that matter most for children, including neurodevelopmental effects and dental fluorosis. By conducting a rigorous dose-response analysis and making every step of the process transparent, we will give states, communities, and families the scientific foundation they need to make informed decisions about fluoride in drinking water.”

Keep reading

The End EPA Abuse Act targets regulatory overreach and the climate hysteria baked into onerous regulations

The conflict between the EPA and congressional conservatives is not a recent development, but rather the culmination of decades of increasingly aggressive interpretations of the Clean Air Act. Originally enacted in 1970 to address visible air pollution, the statute has been used by successive administrations, particularly under Presidents Obama and Biden, to pursue broader climate policy objectives that many legal scholars argue were never intended by Congress.

The Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan, which sought to shift the nation’s electricity generation away from coal, was struck down by the Supreme Court in 2022 under the major questions doctrine, which holds that agencies cannot make decisions of vast economic and political significance without clear congressional authorization. The Biden regime continued this approach by pushing electric vehicle mandates and greenhouse gas standards that functioned as indirect bans on traditional combustion engines, according to the bill’s supporters.

Senator Lee did not mince words when describing the EPA’s actions, stating, “They’ve exploited any power they can grab to push Biden and Obama’s climate psychosis at the expense of our energy security.” The senator’s language reflects a growing frustration among conservatives with what they perceive as a regulatory assault on American industry.

Senator Lummis echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the importance of restoring power to elected officials, noting, “The End EPA Abuse Act puts Congress back in the driver’s seat where we belong.” Representative Clyde, who introduced the House companion bill, specifically called out the Biden administration’s approach, saying the EPA “increasingly treated the Clean Air Act as a blank check to push de facto electric vehicle mandates, jeopardize reliable energy sources, and impose costly regulations on American consumers and businesses.”

One of the most contentious aspects of the bill is its prohibition on waivers granted to California, which has historically received special permission under the Clean Air Act to set stricter emissions standards than the federal government. Due to California’s enormous market size, its regulations effectively dictate vehicle production decisions for the entire nation, as automakers cannot afford to produce separate vehicle lines for different states. The bill would eliminate this waiver authority, which supporters argue would return market forces to the automobile industry and bring down costs for all Americans. Democrats contend that California’s leadership has driven innovation in vehicle emissions technology for decades, and removing the waiver could weaken environmental protections in states that choose to adopt stricter standards.

Keep reading

New Forever Chemicals Coming to US Farms

If the goal is truly to Make America Healthy Again, then the latest decision from the Environmental Protection Agency raises serious questions. According to the article you sent, the EPA has approved two new fluorinated pesticides, diflufenican and epyrifenacil, for use on some of America’s most important crops, including corn, soybeans, and wheat. Neither chemical has previously been approved for use in American agriculture.

Environmental groups argue these compounds qualify as PFAS, or “forever chemicals,” under internationally recognized scientific definitions because they can persist in the environment and eventually degrade into trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), an extremely persistent fluorinated compound found in groundwater around the world. The EPA disputes that characterization, maintaining the products do not meet its regulatory definition of PFAS and that they can be used safely according to their labels.

Diflufenican has already become controversial in Europe. Denmark banned its use in part because of concerns that it contributes to TFA contamination of groundwater, while German monitoring has detected TFA in a large percentage of tested wells. Epyrifenacil has reportedly never received approval for agricultural use within the European Union. Whether those regulatory decisions ultimately prove right or wrong, they demonstrate that this is hardly an uncontested scientific issue. Governments around the world are reaching different conclusions about the same chemicals, yet American consumers are expected to assume there is nothing to debate.

Keep reading

EPA Delivers on Trump’s ‘Freedom to Fix’ Affordability Policy for Vehicle, Equipment Repairs

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on Wednesday it is advancing the freedom to fix all vehicles and equipment to ensure that Americans do not have to pay higher costs for repairs.

“Within 30 days of issuing his Presidential Memorandum, President Trump wanted EPA to act. We have operated at Trump speed and provided relief to American operators within just two days,” EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in a written statement. “The freedom to fix allows operators to fix broken machinery easier and faster. Today’s action builds on the great work the Trump Administration has accomplished to lower costs for hard-working Americans.”

The EPA is issuing guidance under the Clean Air Act (CAA) affirming that equipment manufacturers must provide access to the information and tools necessary for timely and affordable repairs, including Diesel Exhaust Fluid (DEF) and other environmental control systems.

The agency’s move to ensure affordability follows as President Donald Trump signed a presidential memo to ensure that consumers and aftermarket-parts manufacturers can have regulatory certainty about whether aftermarket products can be used in repairs due to the CAA’s prohibition on tampering with emissions controls.

Manufacturers have worked to give consumers and independent repair shops the diagnostic tools and information they provide to franchised dealers. Despite this, Clean Air Act anti-tampering laws have created regulatory ambiguity about whether giving out certain tools and information would be considering enabling the tampering of emission control systems.

This has forced many truckers, famers, and others to take their vehicles and equipment to be done by manufacturers instead of being repaired at home or by a local repair shop.

The EPA’s guidance clarifies that light-, medium-, and heavy-duty vehicle manufacturers have a longstanding obligation to release the service information, training information, and tools to diagnose and repair vehicles, especially including faulty DEF systems.

The EPA also recognized the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) as an alternative certification authority for aftermarket vehicle parts. Now, American can use SEMA’s Certified Emission (SC-E) Program to show compliance with the CAA and verify that approved aftermarket parts do not negatively impact vehicle emissions.

“Today, the EPA has verified what SEMA for years has told regulators at the state and federal levels: that the automotive aftermarket industry has a precise mechanism to support emissions testing compliance with federal laws, and it’s called SEMA Certified-Emissions,” said SEMA CEO Mike Spagnola in a written statement.

Keep reading

Paraquat poison: The toxic herbicide still killing Americans while EPA looks the other way

In this quiet southeast corner of the state, home to roughly 20,000 people surrounded by forest and farmland, a deadly secret hangs in the air. The Sipcam Agro plant here processes the toxic herbicide paraquat, making it the largest single emitter of the chemical in the entire United States. And the residents are paying the price with their lives.

Wayne County’s Parkinson’s disease death rate ranks in the top 7% of all U.S. counties reporting such deaths between 2018 and 2024. This is no coincidence. The evidence linking paraquat to Parkinson’s — the world’s fastest-growing incurable neurodegenerative disease — has accumulated for decades, yet the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency continues to allow this poison on American soil.

A history of corporate deception

The story of paraquat reads like a criminal conspiracy. Syngenta and its corporate predecessors knew about the dangers as early as the 1950s, when Imperial Chemical Industries researchers found that paraquat caused central nervous system damage in lab animals. Internal documents now emerging in court show company executives worried about long-term liability as early as the 1980s.

Chevron, which once partnered with Syngenta to sell paraquat, left the business in 1986. While the company claims market forces drove this decision, internal memos reveal top executives were terrified of the legal consequences. Canadian researchers had already found an “extraordinarily high correlation” between Parkinson’s disease and paraquat use.

The EPA’s capture by industry

The EPA’s track record with toxic chemicals speaks for itself. After previously seeking public comment on banning paraquat in 2019 and recommending restrictions on aerial applications, the agency reversed course in 2021, re-registering the poison for 15 more years. The decision was based largely on evidence provided by the Agricultural Handler Exposure Task Force — an industry advocacy group founded by none other than Syngenta.

This is the same pattern we’ve seen with glyphosate, PFAS and countless other hazardous chemicals. The revolving door between industry and regulatory agencies ensures that profits come before public health. Kelsey Barnes, now a senior adviser to USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins, was previously a manager of federal government relations for Syngenta.

Keep reading

Legal Notice Filed to Force EPA to Set Water Standards for Atrazine, a Pesticide Linked to Cancer

Conservation and public health groups filed a formal notice on Thursday, May 28, with Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin to force the agency to develop water-quality standards for atrazine, a pesticide linked to cancer, according to the groups.

According to the notice, atrazine has been found at dangerous levels in thousands of U.S. waterways and in drinking-water supplies. The filing is a required step before the groups can sue the EPA under the Clean Water Act. [1][2]

Atrazine is the second most widely used pesticide in the United States, with tens of millions of pounds applied annually on corn and other crops. The World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer in 2025 classified atrazine as “probably carcinogenic to humans,” according to a report from NaturalNews.com. [2] Since 1999, cancer has been the leading cause of premature death in the United States for those under age 85, according to the book “Taking Action, Saving Lives” by Kristin Shrader-Frechette. [3]

The herbicide is banned in more than 60 countries due to links to birth defects, cancers and fertility problems, reported Children’s Health Defense. [4] Atrazine has been shown to disrupt endocrine systems and cause reproductive abnormalities in wildlife, including turning male frogs into hermaphrodites, according to a 2007 report from NaturalNews.com. [5]

The 1972 Clean Water Act regulates discharges into U.S. waterways, but toxic runoff from agriculture continues to pollute, according to a Frontline report cited by Mercola.com. [6] The act requires the EPA to develop water-quality criteria for pollutants; the agency initiated that step in 1999 but never completed it, according to the groups.

Keep reading

‘Forever Chemicals’ in Drinking Water? What Is the EPA Up To?

Much controversy has surrounded the May 18 announcement by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of proposed rule changes to Biden administration regulations that direct the cleanup of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, in Americans’ drinking water.

Health & Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., said he strongly supports the EPA’s new tack. “I’ve read a couple of articles in the corporate media that suggest that EPA is trying to roll back PFAS regulations. It’s not true. I’ve met repeatedly with Lee and his staff, and they’re completely committed to end the exposures in a way that’s legal and practical.”

Kennedy continued, “As Lee pointed out, the Biden administration passed a [regulation] very hastily in which they ignored a Clean Water Act mandate for a public comment period . . . I can tell you, that was a fatal flaw.”

The HHS Secretary added that the Biden regulation wouldn’t withstand a court challenge and would be thrown out. “We’re doing it in a way that maintains the … maximum contaminant Safe Drinking Act levels, and gives maximum protection as quickly as possible for the American public.”

Despite widespread criticism from the legacy media and many in the MAHA base, I agree with Secretary Kennedy: the recent EPA policy shift signals an acceleration of PFAS cleanup, not a dangerous step backward.

Keep reading